Telecommuting Tips, Advice, and Best Practices

A press release was just sent out by Plantronics coining a new term for Telecommuters, “cloudworkers.” According to their survey, the term Telecommuter is seen as obsolete and not accurately portraying today’s mobile workers. The new term also came with a definition, “a cloudworker is somebody who uses on-demand technology and collaboration tools, such as unified communications, to work anywhere and anytime, and uses the resulting freedom to enable a my-size-fits-me career path and lifestyle. The metaphor of the cloud extends well beyond cloud computing and software as a service applications to include work environments, distributed teams, and communication tools.” The term came from Venkatesh Rao from New York.

What are your thoughts on this term? My personal opinion, is I kind of like it. If you think about the technological diagrams that you have most likely seen in any powerpoint presentation they always have these “clouds” drawn around figures and various pieces of technology. In fact, we even use it in one of our presentations where we have two clouds, one with an office building and one with a home worker. These two clouds are then connected by some electrical wires and phone lines, and this is to symbolize that mobile workers, are simply an extension of your office workforce.

Interesting that this would be the term chosen, but I can see how the “cloud” would appropriately represent all the technology people would need to be a Remote or “cloud” worker; however notice I didn’t say would need in order to be “successful.” I still believe that all the technology in the world won’t make someone successful with Remote or Cloud working. Success will come from proven performance metrics that are formally developed and accurately tracked. If you would like more information on such performance metrics please feel free to contact me directly. What do you think of this term? Post a comment and let us know!

Brandon Dempsey
1-888-878-4832
Brandon@suitecommute.com

A new report was released today on a possible Bird Flu outbreak in Indonesia. To see the article click here. In this article it talks about a hospital that has admitted 17 patients, with the potential Bird Flu virus. While I cannot say whether the Bird Flu has made the jump to human-human transmission or not, I can say that business continuity and COOP planners should take notice. Pandemic planning has become a major part of many employer’s and the government’s continuity plans and the subject of a recent tabletop exercise I helped facilitate.

The instance in Indonesia supports the World Health Organization’s claim that a pandemic is coming. It is not a matter of “if”, but a matter of “when.” Unfortunately, the most likely strain of the next pandemic is the current “Bird Flu” strain H5N1, with a mortality rate near 80%. Because of this high mortality rate, governments worldwide are taking steps to prepare.

The exercise I helped to facilitate brought in 150 leaders from various federal and local government agencies for a one day pandemic planning exercise. During this exercise we broke up the participants into various groups and walked asked them about their current plans. The moderators, flown in from Washington D.C. and senior members of the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA, had “mock” videos created that simulated what “CNN” newscasts might look like. As the exercise continued over the course of the day, pandemic threat levels and transmission rates steadily rose.

The first outbreak started in Indonesia (coincidence?) and we discussed how the agencies would respond internally. It was discussed that first outbreak most likely would not be reported until weeks later, since many Indonesian and Asian governments are not fully cooperating or actively monitoring reports of the outbreak. The agencies at my table talked about how they would step up the “family preparedness” materials that were disseminated to their employees. They talked about increasing hand hygiene and trying to reassure employees.

The next phase, was a news reporter coming on “air” and talking about the spread of the flu from Indonesia to Japan, and what was happening in Japan. Still the agencies at my table talked about stepping up their employee’s personal preparedness and discussed limiting travel from their agency to Asian countries.

The third phase was rather interesting with a report claiming that a businessman, recently on a trip back from Japan, had passed through LA and then on to another city. The virus had now reached the US. The agencies at my table decided that this was the trigger they needed to enact their response plans. Sanitation efforts were stepped up and employees encouraged to wear personal protective equipment. Many agencies said that they did not currently have up to date Telecommuting Programs and that their fear was getting people to come to work, to work. Of course this is where we got into a rather deep conversation about what needed to be completed in order to prepare and discussed at great length the many facets of sustaining a workforce when a majority of them are working remotely.

