Today Andrew Millard stops by from across the pond to give his input on how to retain business continuity in the face of the unexpected.  Andrew is the eCommerce Director of EMEA at Citrix Online.

This winter has seen some extreme weather conditions on both sides of the Atlantic with snowfall causing havoc for businesses and employees alike. Of course, as savvy workshifters know, it doesn't have to be like this! But the sad fact is that there are many who are just not as prepared for these unexpected conditions when they occur.

In the UK, we conducted some research during the heavy snowfall that hit in January and found that the cost of the inclement weather was £1.35bn in lost productivity for British businesses in just one week!

In addition to this, we found that despite 78% of small businesses saying they were prepared to cope with the snow chaos, over half admitted that their business suffered as a result of the winter weather.

When we look at the impact on employees, around a quarter of British workers claimed they lost more than five working hours, with as many as 124 million working hours estimated to have been lost in total.

Let this be a warning!

But now is not the time for us to breathe a sigh of relief.  More snow is predicted, and it's just one of any number of unexpected events that can prevent workers getting into the office. During the rest of the year we're likely to face a gamut of other incidents that will make life hard for employees and employers, whether its strikes on public transport, natural disasters or something totally unexpected.

So for all those businesses that were impacted by the snow, now is the time to get your business continuity plan in place, so that next time round there will be no nasty surprises and you have the right processes and technologies in place so productivity losses are avoided.



And it doesn't have to be hard! Here are my five top tips for businesses on how to prepare for the unexpected:

1.    Communicate clearly in advance - make sure your workers know what they need to do if they can't get into the office

2.    Equip employees with the right technologies - remote access and Web conferencing tools can help them remain productive even if they can't get to their desk

3.    Talk to your customers - Phone redirects and remote access software will allow you to go about business as usual, but if clients or customers are likely to be affected let them know as early as possible and keep communication channels open

4.    Consider alternatives - Travel to the office or to client meetings may be impossible, but instead of canceling, conduct the meetings online instead

5.    Put in place a business continuity leader - if the unexpected happens, it's wise to have one person in your organization responsible for coordinating efforts and informing all staff of the potential impacts and company policies


What will do you to prepare for the unexpected?


Photo Credit: Anirudh Koul

Recently I had two more team members that started workshifting full time.  One moved to San Francisco and the other to Oregon.  This can be a little bit like tearing off a Band-Aid.  The sting of reality can hit quickly.
 
The transition from a fully supported employee, with things such as a creative culture, big brain peers, office chatter and laughter, a gym, a kitchen, stellar IT support, etc., to a coffee shop or home office, can make for a rough landing.  As a manager, it's important that the person making the transition understand that it's not always as glamorous as it appears.
 
What I have found really helps is to team them up with other remote employees or at least make the introductions.  In the case of the San Francisco workshifter, she has a counterpart in the city and we happen to have an office there as well.  Based on her personality type, she should make a very easy transition.
 
For the Oregon workshifter, it's just the opposite.  No counterparts, no office.  In this case, it's worth it to take the time to let them know about the challenges people can face when they make the transition out of the nest.  The following withdrawal symptoms are fairly common:
 
1.  Lacking a sense of team and comradery
2.  Fear that the lack of "face time" will hinder their career
3.  Adjusting to conference call or web conferencing etiquette (inability to raise hand)
4.  Missing the corporate culture
5.  Lack of IT resources
 
To help with the transition, it always good to explain that the symptoms are normal and can vary depending on the person.  I know I sound like an advertisement for the latest anti-depressant, but it's true.  The best thing to do is to take the time to understand what type of person they are, and give them what they need.  It could be a call once a day or a regular video call so you can add a human element.  Scheduling regular visits to the office, even if they don't or can't make it, are very important.  It says to the workshifter that I value the relationship.
 
On that note, the importance of "face time" can't be underemphasized.  Depending on the person's level or job responsibility, it's good to visit the mother ship at least once a quarter.  If for nothing else, to reconnect with your peer group at a personal level.  Because at the end of the day, its all about trust, and the relationships that are being built.
 
What's your advice for someone about to leave the Corporate nest?

