In July, 1995 Bell Atlantic released the results of a telework study conducted for them by Dr. Lamar Reinsch, Professor of Management Communications, Georgetown School of Business, Georgetown University. The study examined the changing relationships over a period of months among telework managers and employees at several companies. These included Fannie Mae, American Express, Bellcore and Marriot International. All participants in the study are customers of Bell Atlantic. The study focused on issues of trust, productivity, corporate loyalty and management's ability to supervise workers.
The results of questionnaires and interviews were very consistent with other telework studies. Overall, telecommuting was a success with most telecommuters believing they were more productive. Most also believed telecommuting had changed their home life for the better. Many commented that telecommuting offered more flexibility in work hours which permitted the telecommuter to take a more active role in family life.
The most frequently cited disadvantages the telecommuter reported were: (1) they were afraid of being left out of communication; (2) the manager was difficult to reach when the telecommuter had a problem; (3) the technologies available to them were not compatible with their needs.
The study identifies a number of ways for companies to successfully implement telework programs, in order to avoid some of the more common pitfalls faced by teleworkers and their managers. The following are the three keys to successful telecommuting management:
For managers and workers alike, it was clear the most successful telecommuting programs were those in which the company committed resources to make the telecommuting program work -- including management training and proper hardware and software. Although survey results indicate that relationship quality is extremely important to telecommuting success, only 54% of participants had received any training to prepare them for telecommuting or managing a telecommuter. Those who had received training, frequently commented that it was brief, incomplete and focused on technical details such as computer software, rather than on coping with human issues such as isolation, career advancement, or management oversight.
In the absence of any training, relationships between managers and employees could deteriorate temporarily after the first few months of instituting a telecommuting program. The transition to telecommuting can be viewed as a "destabilizing event" that causes well-developed worker/manager relationships to erode slightly. Research showed that in the early months of telecommuting, the manager-telecommuter relationship remains strong -- perhaps because both parties are working hard to make the new arrangement work.
However, as both parties begin to confront the challenges of work in a distributed environment, the relationship often regresses to an earlier developmental state. The trust in task competency typical of more mature working relationships tends to erode slightly during the 7th to 12th month after the start of a telecommuting program. At this point both parties must re-establish mutual trust before an "adjustment to reality" settles in and the relationship improves. Organizational support in the form of management training programs, team building activities and feedback sessions, might be timed to mitigate the negative effects of a transition to telework.
Successful telecommuting demands that telecommuters and managers move away from the traditional management paradigm, which stresses a hierarchical chain of command, and move towards a more collective, interdependent balance of power. Traditionally, authority in the workplace comes from formal sources such as titles, control over resources, a corner office. In a telecommuting environment, authority must be re-negotiated and redefined. Persons best equipped to deal with telecommuting are those who can cooperate across hierarchical levels. Good telecommuters must be flexible in terms of their roles, and be able to think independently and direct themselves. Good managers must be particularly adept at both accepting criticism and displaying loyalty to telecommuters. The study showed that people who have a high emphasis on authority may experience a more negative change in the manager-worker relationship as a result of telecommuting.
Telecommuters use a number of communications devices to work out of their homes. The most commonly mentioned were the telephone, facsimile machine, e-mail, voice-mail, speaker phones, pagers and video-conferencing. About one-third of the telecommuters said that they did not need additional equipment, while the most common answers for others was equipment with "more speed/quicker responses."
Dr. Reinsch concludes teleworking is an industry trend that addresses not only business issues but also provides tangible "quality of life" gains for the workforce at large. Teleworking offers a company access to a broader base of qualified employees, reduced corporate overhead in real estate and related expenses, and a "real time" work environment with immediate access anytime, anywhere to corporate information sources.
In addition to the productivity gains associated with telework, it also offers immediate lifestyle gains for the employee in terms of more time with family, reduced stress associated with commuting. Teleworking may ultimately offer the opportunity for workers to have more choice in terms of where they work and live. As the telework trend emerges and evolves, it will ultimately change the current definition of "the workplace."
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