Posted on 07/13/2017 8:12:15 AM PDT by posterchild
The speed of digital technology has allowed workers to be mobile and flexible, and more employers continue to embrace remote work policies.
But it has also created demand for continuous updates and real-time collaboration. And that change has driven some companies — including IBM, Best Buy and Yahoo — to recall some of their remote workforces back into the office.
In the 1970s, IBM was one of the pioneers of telework, and over time, 20 percent of its employees worked remotely. Last year, it decided to recall some remote-work employees, a move that seemed to go against decades of policies aimed at supporting telework.
(Excerpt) Read more at npr.org ...
Some Employers Are Rethinking Telework, Citing A Need For Better Productivity
There. Fixed it.
BS. They are doing this to get rid of people. They went through getting everyone to work from home. Then they sold off real estate. Now they are saying back to an office, if you don’t have one move or lose your job.
For me, there’s nothing like being there with the work in front of you and all resources (including personnel) at hand. If I can wrap up a question or touch-base, I don’t mind walking to another person’s office instead of slinging e-mails that won’t be read or leaving phone messages that won’t be listened to until much later. And I’m happy to help someone get their work done if the intrusion only lasts for few moments.
Human nature demands collaborative, physical, face to face, communities. Family, school, leisure, work etc.
The robotics revolution will soon teach us this again.
It really depends on whether you are colocated with your team or not. When I was working, my team of 20 had only two or three people in each location - New Jersey, Columbus, Bournemouth, Mumbai, Texas. It really didn’t make any difference whether you came in to the office, and I used to log in from home at 7 AM to catch the guys in Mumbai, and shut down at 7 PM when my boss in Chicago went home for the day.
There’s no way I’d get anything done telecommuting. With all my DVDs and the stream, just too much awesome non-work available at home.
Productivity while remote depends on the type of work and the person. I find I am much more productive on telework days without the office interruptions and protracted meetings. Collaboration takes place nicely via asynchronous slack and email messages. Skype/hangouts/etc is there when needed.
One advantage of working remotely though, is not having people all up in your face, popping in your office when you’re trying to get something done. I would suggest that allowing part of the day to be done offsite, as long as it is well documented, might be very helpful. Long distance work though, I agree, you gotta be seen.
It takes a certain mindset to work at home and be productive.
If you were home schooled you know how to do it. You set your goals, you get up in the morning and you start in and go until you are done. Nothing else, short of the house being on fire, intrudes on your work.
When the work is done you can go on to other things.
Most people who work from home have not learned that level of concentration.
They can do it. But most are not willing to put in the teeth grinding training needed to do so.
That’s a great example were working remotely works well because it’s necessary.
Here is a suggestion. Perhaps it is more of a character issue than one of location.
There are untold number of people who are self-employed. Some have a storefront, some work from home, some travel. The key to their success? They are productive and motivated (I want to eat, therefore I need money). So working from home or the road or in a storefront of your own control isn’t the problem. You will produce the results if you want to survive.
Maybe that’s the simple message IBM and other employers “rethinking telework” need to get across rather than dragging people to a central physical location.
There’s no way I’d get anything done telecommuting. With all my DVDs and the stream, just too much awesome non-work available at home.
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I could do it, but it would require a dedicated office without any domestic flotsam drifting into it.
Authors have to do this all the time. It is purely a self discipline thing, and one had to know one’s limits. Like you, I’d wander off topic outside of a dedicated environment.
As soon as IBM cuts back on off-shore resources then I'll believe that "better collaboration" is the reason.
My bet: Folks just think it’s harder to lay off/fire ya if they know what you look like.
You’re right about that. Some time where folks are simply left alone to get it done is also important. As long as it gets done, they could be 10 feet or a 1,000 miles away.
On the other hand, if you were homeschooled with six or more resident siblings in a small house, you might want to go to your place of work for the peace and quiet. I sometimes wish there were some way I could do my job remotely, so I could mute the sound ...
I have been working from home for several years and LOVE not being in the office. I write software so I’m mostly on my own anyway. I do not miss the pop-ins or water cooler chat. I’m also in FL which is several states away from the office.
Self motivation is key. I enjoy my job. Flexibility also makes me more productive. There are times when I am just not figuring out some software problem. It’s better to go for a walk or fix something around the house and reallocate that time to when I am more software productive or I’ve had more time to ponder in the background.
Or headphones if you want to listen to something besides the family.
I generally went to my tree house. I always had a tree house. Unless the house did not have trees.
Then I would go onto the roof under the shade of the water tank.
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