Photo by: biggertree
 

As of October 2009, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) figures place national unemployment numbers at 9.8%. These numbers are that much more pronounced and dire for young people. BLS says the unemployment rate has increased among 20-24 year olds by 50% since August 2008. In August of this year, roughly 15% of people in that same age bracket and 10% of 25-34 year olds were out of work.

Indeed, Generation Y, also known as the "'Net Generation" or "Millennials," face the toughest job market in decades. That's a tough pill for a group of young people who were raised during boom times and for whom invincibility has been a common and cohesive feeling.

These 76 million Americans born between 1979 and 1995 tend to have distinctive attitudes toward work, including where and when it ought to be performed.

• Sixty-three percent of Gen Y women placed the highest importance on accomplishing personal goals; 23% who stated professional goals were tops.
  
  
• Fully one-fourth of these women indicated that they would prefer to have flex scheduling and the ability to set their own work hours in lieu of a 10% increase in salary.
  

While unemployment has hit this 'Net cohort harder than others, they may bounce back faster than older workers would; as technology is their native tongue, which allows them to work remotely, saving employers money on overhead, sick pay and losses related to traffic and weather-induced delays for traditional employees.

Some companies are jumping on the remote working and flex-time bandwagon, with a program called "ROWE," or "results only work environment." Businesses on board with ROWE included Best Buy and Gap Outlet headquarters, and the City of Minneapolis. Workers at these companies "work wherever they want whenever they want, as long as the work gets done."

Under ROWE, "productivity isn't judged by how many hours someone puts in the chair but rather the quality and quantity of their work."  This attitude was echoed across all age groups in data from a survey conducted late last year by the polling company™, inc./WomanTrend for Citrix Online.  More than half (56%) of respondents revealed that they were never able to work remotely, also referred to as "Webcommuting," though nearly three-fourths (73%) of American employees wanted the ability to do so at their current or next job. Gen Y workers (those aged 18-29) were more likely than most to "never" be able to work from a location other than the office (60% vs. 56% overall).  In addition 18% of Gen Yers were willing to sacrifice up to 5% of their salary to work remotely, an astonishing figure considering the year-long economic downturn and bleak employment prospects for that age group.

Gen Y has grown up doing what they want from where they want, and being "forced" to commute and work from the same place at the same time each day belies both their flexibility and productivity.   However, in the aforementioned survey, 56% of 18-29 year olds said they were unable to work remotely as their "job functionality required them to be on site." This was the most of any age group. At the same time, 62% agreed, either "strongly" or "somewhat" with the statement "I would benefit from a fast and affordable way to meet over the Internet with colleagues located anywhere, and share our computer files, presentations and other information just as if we were in the same room." This indicates a strong desire to work from somewhere other than the office.

According to "career doctor" Randall S. Hansen, PhD , this newest crop of workers "has no interest whatsoever in working in a cubicle -- not because it is beneath them, but because they feel advances in technology should let them be able to choose to work from home, Starbucks, or anywhere there is a Wi-Fi connection."

Another tremendous advantage of shifting work from a traditional brick-and-mortar to an alternative and more convenient venue for the employee (if not the employer) is that talent can be recruited from around the world, not just around the corner. Additionally, there is evidence that the type of flexibility achieved through Webcommuting increases employee satisfaction and retention. With Generation Y remaining informed and entertained, communicating and transacting on the computer, working seems the next natural step.

Photo by: Justin Levy

Robin's story where she paid tribute to a great manager is exceptional, and I just don't have anything that quite measures up on the positive side of things. However, I do have my experiences from the trenches that challenge the assumptions that a lot of us make regarding the whole workshifting proposition.  

I think perhaps my worst experience was with "upper management" while managing a team at a startup. Start ups are never easy, and they require a whole lot of sweat and tears, and beyond all else - love. I remember during a particularly tenuous time, an executive making a blanket statement about there being team members leaving at 5pm. (Horror of all horrors, someone who observes the workday schedule). It was definitely made to sound as though the whole team was comprised of slackers, and that we weren't really giving it all that we had. It was one of the few times that I have had to excuse myself from a meeting - for fear of the things I might say if my mouth were to open.

