The Telework Improvements Act (H.R. 1722) got a second chance in the House on July 14th and won. The same bill was narrowly defeated in May. A similar bill (S.707) passed unanimously in the Senate on May 24th.

While it's been a mandate since the year 2000 that every federal worker telecommute to the maximum extent possible, participation rates are only slightly higher than those of the private sector. According to a recent report, only about 100,000 of the government's 2 million workers telework at least one day a month--a number that's actually declined in recent years. While still higher than private sector participation, only about 5 percent of the total federal workforce telework and less than 9% of those who are eligible do so.
 
If signed into law by the President, the Telework Improvements Act would, among other things, direct the Office of Personnel Management to issue regulations on telework, require agencies to come up with policies that permit teleworking for up to 20 percent of the hours worked over two weeks, require agencies to designate a telework managing officer, provide training to employees, and ensure that there are no distinctions between teleworkers and others in performance appraisals. Independent of this bill, the Obama administration has set a goal of having 150,000 teleworkers by 2011, and 500,000 by 2014.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates program costs at $30 million over a five year period. In fact, the staggering costs of lost productivity from federal workers during last Winter's snowstorms--estimated by the government at $71 million a day--would pay for the five year cost of H.R. 1722 in one snow day.

The potential savings of the program were not presented by CBO. Using assumptions from a 2006 study commissioned by the U.S. General Services Administration (conducted by Booz Allen), we used our Telework Savings Calculator to quantify the potential governments savings if those eligible federal employees who wanted to work from home did so just one day every other week (half the level required in H.R. 1722):

Agencies would:
- Increase productivity by over $2.3 billion each year - equivalent to 26,000 man years of work
- Save $850 million in annual real estate, electricity, and related costs
- Save $2.3 billion in annual absenteeism
- Save $3.1 billion in annual employee turnover
- Improve continuity of operations
- Improve work life balance and better address the needs of families, parents, and senior caregivers.
- Avoid the 'brain drain' effect of retiring boomers by allowing them to work flexibly
- Be able to recruit and retain the best people
- Offer fuller employment for disabled workers, rural residents, and military families

Federal Employees would:
- Achieve a better work-life balance
- Save $400-$1,400/year in transportation and work-related expenses
- Collectively save $57 million a year at the pumps
- Suffer fewer illnesses

The Nation would:
- Save almost 3 million barrels and $233 million in imported oil
- Reduce greenhouse gases by 532,000 tons/year--the equivlient of taking 97,000 cars off the road
- Reduce road travel by 1.2 billion miles/year saving $20 million in road maintenance
- Reduce road congestion thereby increasing productivity for non-teleworkers as well
- Save 1,000 people from traffic-related injury or death each year and save $117 million a year in related costs
- Improve emergency responsiveness
- Reduce pollution from road work and new office construction
- Preserve open spaces
- Alleviate the strain on our crumbling transportation infrastructure
- Reduce terrorism targets of opportunity

Talk of a national telework initiative has been rattling around Washington ever since the start of the current administration. While the Telework Improvements Act does nothing for the private sector--except perhaps reducing traffic in areas with significant government workers and possibly shortening the wait time at downtown D.C. Starbucks'--hopefully it will send a strong message of endorsement of the concept to the private sector.

What do you think?

Photo Credit: Vinoth Chandar
 

Consensus Would Save Taxpayers $11 Billion a Year

Just two weeks after a narrow defeat in the House, the Senate unanimously passed legislation (S.707) that would beef up federal workshifting participation. Passage of H.R. 1722--The Telework Improvements Act, a nearly identical bill, missed by only 4% with all but one of the nay votes coming from the Republican side of the house. It's hard not to blame party politics for the House failure since they themselves passed an almost mirror bill in the last months of the Bush administration.

Many of the House naysayers cited costs, which the Congressional Budget Office estimated to be $30 million over a five year period, as the reason for their opposition to the bill. Our reseach shows the bill would actually save agency and employee participants $11 billion a year. Let's see, that's something like a 1,800x return on investment.

The House bill should have made it a no-brainer. You'd think the staggering costs of lost productivity from federal workers during this Winter's snowstorms--estimated by the government's own bean counters at $71 million a day--would wake lawmakers up to the need for a trained teleworkforce. Apparently, at least in the House, those memories melted along with the ice.