The last 3 phases escalated the pandemic through all 5 phases of the pandemic. Employees were infected, many died, and the agencies were asked how they would respond to each of the different phases. This exercise forced many who had just been “writers” of their plan to test their plan against what experts predicted might happen.

What’s noteworthy here is that there is no “correct” response to any pandemic. What the participants walked away with was a better understanding of how to prepare and how their responses would be affected by other agencies’ responses. This last point, concerning inter-agency cooperation lies at the core of the entire exercise. The best way for the US to respond will take a coordinated response from Federal, State, and local governments combined with private businesses and families all working together to prevent the spread of a pandemic.

MoDot (Missouri Department of Transportation) announced today that it will be opening up the newly built half of our city’s major thoroughfare. This is great news, as it shows the project is ahead of schedule. However, this also means that second half will be closing.

This is going to be a big deal for St. Louis companies, because 35% of St. Louis County businesses are located along what’s known as the I-64 corridor! This means that local roads are going to become more congested and as people find new ways to work. This is the perfect time for companies on the Telecommuting Fence, to give it a try.

What appears to be a major headache for many, may actually be a chance to get a win for employees and employers who have been waiting for a good excuse to try Remote Work. I’d like to say that most of the companies I talk to, decide to try Remote Work because of all the environmental and employee benefits inherent with this form of work, but I would be lying. Often times there has to be a catalyst almost forcing them to explore this option for their employees. Are you an employee who wants to work from home a few days a week? Are you located near highway 64/40? Than ask you manager if during the beginning months of the closure, you could work remotely a few days a week?

This is a great opportunity for employees to breach the subject of Remote Work. Do you need some additional benefits or statistics to list that would help you sell Telecommuting to your boss? Read some of my earlier posts or check out: www.suitecommute.com/statistics for some additional ideas. Good luck!

Brandon Dempsey
1-888-878-4832
www.suitecommute.com

The Federal Government sees the vital role Telework/Telecommuting will play in America’s future for both the public and private sector. Let’s look at the latest steps.

President-Elect Barack-Obama has pledged to expand Telework for federal employees. In a series of October letters written to John Gage, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees, Obama claimed he would, “support efforts to bring paid family leave, flexible work schedules and increased Teleworking to the federal government.” This latest development further supports recent moves by the federal government to increase the amount of Teleworkers and government support for the private sector.

The Energy Independence Act of 2007, signed by President Bush, specifically charged the Small Business Administration with developing a 4 year pilot program that encourages telecommuting for small businesses. Allocating $5 million in funds, the SBA is instructed to conduct presentations on the benefits of telecommuting and reach out to businesses considering telecommuting.

Lastly, The Telework Improvements Act of 2008 passed by the House on June 3, 2008, is a measure that would require agencies to develop Telework programs that let eligible employees Telework at least 20 percent of their working hours every two weeks. Under the legislation, passed June 3, agencies would have to designate a senior-level employee as a Telework managing officer and incorporate Teleworking into their continuity-of-operations planning. In addition, the bill would require the comptroller general, the head of the Government Accountability Office, to submit an annual report to Congress that would evaluate agencies’ progress on their Telework programs.

What does all this mean for government employees and businesses considering Telework/Telecommuting? It means that both the private and public sector are going to see increased support for Remote Work Options. Telecommuting is a cheaper more productive way for organizations to get their work done. Combine that with the Real-Estate savings, increased employee productivity, better ability to attract and retain top talent, better employee work life balances, and of course increased Business Continuity capabilities, and you have the new standard of work for the 21^st Century.

Ready to get started?

Brandon Dempsey
SuiteCommute
1-888-878-4832
Brandon@suitecommute.com

As Telework gains momentum within the Federal Government and corporate America, the following 5 components must be included in these formal programs to ensure successful results:

1.       Strategy

2.       Policies/Procedures

3.       Training

4.       Technology

5.       Metrics/Measures

Strategy forces the “why” and creates the necessary “business case” for establishing a formal Telework program.  It is the direction and foundation for the entire purpose.  Establishing strategy requires multi-dimensional views.  Different perspectives throughout the strategy portion, creates a more robust program resulting in a greater success rate during implementation and execution of these programs.  The strategy portion includes the establishment of “who”, “what”, “when”, “where”, “why”, and “how”.