This happens all the time, in lots of places, to tons of people. This is not a special or unique story, until you really start to look at the details. It was a fairly bleeding edge group of people that we were working with. The individual who was calling out the folks (really 1 person) who were leaving early was fully appraised of every possibility in terms of working with technology in order to work from anywhere. He was also one of the younger individuals on the executive team - not the oldster who stereotypically has the greatest challenge dealing with a lack of "face time." He also happened to have a very robust background in technology, and development, and that whole space where the typical workshifter can be found. The employee in question, who was conveniently providing a generalized "malaise" to be associated with the group was actually a gentleman who was going through some very rough times at home with his family. Through it all he was always available for calls, and always responded to emails promptly - even though not in the office. However, he had become the scapegoat and the mascot all in one go.

In the end, after reflecting on this situation- and learning about Robin's story - you realize that what it comes down to, in terms of being successful and working with people who respect you and your work despite location or time - is really a capacity for compassion, and open lines of communication. On both sides. It is also, in large part,  the capacity to recognize when you're in an environment, or on a team where workshifting just isn't going to be a sustainable solution and figuring out where to go from there.

I'm curious to know where your "in the trenches" stories fall when dealing with managers.  Great, good, indifferent or similar to the above?

Photo by: Mr.Tea

At some point during one's corporate career, we learn that our success is less dependent on "what we do" versus "who we work for."  No matter when this moment occurs it is a bit shocking. I learned this in my late 20s - I had a boss who coached and mentored me with such wisdom.  I was on an accelerated track and working 24/7.   But then a personal event took place, the death of my father, and I truly "disappeared" for two weeks and disconnected from work in every way.

I had already learned that my direct manager would be the key to professional success. And hopefully each of us learns (quickly) to align ourselves effectively.  Perhaps more startlingly is that with the blurred lines of work-life, the direct manager actually has a key to personal fulfillment as well.   Most individuals experience this the very first time their "work-life" is out of synch.  It is in this moment, we learn exactly what a company culture truly stands for including the accountability of the manager.  In my case, I experienced first hand that my boss was a man of the highest integrity, believed in shared success and was nothing less than brilliant.  To this day, I would walk thru fire for him; yet,  I've always wondered since, what happens to those individuals who have a boss - who is  not quite so accepting and accommodating to personal circumstances?  

Candidly, my manager (by the way his name was Frank Sorrentino)  was not your usual flex suspect. He was with the company 35+ years and the company culture lagged far behind today's standards.   However, he saw the value of an operating environment of trust, collaboration and results.  He looked to the team and stakeholders to advise him what was needed.  I took the death of my father quite hard - the truth is it took me another 4 weeks to come back full-force.  I actually phased in during those four weeks and when I came back - I was strong and returning to an even stronger organization.   With the exception of one individual (an employee called me the day after the funeral to tell me she was resigning) - there were no negative implications or water cooler conversation about my absence.  

What my "traditional" boss accomplished was based on instinct.  The increasing momentum around flexibility and the commitment by so many organizations to create an inclusive culture provides a window to a very exciting future. But these very organizations also recognize that change takes time and that not everyone will have Frank's instincts.  Providing managers with the right tools and support is critical. To not do so can adversely impact and set both the employee and manager up for failure.

Below are five manager practices that organizations find most important in making flexibility real at the manager level: 

1. Enabling and encouraging managers to work flexibly themselves -- on reduced work hours schedules (less-then-fulltime), in a job share where two managers share one job and share the responsibility for being available to their team, on flexible work hours (in lieu of them needing to be present whenever employees are working, which can lead to very long hours and exhaustion), etc.
   
   
2. Using manager self-assessments to help managers recognize and change their mindset about how to manage flexibly. Often it's the manager's attitude that needs changing that leads other changes in their behavior.
   
   
3. Rewarding managers who earn better evaluations on work-life supportiveness from employees.  This requires including questions on employee sureys or 360 degree evaluations of managers that inquire about their 'supportiveness'.  Great organizations have found that collecting this information helps them measure differences in depts. where managers are more supportive of employees' work-life needs with other depts. in terms of their employee retention and even customer satisfaction.
   
   
4. Including considerations of work-life -- attitudes and skills -- in decisions about which managers to hire and whom to promote as manager.  A great example is encouraging managers to pay consideration to resumes submitted that declare an individuals willingness to work flexibly.
   