Only 5.2% of the 4.7 million government workforce telecommutes on a regular basis but 61% are considered eligible. Based on assumptions from a 2006 study commissioned by the U.S. General Services Administration (conducted by Booz Allen) our Telework Savings Calculator shows that if those eligible employees who wanted to work from home did so just one day every other week (the level required in H.R. 1722):


Agencies would:

• Increase productivity by over $2.3 billion each year - equivalent to 26,000 man years of work
• Save $850 million in annual real estate, electricity, and related costs
• Save $2.3 billion in annual absenteeism
• Save $3.1 billion in annual employee turnover
• Improve continuity of operations
• Improve work life balance and better address the needs of families, parents, and senior caregivers.
• Avoid the 'brain drain' effect of retiring boomers by allowing them to work flexibly
• Be able to recruit and retain the best people
• Offer fuller employment for disabled workers, rural residents, and military families

Federal Employees would:

• Achieve a better work-life balance
• Save $400-$1,400/year in transportation and work-related expenses
• Collectively save $57 million a year at the pumps
• Suffer fewer illnesses

The Nation would:

• Save almost 3 million barrels and $233 million in imported oil
• Reduce greenhouse gases by 532,000 tons/year--the equivlient of taking 97,000 cars off the road
• Reduce road travel by 1.2 billion miles/year saving $20 million in road maintenance
• Reduce road congestion thereby increasing productivity for non-teleworkers as well
• Save 1,000 people from traffic-related injury or death each year and save $117 million a year in related costs
• Improve emergency responsiveness
• Reduce pollution from road work and new office construction
• Preserve open spaces
• Alleviate the strain on our crumbling transportation infrastructure
• Reduce terrorism targets of opportunity
• That's a savings of over $5,000 per telecommuter.

Supporters of the H.R. 1722 need your help bringing the bill back to the floor under a full session. The President, the First Lady, and the director of the Office of Personnel Management, John Berry, have all professed their support for workshifting. If you agree, please contact your political representatives and urge them to vote to make the road less traveled the way to work. A list of those who opposed the vote is available and you can cast your own vote on the bill at OpenCongress.

Want to know what your company could save by workshifting? Download our latest white paper: Workshifting:The Bottom Line


Photo Credit: myoldpostcards

If every person in the U.S. with a workshifting-compatible job worked at home on Earth Day, collectively it would:

• Save 900 Million vehicle miles
• Save 45 Million gallons of gas--$188 Million in consumer savings
• Save 2.3 Million barrels of oil--valued at $185 Million
• Eliminate 423,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases--the equivilant of taking 77,000 cars off the road for a year.
• Save 28 million kWh in net electricity--enough to power 2,600 homes for a year
• Save 775 people from traffic injury and deaths

Less than 2% of U.S. employees work from home the majority of the time (not including the self-employed), but 40% could. If they did so just half of the time (roughly the national average for those who do), as a nation we would save over a half a trillion dollars a year and much more.

• Workshifting offers a relatively simple, inexpensive solution to some of the world's most vexing problems:
• Environmentalists applaud telecommuting because it significantly reduces greenhouse gases and energy usage.
• Astute company owners support telecommuting because of the cost savings and increased productivity.
• Work-life experts endorse telecommuting because it addresses the needs of families, parents, and senior caregivers.
• Workforce planners see telecommuting as away to avoid the 'brain drain' effect of retiring boomers.
• Human resource professionals see telecommuting as a way to recruit and retain the best people.
• Employees see telecommuting as a way to save time and money, and improve the quality of their lives.
• Baby Boomers find telecommuting offers a flexible alternative to full retirement.
• Gen Y'ers see telecommuting as a way to work on their own terms.
• Disabled workers, rural residents, and military families find home-based work an answer to their special needs.
• Urban planners realize telecommuting can reduce traffic and revitalize cities.
• Governments see telecommuting as a way to reduce highway wear and tear and alleviate the strain on our crumbling transportation infrastructure.
• Organizations rely on telecommuting to ensure continuity of operations in the event of a disaster or pandemic-all federal workers are required to telecommute to the maximum extent possible for just this reason.

More details about workshifting are available at the TeleworkResearchNetwork.com.

"It's time we made the road less traveled the way to work." What are your thoughts?


Photo Credit: FlyingSinger

Business Week did a fascinating story about the effect of the real estate market on unemployment and economic recovery.

Twenty-three percent of all mortgagees owe more than their house is worth. In Nevada, a whopping 65% of property owners are upside-down with their mortgage. According to the article, that together with a depressed housing market, the aging population, and other factors, has led to record low mobility.

So what does that have to do with unemployment? It turns out, according to Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz, that mobility is fundamental to economic recovery. If people aren't willing or able to relocate in order to find work, high rates of unemployment will continue.

That's where workshifting comes in! Bringing the work to the worker, rather than the other way around would allow people to find gainful employment without taking a bath on the sale of their home. It would also save companies a bundle in relocation packages.

