8/10/2019 Americanfootball Final

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/americanfootball-final 1/2

Telecommuting at Work 

Introduction

Telecommunication has been defined as “the combination of information technologies with the

concept of a f lexible workplace. Work is carried out in a location which is remote from centraloffices or production facilities where employees have no personal contact with co-workers”(i !artino and Wirth" #$$%&. The emergence of more and more information technology ('T&

companies all over the country has meant that more workers need to be employed. owever"not all potential workers are willing to travel every day to work and this is why several people

have decided to work from home instead. 't helps that technology has developed in such a waythat work can be delivered even without “physical proximity” of the worker to his)her workplace (*ilskin" #$$+&. Through computers" the 'nternet and the advent of email" employers

are now able to gather the input of their workers" even without the latter,s physical presence.The practice of telecommuting has become even more of a trend because of the popularity of electronic data from one person to another (avies et al." #$$&. owever" despite the

advantages of telecommuting" the same does not come without its own share of disadvantagesas well. This is what this paper seeks to determine" as well as how telecommuting works and

how it is managed.

The Advantages of Telecommuting for the Employee

arpa (/%%/& has determined some of the advantages of telecommuting for the employees. 't

must be noted that there are advantages and disadvantages of telecommuting for the employeesand the company that supports such a practice. 0nd it turns out that some of the pros and consfor the employee may not coincide with that of the company. The following paragraphs will

illustrate this point" starting with the advantages of telecommuting for the telecommutersthemselves. 0ccording to arpa (/%%/&" there are seven advantages felt or experienced by the

telecommuter by working in the comforts of his)her own home. These are #& “autonomy)independence” because obviously" since the employee is not being supervised" there is anincreased chance that he)she would be more productive due to the increased level of 

responsibilities expected of the said employee. /& “1lexible working hours” is a self-explanatory advantage because the telecommuter has more freedom to take on the 2ob either in

the evening or at night and there is the increased time to balance tasks that are not within thesphere of work" 3& “'mproved time management” is another advantage" 4ecause of telecommuting" the telecommuter is less prone to getting distracted (by other employees for 

instance&. 5& “!ore efficient management of free time” because the telecommuter can balancehis)her time more effectively and efficiently. Time can be set aside for taking up a hobby or 

other activities not related to work. 6& “7avings in travel time and expenses” because thetelecommuter need not spend money to travel to and from the workplace. The company itself need not also spend for the employee,s travel expenses. & “1lexibility in caring for family

members” is related to the previous advantages mentioned. 4ecause of the time saved from being distracted and f rom traveling to and from the workplace" the employee can instead" usethis time for his) her responsibility and finally" the last point" +& “professional flexibility.” The

employee is given more freedom to pursue other interests or even another 2ob.

The Advantages of Telecommuting for the Firm

The company itself that encourages telecommuting also experiences a number of advantages aswell. 8ne of these is the decreases in “operating expenses.” 1or instance" instead of spending a

considerable amount of financial resources on real estate (for office space&" the company caninstead channel their resources to telecommuting. The savings that can be incurred throughsuch a move can reduce costs from twenty to forty percent of a company,s financial assets

(Tan-7olano and 9leiner" /%%#&.

The Disadvantages of Telecommuting for the Employee

7ome of the disadvantages of telecommuting have been determined to be #&” impaired feeling

of belonging"” The telecommuter may not experience the satisfaction of working with a team"which is usually done inside the workplace. The telecommuter is also less likely to experience

the feeling of being inside an organiation that shares a common goal with the other employees. While the latter may be felt even outside the workplace" it is not doubted that theexperiences inside the workplace make the situation different. /& “feeling of isolation.”

Telecommuters are expected to feel lonely" especially when tasked to mingle with their co-workers in person. They are also less likely to have better social skills as compared to their co-workers who actually work in the workplace. This kind of situation is especially unsuited for 

telecommuters who thrive on “social interaction.”3& “:o separation between spheres of work and home.” This situation may be a problem for the telecommuter because his)her time may be

taken for granted by the people around him)her. 1or instance" without setting clear boundariesas to what is work and leisure time" the telecommuter,s family may think that the former is freewhenever" 2ust because there is a absence of a workplace. 3& “7elf-discipline.” There is a

different kind of discipline experienced by workers who actually work at the office" and thoseworkers who do their 2obs from the comforts of their home. The latter tend to work at their own

 pace. 5& “;ack of professional support.” 'n the workplace" there is a possibility that there aresecretaries" and co-workers who would be willing to work with" help or advise a co-employee.7uch a support group is obviously not available at the telecommuter,s home. 6& “<areer 

advancement problems.” 4ecause the employer barely sees the telecommuter" there is a chancethat the latter,s work efforts would go unnoticed" as compared to an employee who is

constantly under the employer,s radar by simply being physically present in the workplace.Thus" opportunities for promotion are few or are difficult to achieve. & “8ver-availabilitysyndrome.” 8ne of the problems being experienced by telecommuters is that their employers"

clients or co-workers may think of their situation as an opportunity to badger the telecommuter"even outside working hours. +& “*ersonal unsuitability” because there may be some employeeswho work best when being supervised closely" and there may be those also who are not

accustomed to working on their own" and =& “legal issues” with regards to the exploitation of the worker,s time and availability (arpa" /%%/&.

0ccording to *ilskin (#$$+&" '7: lines in the houses of employees who have opted to work from home. 7uch lines are used in order to boost “communication bandwidth” from theemployee,s house to the workplace. The only problem is" while this may be an effective way

for communication to be optimised and employers can check on the progress of their employees more often" it is impossible to install such '7: lines in every worker,s home. 't

would be too costly.

The Disadvantages of Telecommuting for the Firm

Companies that Pract ice Telecommuting

Conclusion

8/10/2019 Americanfootball Final

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/americanfootball-final 2/2

>eferences

avies" >. (#$$& 'nternet conference on telecommuting" <areer evelopment 'nternational"

#(6&" /$-3+.

i !artino" ?. and Wirth" ;. (#$$%& Telework@ a new way of working and living" 'nternational;abor >eview" #/$(6&" 6/$-665 in avies" >. (#$$& 'nternet conference on telecommuting"

<areer evelopment 'nternational" #(6&" /$-3+.

arpa" '. (/%%/&. 0dvantages and disadvantages of telecommuting for the individual"organiation and society" Work 7tudy" 6#(/&" +5-=%.

*ilsin" :. (#$$+& The telecommuting paradox" 'nformation Technology" #%(/&" #5-#+/.

Tan-7olano" !. and 9leiner" 4.. (/%%#&. Affects of telecommuting on organisational

 behaviour" !anagement >esearch :ews" /5(3&" #/3-#/. >eferences

avies" >. (#$$& 'nternet conference on telecommuting" Career Development International "

#(6&" /$-3+.

i !artino" ?. and Wirth" ;. (#$$%& Telework@ a new way of working and living" 'nternational

;abor >eview" #/$(6&" 6/$-665 in avies" >. (#$$& 'nternet conference on telecommuting"

Career Development International " #(6&" /$-3+.

arpa" '. (/%%/&. 0dvantages and disadvantages of telecommuting for the individual"

organiation and society" Work Study" 6#(/&" +5-=%.

*ilsin" :. (#$$+& The telecommuting paradox"  Information Technology, #%(/&" #5-#+/.

Tan-7olano" !. and 9leiner" 4.. (/%%#&. Affects of telecommuting on organisational

 behaviour" Management Research Nes, /5(3&" #/3-#/.