   
5. Mentoring programs that connect managers who are skilled at managing flexibly and believe in it, with those who are just learning how. This is particularly important as companies are focused on multi-generational workforce.

What are other practices that you think should be included?

Photo by: Timitrius

Why do you work?
 
When I asked this question in a conference room all I got was silence.  It's actually a really hard question, and answering it in front of a group of people can be daunting.  People felt like they could be wrong. 
 
Well, there is no right answer, it's only important to know "why" so that you have purpose and direction.  It helped when I gave them some of my personal reasons for working:
 

• To create opportunity
• To solve problems
• I have obligation to earn a living
• I didn't win the lottery
• I love what I do
• I need somewhere to go in the morning
• I didn't inherit millions
• My wife would kill me if I sat around the house all day
• Be around like minded people
• Reaching milestones
• Learn from others
• Engineers are cool
  

 
The list goes on, but the point is it's very personal.  The key is not to ask yourself "why do you work at X company", but rather, "why" you work?  Some of my answers are very common and others are cliché, and that's ok.  The point is that you should take a personal inventory, decide for yourself and then ask if your career is right for you.  If it is, do more.  If it isn't, get out.  You owe it to yourself.
 
I would love to hear the truth about why you work.

Photo by: wili_hybrid
 

While I spend my fair share of time on the road and in coffee shops, most of the time I'm huddled away in my home office here in Chicago. When people find out that I often work from home, the most common response I get is something along the lines of "I'm so jealous. I wish I could work in my PJs in front of the TV all day." Sound familiar?  As most of you Workshifters know, working from home is anything but cushy. Sure, it has its advantages, but it also comes with its own set of challenges. Here are some of the things that have helped me stay sane as a home office warrior:

• Minimize distractions.If you have an office door, shut it. Turn off the TV, the radio and anything else that will prevent you from actually getting work done. Figure out how you operate most efficiently. To truly focus on what I'm doing, I learned quickly that I need complete silence - no TV and no music. Sometimes, I also disconnect from the Internet to focus 100% on projects.
  
  
• Stay connected. Other than the standard emails and phone calls, find other ways to connect with your clients and co-workers. You're missing out on the water cooler chit-chat, so it's up to you to make those connections in other ways. I use Google Talk, Skype and of course Facebook, Twitter, among others.  (If you use more than one instant messenger application, consider using a service like Pidgin, which lets you log in to account on multiple chat networks simultaneously.)
  
  
• Get out. Working from home can get pretty isolating at times. This was a challenge for me at first. Make sure you get out on a regular basis and have actual face-to-face interactions with people. Work in a coffee shop for one day a week. Run errands over lunch. Connect with other Workshifters in your area through groups like Jelly.
   
• Know when to stop. One of the toughest things about working from home is not being able to leave "the office." If possible, separate your work space from your living space. Also, don't go "back to work" when you've finished for the day. If you're going to check your work email on the weekend or before you go to bed, try to only do so for a set amount of time. That way you won't get sucked in...
  
  
• Insist on IT support. As a Workshifter there is nothing more frustrating than IT troubles. Actually, I take that back. There's nothing more frustrating than having a tech problem and not having anyone to help you fix it. If your employer doesn't have a system for this in place, investigate IT support in your own neighborhood. MindFire works with a company that uses a remote support approach using Citrix GoToAssist.
  
  
• Finally - develop a routine and stick to it. As AJ Leon noted in his recent Workshifting post, "maintaining some construct of routine is far more important for a Workshifter than for a traditional employee." Whatever that routine may be, it will help get you in the "work" mindset and bring some normalcy to the day.
  

See also: an excellent post over at zenhabits 501 on Top 30 Tips for Staying Productive and Sane While Working from Home.

What are some of your best tips for home office warriors?

Photo by: baliboro

Take a look around your office, assuming you're not workshifting of course.  Now, take a quick poll and ask people how long they've worked there.  If you were to ask my team, the average is almost 5 years (that surprised me too!).  I have been at Citrix Online for almost 6 years, and that's not uncommon.  Why?  When you work to develop a great culture, hire like minded people, and give them the freedom and trust to work from anywhere...they never want to leave.  Simple, huh.
 