Has workshifting allowed you to avoid a costly move? How else might it help speed up our economic recovery?

Photo Credit: The Shifted Librarian 

Today we have a guest post from Sean Ryan.  Sean is a research analyst with IDC focused on mobile enterprise software.

Mobility as a Service (MaaS), may be another buzzword for the road, but there is a very real shift underway towards adoption of SaaS-based solutions for mobile devices. This includes SaaS-based solutions with mobile client add-ons, such as the case with Salesforce.com for the BlackBerry and the iPhone. It also includes SaaS-based mobile middleware platforms that extend multiple enterprise applications to mobile devices, as is the case with vendors like Antenna Software and Spring Wireless.

Many factors are contributing to the MaaS trend, but here are a few of the biggest drivers:

• The flexibility of enterprises to easily scale up and scale down users based on an on-demand subscription pricing model.
  
  
• The ability for enterprises to start small, in terms of number of users deployed and cash outlay, with certain apps and then grow them across the organization. This equates to being able to run a pilot on your own terms without time constraints or an obligation to purchase a set number of seats at a given time.
  
  
• A lightweight client can often be provisioned down to devices over-the-air (OTA).
  
  
• The challenges unique to mobile deployments -- e.g., limitations of wireless connectivity, limitations of small form factors, and the variety of smartphone Oses -- are a real headache for already overburdened IT departments to deal with, as they require different skill sets as well as different management and security tools. It is much easier to farm this out to a vendor that specializes in mobility.
  
  
• It is becoming very difficult for developers to keep up with the array of mobile OSes that are viable candidates for mobile workers -- i.e., BlackBerry OS, Windows Mobile, Symbian (Nokia 60, etc.), iPhone OS, Google Android, and Palm webOS. Combine this with the multiple versions for each OS along with different hardware reference designs, and the complexity is overwhelming unless the company takes a draconian approach to drastically limit the types of devices it will allow employees to use. Again, a vendor specializing in mobility can do a much better job of staying on top of a rapidly moving, complex space. In most cases, the near real-time updating of OS versions, bug fixes, etc., can be included in the service-level agreement (SLA).
  

While mobility as a service is not widely deployed today in large enterprises, it is expected to grow rapidly in the coming year.

A recent IDC survey of 309 IT and business professionals for large enterprises in the United States and the United Kingdom, responsible for enterprise mobility purchase decisions, found that only 9% of organizations have already embarked on a large-scale deployment of mobile SaaS-based solutions (see pie chart). However, the same respondents indicated a growing acceptance of this delivery model for extending enterprise applications to mobile devices. Almost 40% of organizations plan to deploy a SaaS-based mobile solution in the next 12-18 months. Another 19.7% have already done a pilot and plan to roll out a larger deployment in the next 12-18 months. Furthermore, 15.5% of organizations have no plans to roll out any aspect of mobile SaaS-based solutions in the next 12-18 months, with another 8.4% that did run a pilot but have no plans to roll the solution out to other employees.

Of course, this does not mean that all on-premises solutions will be displaced, as many organizations will likely run on-premises solutions for certain applications that may need to be more customized or strategic in nature, or deal with data that is very sensitive, particularly if it is in a highly regulated industry. But, overall, the advantages of a SaaS-based model for mobile deployments align well with the needs of mobile workers and the IT departments supporting them.

Lately, my sister has been trying to convince her employer--a non-profit that supports freedom and democracy around the world--to allow its employees to work flexible hours, from anywhere (but most especially from home). She does project-based work that only occasionally requires direct input from co-workers--that is, she is the ideal candidate for workshifting. And still, she is having a tough time selling the idea upstairs.

In the process of making her case, my sister has come across an enormous amount of research about the value of workshifting (although to be fair, most of the studies don't call it that; see also, flextime, teleworking, etc.). Here's some of it:

• The Institute for Corporate Productivity (i4cp) reports that according to results of a 2009 study, "a full 84% of companies overall believe that flexible work arrangements in their organization boosts employee morale. That figure is up from 76% in a similar 2008 study conducted by i4cp. Correspondingly, the 2009 study showed that 78% of polled companies say flexwork options bolster retention rates, up from 64% the previous year."
  
