Telecommuting isn’t for everyone, but that doesn’t mean it won’t work for anyone
As I was reading the article “Is Telecommuting Bad for Business?” on the blog for The Atlantic, I followed a link to another blog and read Virtual Insanity at The Big Money. Jonathan Weber made several comments I can’t agree with.
“I firmly believe that you should expect employees to show up for work, whenever possible, no matter what kind of company.”
“The reasons for this have nothing to do with checking that people are actually working. It’s about efficient communications, building company culture and camaraderie, and sharing the daily bits of work and personal experiences that create a shared sense of purpose.”
[Emphasis mine.]
I have to disagree with his statements, based on my own personal experiences.
Maybe the company size does matter, because I work for a small company and I telecommute some days and go into the office on others. I usually stick to a set schedule, but that schedule is flexible.
The flexibility works for my employer as well as for me, because if I wasn’t able to switch out my in-office versus telecommuting days, there are days when my company needs me that I wouldn’t be working at all.
Efficient communications
When I’m in the office, I send emails to my bosses. Lots of emails. I use the phone to call their offices. It doesn’t make a lot of sense to get up and walk to their offices to interrupt them when I can make a quick call when it’s necessary, get an instant answer, and get right back to work.
I sometimes think the office manager would prefer that I not be there, because it creates more work for her to have to field phone calls since she has multiple roles in the office, including phone duties. When I’m in the office making calls, she ends up answering and transferring calls to my desk that she wouldn’t need to do otherwise.
When I need one of my bosses to see some document, instead of walking it into their office and interrupting them, I scan the document and email it. This keeps them from losing my paperwork, and keeps me from leaving my desk when I’m trying to get through my inboxes.
There are days when I see no one, simply because my bosses travel to out of town meetings and such, so it doesn’t help that I’m in the office on those days.
So what does change when I’m working remotely?
- Sending documents: Nothing.
- Phone calls: I call my bosses when I need to, and I field my own calls from home, so the office manager has fewer interruptions to her own work.
Company culture & shared purpose
I enjoy the time I spend with my co-workers—mostly. However, I wouldn’t want to have to deal with them day in and day out.
You don’t have to love your co-workers to work with them—you don’t even have to like them. And the truth is, we don’t become friends with everyone we meet because we don’t always have much in common with many of those people.
Spending countless hours around someone you share only a job with is no way to enjoy your time at the office, nor does it build camaraderie.
In fact, I like my co-workers a lot better these days, just because I see them less often, and my dedication to the company has improved, because I feel an obligation to work with them and their needs after they’ve worked so well with mine.
Bottom line
Telecommuting might not be right for every employer, but it works very well for some.
I don’t read body language well, and apparently my body language isn’t that easy to read either. To me, phone calls and emails are so much more objective and concrete. You don’t ask a question, get an answer, and then second guess the person’s “real” feelings on the issue by watching for eye-rolls and twitches.
But maybe that’s just me, and maybe that’s why telecommuting works so well for me and the company for which I work.
June 30th, 2009 at 7:57 pm
I also read Jonathan Weber comments. I did not agree with him either. I agree with you. I am so glad you wrote this response. Perhaps Mr. Weber has some issue about control.
July 1st, 2009 at 6:41 am
I don’t disagree that he makes some good points, but I think small businesses are especially suited to working with telecommuting employees and that this can benefit those companies.