Policies and Procedures provide the “structure” with these programs.  These ensure that everyone is aware of expectations, the same as an employee handbook, guidebook, contract, etc.  They greatly limit liability for both employer and employee.  They provide a sound basis for successfully working with and within a Telework program. 

Training provides the “how to” of Telework.  Too often this piece this overlooked and/or completely avoided.  Training is essential to the success of any Telework program.  It provides an understanding of the established policies and procedures, how to work remote and remain productive, how to set up a remote office, work flow, etc.  Also, training provides a necessary piece for how to manage remote workers.  The question often arises, “how do I manage my employees when I don’t see them?”  Training creates a basis of understanding for managers and employees prior to being placed in these situations. 

Technology is a support function for the individuals who are working remote.  It is a tool that must be readily available, functioning properly, and user friendly.  Technology has created the ability for employees to work from anywhere.  It is a wonderful and essential tool.  Connectivity must be considered, as well as, security measures to ensure confidentiality of propriety information.  Mobile equipment must be secure at all times.  There have been numerous laptops, PDA’s, external hard drives, memory sticks, etc. that have been lost or stolen, which contain confidential information.  Technology hardware, software, handling, security, troubleshooting, etc. must be clearly addressed in a robust Telework program.

Metrics/Measures are essential to ensure “tracking” of program results for monitoring success rates.  Examples of metrics include tracking productivity through the measurement of revenue per employee output, standard input/output ratios, standard employee measures, turnover costs, OSHA incident rates, job satisfaction, absenteeism rates, cost per employee (typically are reduced in Telework situations), etc.  These are critical to ensure Telework is meeting the strategic objectives for which the program was implemented initially.  It is the monitoring of overall success in the meeting and achieving outlined objectives.

The St. Louis Business Journal had a great article this week outlining some of the key points when allowing your employees to work from home. (Click here to view the article) Since I helped with the article I felt it important to share a few additional points just on how to select those who are allowed to work remotely or Telecommute. We often refer to this as “Telecommuting Selection Criteria.” Alright here goes:

1. Determine the reasons for allowing Remote Work or Telecommuting. See below post on strategy to determine this.
2. Look at the Departments/Divisions that your company is considering to allow to work remotely.
3. Look at what job functions within those Departments/Divisions are capable of completing work off site.
4. Break up the job descriptions into what tasks can be performed on and off site.
5. Set standards for what employees must meet or comply with to be considered.
6. Look at the individual employee’s core competencies after they have met all the above criteria, to determine eligibility.

Looks like a lot, hunh? Well that’s because it is. Simply allowing managers to cherry pick who is allowed to Telecommute and who isn’t is a recipe for disaster or a lawsuit. As an employer it is your job to set the bar and then let manager’s follow the process. This protects the company and keeps selection as equal as possible. Telecommuting is not difficult, it just takes a little preplanning to ensure greater success. Check back soon for another update!

If you need assistance with this process, please feel free to call or contact me directly.

Brandon Dempsey
1-888-878-4832
Brandon@suitecommute.com

CIO.com just released a great article on “Telecommuting Support: Five Tips to Enhance Your Network” .

This is a great article for IT departments who are looking for ways to improve the network security of their telecommuters. In the article it lists these 5 steps:

1. Make sure your employees have strong home broadband connections.
2. Be sure to have a wireless backup option.
3. Understand that security goes beyond the VPN.
4. Know that strong software can be just as important as strong network design
5. Keep your wireless devices in line.

In addition to these steps I would challenge IT departments to truly understand what information is being accessed and by who. Many times employees may not have access to the information they need to complete their job, or may be given too much access to the company network. Either extreme may cause serious disruptions in the employee’s productivity or network vulnerability. It is important that the employee, manager, and IT department are on the same page for what needs to be accessed. This will help to ensure accessibility as well as security. You would be surprised how many company’s miss this mark, and pay for it in the long run.