  
• A 2008 report from Corporate Voices for Working Families notes that in their 2007 survey of senior-level executives at large corporations:

• "Respondents reported an overwhelmingly positive experience with flexible work strategies;"

• "More then 75 percent of the business executives interviewed define flexible work strategies as an alternate time or location arrangement; for instance, a nonstandard 40-hour workweek or working from home;" and
   
• "The respondents, by a ratio of 9-to-1, report that flexible work strategies have a positive effect on helping organizations reach business goals
  
  
• In a 2009 letter of recommendations submitted to the Senate Staff Working Group on Workplace Flexibility, Corporate Voices cites, "Our 50 partner companies [including Booz Allen Hamilton, HP, and KPMG LLP] understand that flexible work arrangements, for both salaried and hourly employees, contribute to more productive work environments, increased employee loyalty, reduced stress, and as a result, increased profitability and global competitiveness."
  
  
• IBM has seen a dramatic savings due to its support of telecommuting.  As of October 2007, according to a FinancialWeek article of that month, 40% of IBM's 355,000 employees are mobile workers. The magazine reports, "The company estimates that its mobile workforce reduces its real estate requirements by at least 2 million square feet, saving IBM about $100 million a year."
  
  
• Families and Work Institute (FWI) reports in their study The Impact of the Recession on Employers, "fully 81% of employers have maintained existing flexible work options during the recession and 13% have actually increased those options, while 6% have reduced them.
  

Even Michelle Obama is a believer in workshifting: Speaking at a Corporate Voices conference in May 2009, Obama stressed that her own personal experiences support Corporate Voices' research. The Washington Post reported that Obama said, "I found that as I've managed staff, the more flexibility and opportunities that I gave them to be good parents, the more commitment that they made to working with me, the less likely they were to leave because they wouldn't find the same sort of situation somewhere else." She added, "So this isn't just about family balance. This is about making work places stronger and more effective, and keeping and attracting the most qualified people."

As someone who's been workshifting for 15 years, I couldn't agree more--and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that my sister is successful in her fight for the freedom to be happier, healthier and more productive!

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

Today Jacquelyn Brown stops by to ask for your assistance with a research project exploring personality type, telecommuting and the potential connection between them.  Jacquelyn has been workshifting for the past 7 years and is currently working on her PhD at the University of San Diego with a research focus specifically on telecommuting.

As a telecommuter for the last seven years , I have been intrigued by this alternative work arrangement and have chosen to explore the concept of telecommuting for my doctoral dissertation at the University of San Diego.
 
Telecommuting continues to grow as technology improves, organizations look to save on overhead costs, employees seek stronger work-life balances, shifting economic priorities, and we look to help the environment by putting fewer cars on the roads.  To ensure that organizations continue to support and encourage telecommuting, we need a better understanding of telecommuting challenges.
 
There are so many avenues to explore when it comes to telecommuting.  One area that is underdeveloped and could be insightful for employers, employees and managers, focuses on the relationships between telecommuting and personality type.  We already know that there are learned skills that can benefit a telecommuter (time management, self-discipline...), but what about how one's innate personality type relates to telecommuting?  This complex issue could provide insight into challenges faced by telecommuters based on their personality type.
 
Telecommuters face numerous challenges, such as feelings of isolation, lack of promotional opportunities, lack of structure in their workday and relationships with managers, co-workers and family.  What is not currently understood is why not all telecommuters experience these challenges, and for those that do, why they experience them to varying degrees.  I am suggesting that this difference may be related to a telecommuter's MBTI personality type.  While it shouldn't be assumed that certain types would be better telecommuters than others, it would be interesting to investigate how the various MBTI personality types could adapt to make their telecommuting situations more successful.
 
The focus of my research is to uncover telecommuters' experiences with telecommuting challenges and explore if there is a relationship between those challenges and such factors as one's Myers-Briggs (MBTI) personality type and telecommuting characteristics and demographics.
 
The MBTI is a personality assessment that takes approximately 15 minutes to complete.  After taking the MBTI participants will be provided with a detailed analysis of your type.  In addition, I have created a telecommuting survey consisting of only 16 questions that is broken up into three brief sections, Telecommuting Overview, Telecommuting Challenges and Demographics.
 
If you participate in this research, I will provide you with the following:

• Your Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) profile (a $12 value)
• The MBTI make-up of the survey participants
• The telecommuting characteristics and demographics of the survey participants, and how they compare to the larger population of telecommuters
• The challenges faced by the survey participant
• The telecommuting challenges for different personality types
  

If you work for an organization that you do not own and telecommute from home using a phone and computer at least once a week, I welcome your insight into your experiences as a telecommuter.  If not, thank you for your time.
 
I will be conducting research for the next 60 days.  Please email me at telecommutestudy@gmail.com to indicate you would like to participate in this research. After you register, I will send you links to both the MBTI and telecommuting surveys with further instructions.  Your feedback on both surveys will be kept confidential.  

Thank you for being a part of this exciting research project!