I have team members that work in London, Orange County, Hawaii and San Francisco.  I have no idea what their real hours are and I don't worry about it.  They know what is expected and the rest is up to them.  They are measured based on their performance and engagement with their peers.  We do show and tell with GoToMeeting, and see each other using Skype.  We have iPhones, Blackberrys and every other imaginable gadget.  We follow each other on Facebook and Twitter.  We IM and DM.  In my opinion, DM is becoming the new email, for better or for worse, but that's a post for another day.  These tools are not limited to full-time remote workers.  Most people I work with use them in a similar fashion. 

It's interesting to talk about the tools but what is the real value?  It's about quality of life.  A major factor in peoples desire to stay with us is the ability to workshift.  Many times it's not as black and white as working from home or being in the office.  Most of the time it's connecting to the office computer at 6am and than freeing up an hour to take the kids to school.  It's having a meeting online from your (insert any location) and than taking a half hour to catch up on reading, or going for a run.  Let's be honest, life happens between 9 and 5.  You can't turn it off and it can't be ignored.

So, as a manager, what are the proper ingredients for a successful workshifting culture?
 
1.Embrace the 24 hour day  
2.Recognize that everyones workshifting needs are slightly different  
3.Give them the tools  
4.Trust
 
Do these few things as well as a couple other simple steps and you can start enjoying the shift to a better life-work balance.

Photo by: tswicegood

As part of a larger report on workplace trends developed by Citrix Online titled "Worldwide Workplace: The Web Commuting Imperative", today we're launching a whitepaper on simple steps that businesses can take to get started in workshifting some or all of their employees.

To get up and running with workshifting, here are five simple steps that businesses can take:

1. Determine the specific needs of your organization
2. Go online to identify best practices for managing a virtual workplace.
3. Evaluate core technologies best suited to enabling employees to remain productive.
4. Set policies and guidelines for managing your virtual workplace.
5. Set benchmarks and measure effectiveness.

For suggestions and details on how to execute each of these steps, download the whitepaper now: Five Steps to a Virtual Workplace Program

After reading through the whitepaper, are there other steps that you would take to convince your business to start a workshifting program?

Photo by: e.t

When walking down the street the other day, I overheard someone say 'I'm just killing time' to a friend. It's an expression I haven't heard in a while and that's because many of us are trying to expand hours in the day, rather than loose them. Here are some tips on how you can make the most of your day.

 

A whole extra day

Workshifters are fortunate. We earn, on average, one whole extra day each week, by cutting out the daily commute.  We're also more productive.  Research reported in the Mail on Sunday in 2008 said the average employee does just four hours of productive work a day. The research claimed the rest of the working day (outside the 4 hours) is spent on:

 "fielding unnecessary phone calls and emails, or wasting time by surfing the Internet and gossiping."

As workshifters, we don't have the water cooler chat so we can get more done but here are some tips to get you and time in full flow:

• Tidy your desk as you finish for the day/night so you have a fresh start in the morning.
  
  
• Write a 'to do' list the night before (and try to include time slots eg 7-9am: site content, 9-11am: new client proposal etc - this doesn't always go to plan but it does put some structure in the day) - having a 'Things to do' book helps with this task and it's a great feeling to tick off the items you've achieved.
  
  
• Do the things that require most concentration first thing in the morning. That way, you're less likely to be interrupted by calls and emails.
  
  
• Speaking of which, emails and calls can be a great distraction! When you need clear concentration, switch out of the inbox and, once the project's done, download and reply to the mail that's come in. You can also 'switch off' the phone by leaving the voicemail on or diverting it to a call-handling service, if you have one.
  
  
• Outsource tasks that take up lots of your time but earn little return. This frees up your time to spend on activities that deliver income and happy clients.   
  
  
• Make the most of project management tools such as Basecamp or Pelotonics. Why does this save you time? Because you can keep clients updated on what's happening on their projects which means less travel to and from meetings.

As technology editor, San Sharma, once wrote: 'The tools we use enable us to manipulate time. The web, email, instant messaging offer information and communication on our own terms. The news when we want, messages as they come, responses in our own time...'

He's right. We can manipulate time. Just please don't kill it!

What tips do you have for staying productive, either as a workshifter or as someone who works from an office?

Photo by: practicalowl