For many employees they may not even need access to the company’s network. If their work output is producing reports, reviewing documents or information, or submitting electronic information via word or excel documents, then they may be able to get by with just email access. Talk to your employees and see what they feel they need to have access to in order to complete their job, many times employees may not need all that you have granted to them or need more, and are just afraid to ask because they don’t want to lose the privilege of working remotely.

Too many companies are thrust into telecommuting and remote work arrangements before they even have the chance to determine why they are allowing such work arrangements!  This can be highly destructive and problematic for the organization because a company’s strategy dictates all aspects of the Telecommuting arrangement. 

For instance; if a company is using Telecommuting as a means to become more environmentally friendly, then those policies, procedures, selection criteria, and training will look completely different than a company who engages in Telecommuting practices because they have run out of room at their office and do not want to invest in more real estate.

This has been the root cause for many companies’ Telecommuting programs failing.  No strategy leaves the responsibility of administering the Telecommuting policy up to individual managers and employees.  This is a HUGE LEGAL LIABILITY for companies!  I often ask companies we speak with, “What would happen if all your managers had a different idea of what your sexual harassment policy was?”  This is always an eye opener for companies and leads us to the strategy question.

Ok, now let’s talk about setting your strategy.  First, are you embarking on a Telecommuting work arrangement for Internal or External reasons?  Let’s explore:

Internal Drivers/Factors:

• Attract and Retain Top Talent
• Reduce Overhead Expenses
• Increase Employee Productivity
• Enhance Employee Morale
• Become an Employer of Choice
• Improve Employee Work/Life Balance
• Reduce Absenteeism
• Strengthen Overall Competitiveness

External Factors

• Green Initiatives
• Pandemic planning
• Terrorist Strike
• Inclement Weather
• Road-way Construction
• Rising Gas Prices
• Power Outages
• Flood
• Earthquake

Determining your strategy starts with looking at the above reasons.  From there, look at your timeline for implementation.  Are you 30, 90, or 364 days out from implementation.  Next consider what departments, such as Human Resources, IT, and learning and development, with whom you are going to need to seek assistance.

I have just returned from a training seminar on Establishing and Managing a Remote Workforce held at CAI, in Raleigh, NC. The seminar was a huge success with 30 senior professionals representing over 20 companies in attendance to learn about what it takes to successfully create and then run a Remote Work or Telecommuting program. We discussed the main reasons companies need to consider Telecommuting, but also what other benefits such as Green Intiatives, increased productivity, and increased employee loyalty they would realize. Our discussion went from strategic to tactical as we dove into many manager’s and employee’s concerns about Telecommuting. 

To see some of the articles written for the event click on any of the below links.

ManagementIssues.com

Employee Benefit News

WorldatWork.com

Benefitsnews.com

Well, the recent gas price now has Atlantans being forced to Telecommute, simply because they can’t buy gas!

I am down in Atlanta, visiting with clients and attending a large employment law conference this week and have spoke with numerous business people who are telling me that even after driving to over 14 gas stations, they still can’t buy gas! They say that the gas shortage has other employees in there offices being forced to Telecommute simply because they don’t have the gas to drive to and from the office.

This is amazing to me, because for the first time employers are faced with the challenge that no matter what, their employees really can’t get to work. It seems as though an almost miny-pandemic exercise is taking place here in Atlanta, where employers are now charged with the task of getting the work to their employees instead of vice-versa. From what I understand, from the people I spoke with, this poses a problem for some of their colleagues.

Colleagues main fears are that employees don’t always have the same access to information and work resources, as they do in the offfice. And because of this employees are rather limited in what they can do. In addition, many employees are logging into work networks through home computers and other means, simplpy as a last resort. This poses a lot of problems for employers if they aren’t careful.

I hope Atlanta employers are starting to see the need for formal Telecommuting programs. A city this large, notorious for bad traffic, has been needing wide scale implementation for a long time. Hopefully now, employees have another reason to bolster their cause. But for many, I’m sure the arguement will be “no gas = less traffic”.