 |
Winter 2006 |
 |
 |
Ask the Experts"We should start treating ozone days as snow days," says John Edwards, chairman and founder of the Telework Coalition. "In addition to reducing pollution, for every 1 percent reduction in the number of cars on the road there's a 3 percent reduction in traffic congestion." A member of the Alliance for Clean Air and Transportation (ACAT), Edwards researches the trends and impacts of teleworking and telecommuting on employers, their employees, society, and the environment. He teaches and authors articles and white papers on the cost-benefits of teleworking and telecommuting and has served on the National and DC Metro Telecommuting and Air Quality Act Steering Committees for the eCommute pilot. He's also chair of the Northern VA Technology Council's Telecommuting Task Force and president and CEO of the TeleworkNetwork and Telework Analytics, Inc. Q. Some people are telecommuting and others are teleworking. What's the difference? A. Teleworking is using telecommunications to work anywhere—a car, the airport, a telework center, a branch or satellite office, your hotel room, etc. People who telework aren't necessarily avoiding the use of transportation; they just aren't working at a company's central location. Telecommuting uses telecommunications to avoid the use of transportation to travel to and from work, which obviously is the best choice for reducing air pollution and traffic congestion. The terms are often used interchangeably, perhaps because managers' business-case proposals and cost-benefit analyses tend to be more readily accepted when the term telework is used. Q. We know telecommuting offers bottom-line benefits for employers, employees, and the community. So why aren't more people doing it? A. The corporate culture still has to get over its notion that employees will be less efficient if they telecommute. It simply isn't true. Companies that offer telecommuting enjoy improved productivity of 7% to 20% or more. With today's technology, there's really no excuse for employers not to offer a telecommuting program. For example, with Instant Messaging, managers can easily communicate with their staff in real time. The cost of making phone calls has almost been eliminated by the recent introduction of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), which allows you to use your computer's high-speed connection for telephone calls. Employers should start to replace desktop computers with laptops, so employees can pick up and work from home. Laptops are getting so cheap—you can get them for under $500. For a list of the many benefits of telecommuting, read the It All Adds Up "Why Telecommuting Works" fact sheet (adapted from the Telework Coalition) and the GSA Web publication "A Guide for Managers, Supervisors, and Telework Coordinators." Q. Why might an employee do a better job at home? A. It's simple, there's no office politics, fewer interruptions, and fewer distractions. Think of how many times you've heard a coworker say they need a quieter place to concentrate so they could finish a project. Also, home-based customer service agents could be available for duty outside traditional office hours, thus allowing employers to extend their customer service hours. For example, utility companies often experience a surge in customer calls about a week after the utility bills are mailed out. The same thing happens during a storm if there are power outages. Telecommuters can easily be called on to deal with these kinds of exceptional customer service demands. There are plenty of occupations that could be done just as well—or better—from home. But remember, if a person isn't a very good employee at the office, then he or she probably won't be a good employee at home. Good employees, if given the opportunity to telecommute, raise a company's overall productivity by 7-20% or more. Click for a list of activities suitable for telecommuting. Q. How could a public outreach team encourage employers to recognize the air quality benefits of a telecommute program? A. It's very important to first pitch the benefits of telecommuting to a business's bottom line, because employers must see the business case before they'll even consider establishing a telecommute program. For example, the flu season presents an opportunity to talk about telecommuting as a way of maintaining continuity in operations. A telecommute program would allow employees to work from home when they, or their family members, get sick. Periodic transit strikes, bad weather, traffic incidents, and increased security due to terrorism threats at transportation hubs might also prompt employers to think about setting up a telecommute program. For helpful information to give employers, see the GSA Web publication A Guide for Managers, Supervisors, and Telework Coordinators." To get the environmental aspect in the minds of employers, use the It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air winter flash animation and compose an email that explains the air quality and gas savings benefits of telecommuting. Include a link to the Telework Coalition air pollution calculator so managers could quickly see the positive impact they'd have on the air if they have telecommuters. That can be very empowering and satisfying for an employer. Another great calculator tool that breaks down the monthly or yearly costs of a person's commute is available from the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (WASHCOG) at http://www.mwcog.org/commuter/Bdy-cost.html. Finally, be persistent and follow up with employers to reemphasize that telecommuting is not a fad, but a sound business strategy that benefits the employer, employees, and the entire community. Q. So, are most employees already on board with the idea of working from home? A. Yes and no. One of the things we've found is that people would rather switch jobs than lose their telecommuting privilege, especially among people 40 years and older. The baby boom generation is particularly eager to telecommute and stay committed to it. We think one of the reasons people, especially younger people, don't stay committed is that they like to socialize at work. That was actually the case with my daughter. So I told her to take the time she would have spent commuting to meet her friends and socialize. She tried it and it's working very well for her. There is a huge pent up potential for more telecommuting. In WASHCOG's Commuter Connections 'State of the Commute' survey report, it found that (in addition to the 14.6% already telecommuting) an extra 18% of workers have jobs that would allow them to telecommute and would be interested in telecommuting. Also, a recent Telework ExchangeSM survey (which used the term telework in the survey questions) found that 79% of respondents said they would telework if offered the chance (read "Study Shows Teleworking Saves Time and Money" in the Federal Employee News Digest November 28, 2005 edition). Atlanta's Clean Air Campaign 2003 survey found that 28%-50% of those who do not telework would be interested in teleworking at least one day per week. So, you see, the potential for more telecommuting/teleworking is enormous. Q. How do you reach the employees who still need convincing? A. Using the Telework Coalition's or WASHCOG's air pollution calculator on a laptop computer at clean air events could work very well. Take the opportunity to discuss the environmental benefits of telecommuting, and if you can get online access, let people do the calculations themselves. Print cards with some It All Adds Up telecommute factoids; leave a few blank spaces to write in the gallons of gasoline that person would save, and how much air pollution they'd eliminate, if they worked from home. To help employees approach their supervisors with a request to telecommute, have plenty of printed resources on hand, such as the It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air "Telecommuting and You" and "Why Telecommuting Works" fact sheets. For other tips on making the business case to employers, read GSA's "Guide for Managers, Supervisors, and Telework Coordinators" and visit www.ATT.com/telework/get_started. Q. What steps must an employer take to implement a telecommute program? To implement the most effective and efficient telecommute program, employers should take the following steps:
Q. What is the Telework Coalition doing now to promote telecommuting? A. We are working to get Congress to abolish the double taxation of interstate telecommuters. We're also trying to get legislation passed that would give telecommuters a $500 tax credit. To learn more, visit http://www.telcoa.org/id35.htm. We consult regularly with local and international corporations and governments on the benefits of teleworking and telecommuting. We also offer in-house courses on Implementation of Telework Programs and Managing Remote Workforces. At the National Press Club in Washington, DC, we recently held a conference, "Telework, Business Continuity, and Preparing for a Pandemic or Other Critical Business Interruptions," for senior executives, managers, and their teams. We discussed potential scenarios, solutions, and resources for reducing the economic and human impact of a possible pandemic. In April, we'll be participating in the 2006 Digital City Expo in Reston, VA, which deals with all aspects of broadband infrastructure and services and how these technologies improve a community's economic development, public safety, schools, business climate, and overall quality of life. |
