To bring some clarity to
Telecommuting 2001, American Way talked to
some successful, longtime telecommuters and to managers who've
reaped the promised rewards of telework: increased productivity,
increased employee satisfaction, and lowered turnover. (In one
AT&T survey of virtual employees, the majority reported not
only greater efficiency, but also increased happiness,
energy, job
satis- faction, calmness, self-confidence, focus on work, and
involvement in work.) Their stories, their helpful hints, and their
warnings could help you and your company find telecommuting
nirvana.
JOSEPH ROITZ:
The Remote Manager
Like many telecommuters, Roitz began his home office career because
his employer didn't want to lose him. "My wife got a great job in
Dallas," says Roitz. "So I went to my boss in
Atlanta and told him
I needed to become virtual."
Roitz had the good fortune to work for AT&T, which already had
a sizable workforce of telecommuters and which increasingly has a
business interest in helping other companies set up similar
programs. Roitz is the company's Telework Program Director. He
telecommutes by analyzing trends in telecommuting, which makes him
pretty much a virtuoso of virtual. In fact, after several years in
Dallas, Roitz recently picked up his home office a second time and
followed his wife to yet another career opportunity, this time in
Little Rock.
"Telework had actually been around for a long time," he points out.
"It's getting a lot of
media attention now, but salespeople have
always worked remotely. In large companies, people work in
different buildings or different cities, and they communicate by
conference call - they just don't call it telework."