Career Spotlight: Always on call: it may benefit all
Twenty-first-century employees don't just telecommute anymore. They "telework," a new buzzword that reflects the growing mobility of workers brought on by advanced technology such as Wi-Fi access and virtual networks. With more connectivity to headquarters than ever, staffers don't just log in from home. They also work on projects and finish reports in airports, cafes, and even taxicabs. Nearly 9 million U.S. employees telework, according to IDC, a market advisory firm, which projects steady upward growth in the trend.
As Blackberry addicts are well aware, the crumbling walls between work and home can allow the boss to track you down at will, whatever the time and wherever you are. But both workers and their companies still stand to gain.
New grads and other young workers are accustomed to setting their own schedules and being constantly wired. Working parents crave the flexibility to pick up the kids at school or run a midday errand. And employers are starting to recognize benefits beyond more satisfied workers.
With fewer people in the office, companies can downsize their real estate and save on equipment costs. In a recent survey of 50 major corporations by Jones Lang LaSalle, a real-estate consulting group, 37 percent of executives cited telecommuting and "hoteling," where employees don't have assigned desks but simply take whatever's available, as the best means of pinching pennies.
Cutting costs was one factor that led Sun Microsystems to establish its iWork program 10 years ago. While looking for ways to use its office space more efficiently, Sun found that about 35 percent of its space was empty at any given time. So company executives started offering certain employees the option to work off campus.
"It was a very strange conception in the beginning," says David Rush, marketing and communications manager for iWork. "People have certain expectations. There is a real black-and-white sense of where work ends and your life begins."
Employees adapted, however, and now more than half the company's 30,000 workers are involved in the program. The arrangement has helped Sun save $250 million over the past four years–which explains the company's plans to encourage even more employees to participate.