Untitled Essay, Research Paper

Telecommuting is a very interesting and complex subject. The pros and cons of this concept

are numerous and both sides have excellent arguments. In the research I’ve done I feel I

have to argue both sides to maintain a sense of perspective. I had mixed feelings about

telecommuting before I started this research and I find that this is something many others

have in common with me.

The reasons for and against telecommuting can be complex or simple depending on which view

point you take. From a manager’s view point telecommuting is a very dangerous undertaking

that requires a high readiness level on the employee’s part. Allowing an employee with a

low (R1, or R2) readiness level to telecommute is not likely to result in a positive

manner. When an employee has a high readiness level and a definite desire to attempt

working in the home, for some reason or another, many factors should be considered. What

kind of schedule does the employee feel constitutes telecommuting? Generally speaking,

telecommuting is defined as spending at least one day out of a five day work week working

in the home. Is one day home enough for the employee? Or, too little? How does the

employer decide how many days to allow? Does the employee’s job lend itself well to

telecommuting? Some jobs, obviously, can’t be accomplished using a telecommuting format.

Does the employee have a good track record for working unsupervised? This relates back to

readiness levels. An employee who isn’t performing at a high readiness level should not

even be considered as a candidate for telecommuting. All of these questions and many more

must be answered on a case by case basis.

This particular venture into creative scheduling has its ups and downs as well from an

employee’s point of view. It can be quite a bed of roses for both employee and employer. A

lot of nice smells and pretty sights, but watch out for the thorns. In several studies I

reviewed I noticed that the telecommuting population loses many of the basics of the

social contacts associated with the office environment. Judging the correct amount of time

that an employee should spend working at home in relation to working at the office can

have a significant impact on both performance and satisfaction. It’s usually hard for

someone to completely cut themselves off from their work environment and still perform

well. The sense of being out of touch with the others in the work force can be mitigated

by the use of e-mail, teleconferencing, and the ever faithful telephone. These devices, in

a best case scenario, can completely substitute for face to face interaction. That’s a

strong statement and I would like to explain a few conditions. The best case scenario

assumes an individual is at a very high readiness level and has very little perceived need

for social interaction with the other office employees. In a worst case scenario an

employee can lose touch with the pulse of the office, lose motivation, and their readiness

level could drop. This type of scenario is likely to get out of hand if the employee is

never in the office to receive the appropriate feedback.

It sounds as if I’m not really impressed with telecommuting but that’s not true. Let’s

look at a few of the really solid benefits for the employer. The employer can offer

telecommuting as an option for prospective employees to improve recruitment. The current

employees could be offered it to keep them around. Saving one employee could save the

company a large amount of money. "Most employers don’t keep accurate records of the

costs of losing good employees and finding and retraining replacements, but there have

been estimates ranging from $30,000 to over $100,000 to replace a professional." The

ever present crunch for space could drive a company to reduce the amount of office space

it requires. Telecommuting makes the employee provide his own office space. It’s been

shown that telecommuting does increase productivity with typical increases in the 15 to 25

percent range. These gains may come from the significantly less time a person spends at

the company water cooler. A company can improve customer service by making use of

telecommuters. It would cost much less to have a few people answering phones at home at 3

o’clock in the morning than running a skeleton crew in a heated/air-conditioned, lighted,

and such office building.So what’s in it for the employee? That depends mostly on which particular employee we are

referring too. Telecommuting allows someone with a physical handicap that could not

actually commute to the workplace to still function as a valuable employee. It would allow

someone who has small children and feels a great need to be home for them to still work

and have a career. The distance an employee must travel daily to work is a factor that can

induce great amounts of frustration and expense into their lives. Telecommuting can

alleviate this stress. Job satisfaction can be enhanced by allowing greater freedom and

bestowing greater responsibility. Employees should be aware of some of the pitfalls of

telecommuting as well as the benefits. It is estimated that telecommuters earn less

overall then office workers.

As a general rule a professional telecommuter will earn approximately 91% of the wage of

an office working professional and clerical workers.

All of these considerations must factor into a decision by a company to implement a

telecommuting program. Many factors must be taken into account and clear organizational

goals must be stated. It is vitally important for the management to support the program

and for a great degree of trust to exist between employer and employee. Implementation of

a pilot program can take years and involve many aspects of the company as a whole.

On the whole, I am impressed with the possibilities that telecommuting presents and

daunted by the problems that can crop up. I feel that a well thought out, carefully

planned, and conscientiously applied program can benefit most companies in most

situations. I don’t feel that telecommuting is for every company but it could certainly

benefit many.

Bibliography

1. Byte Magazine, May 91, Vol. 16 Issue 5, "Is it Time to Telecommute?", Don

Crabb, et al.

2. Compute! Magazine, Oct. 91, Vol. 13 Issue 10, "Workplace", D. Janal

3. The New Era of Home Based Work: Directions and Policies, Kathleen E. Christensen,

WestView Press, 1988

4. Telecommuting: The Organizational and Behavioral Effects of Working at Home, Reagan

Mays Ramsower, UMI Research Press, 1985