FIM-Logo

Teleworking

 

7 general questions on Teleworking

Date: Fri, 5 Dec 1997 12:50:52 +0100
Subject: Questions from a journalist
From: Wiegand.MediaServicesHamburg@t-online.de (Wiegand & Wiegand)

Dear friends,

I am a German freelance journalist writing an article about Telework. May I ask you to answer some questions (not for quote, just my background information).

And these are the questions:

1.- What is the biggest mistake beginners of Telework/Telecommunting do?

2.- Do you have three brief tips what one should do when setting up a new Telework/Telecommunting office at home?

3.- Which is in your personal eyes THE biggest advantage of Telework/Telecommunting?

4.- ... and what is THE biggest disadvantage?

5.- Could you name three jobs which are perfect for Telework/Telecommunting?

6.- Generally - what future developements do you see for Telework/Telecommunting?

7. Would you like to add anything yourself?

I would be very glad if you could answers these questions. Thanks so far and best regards

Yours sincerely

WOLF ACHIM WIEGAND
Wiegand & Wiegand Media Services
Hamburg, Germany

Question 1: What is the biggest mistake beginners of Telework/Telecommunting do?

  1. The biggest mistake beginners of Telework/Telecommunting make is to think that it is possible five days out of five without physical contact with the people at the office/client.
  2. Thinking that telework were a job by itself.
  3. I hope I haven't made any big mistakes yet.
  4. employees: switching to telework before the enterprise as a whole is ready (for example, if the enterprise is not effectively networked)
    self-employed: assuming that its easier to get work as a teleworker than by being on-site (in general its actually more difficult at present)
  5. Not sticking to office hours and allowing their work to take over their domestic lives.

Question 2: Do you have three brief tips what one should do when setting up a new Telework/Telecommunting office at home?

  1. When setting up a new Telework/Telecommuting office at home try to set aside a room just for this and hang a notice on the door that says KEEP OUT (Kids, dog and wife/husband ), get the tools right, keep regular hours and don't overdo it.
  2. a) organize his space
    b) organize his time (don't forget to go to bed)
    c) organize the perception of his work/leisure by his friends and familly
  3. I feel my transition to homeworking was helped by being able to continue with an existing project with the same line management, targets, etc. This allowed me to see easily if my performance was affected, spot problems quickly and correct them.
  4. (a) Have separate phone numbers/lines for work and for private use, with the ability to switch the business line through to voicemail when <not working> (THE most important item!)
    (b) Have <defended space> that enables you to separate work from leisure/family
    (c) Be sensitive to the fact that the home belongs to the whole family and that telework isn't its main function
  5. a) Find a social outlet and become active in that.
    b) Manage your time effectively
    c) If you have to buy your own equipment, make sure you get value for money.

Question 3: Which is in your personal eyes THE biggest advantage of Telework/Telecommunting?

  1. THE biggest advantage of Telework/Telecommunting is geographical and time independence.
  2. Time saved
  3. Increased independence.
  4. employees: reduced time/effort/cost/environmental damage in commuting
    self-employed: avoidance of the cost of maintaining an office outside the home
  5. I can work when I have the inspiration.

Question 4: ... and what is THE biggest disadvantage?

  1. THE biggest disadvantage can be lack of daily social interaction
  2. What is disadvantage ;-))
  3. Too much independence.
  4. There are only significant disadvantages when something is wrong, usually this means the person shouldn't be teleworking. See http://www.eto.org.uk/faq/faq03.htm (which is about benefits, but down the page there is a heading <Are there drawbacks?>
  5. Inspiration usually strikes at 3 a.m.

Question 5: Could you name three jobs which are perfect for Telework/Telecommunting?

  1. Three jobs which are perfect for Telework/Telecommuting are journalism, translators, and software maintenance/hotline support but there are many more (sales staff, call centre staff).
  2. Writer, translator, searcher (and, one further day, teacher)
  3. Mine, yours, theirs.
  4. Almost any information-focused, communications-focused job is appropriate for telework, for example hotel bookings operator, public speaker, radio presenter . . .
  5. No, the individual matters too.

Question 6: Generally - what future developements do you see for Telework/Telecommunting?

  1. Opportunities can be created for economically depressed areas under the generic terms offshore teleworking or Telecentres. However the expectations have often far outweighed the successes .
  2. To remove ancient barriers between industry, services, university
  3. Network bandwith will be a more important asset than offices.
    NCs, wireless portables and software rented and/or developed "just in time" will make teleworking even easier especially for those where use of IT is peripheral to their work.
    Participation in groups outside the employing organization will allow teleworking employees to develop faster and adapt quicker.
    International employment. Teleworkers will be as likely to work for a company on another continent as one in the next town.
  4. (a) In the not-too-distant (but not immediate!) future telework in its general sense will become as <normal> as commuting is today
    (b) The buoyancy of local economies and communities will be dependent on their successful participation in the global networked economy
    (c) Many Europeans will continue to defend the past against the future
    (d) Unless we start to accelerate very soon now, Europe will become a customer region not a supplier region in the world economy (the Africa of the Information Age)
  5. Increased use of videoconferencing to conduct business meetings: provision of tuition by remote means: all future developments are dependent on strategies offered by big business. IMHO Telework will take off in Britain once a) the cost of ISDN lines comes down and/or b) the cost of local calls for Internet connection is zero.

Question 7: Would you like to add anything yourself?

  1. As soon as people have non-office based access to email they invariably become Telecommuters . This simple criteria changes what used to be known as taking work home to delivering work from home i.e. Telecommuting . Access to mobile phones has greatly increased this paradigm shift. Offices become more formalised meeting places rather than workplaces. Meetings become more intense and issues/actions/results driven.
  2. If you pay a coffee, I will add that telework is just a part of a more fundamental change in the organization of our society.
  3. I've assumed Telecommunting is Telecommuting. Was I wrong?
  4. Thanks for raising these interesting questions.
  5. ----

Responses are from:

  1. Alan Husselbee, ETD User Communities
  2. Hubert Houdoy
    Reseau d'Activites a Distance
    http://www.reseau.org/rad/nouveau1.htm
  3. Michael Saunby
    Teachmore Farm, Jacobstowe, Okehampton, Devon, United Kingdom. EX20 3AJ
  4. Horace Mitchell
    European Telework Online
  5. Chris Rams

 

FIM Homepage Teleworking page Top of page [Back to FIM-Homepage] [Back to Teleworking page] [Top of page]

Mail sonntag@fim.uni-linz.ac.at