Truth Vs. Myth
Myth Busting: What Is Telecommuting?
What you learn might surprise you.
One of the greatest barriers telework has faced in the past decade is not technology or the willingness of the average person to consider modifying their work habits (we already do this: logging in after-hours, plugging away at our Blackberrys in client waiting rooms, reading a brief in our favourite coffee shop).
Instead, the barrier is the common mythology that has followed telecommuting since its inception. The WORKshift program works to “de-bunk” these myths, giving telecommuting the opportunity it needs to establish its rightful place in the way Calgarians live and work.
Employer
MYTH: Telework is an all or nothing proposition. It means working from home 5 days a week.
The typical telecommuter works from home one to two days a week. This means employees are still in the office for face-to-face meetings and critical interaction for the majority of their work week.
Relatively few employees report a desire to work from home full-time and the data associated with successful telework arrangements don’t support a full-time model. Telecommuting can take place from distributed work centres, or other locations such as client sites. It might just mean your organization has embraced “peak shifting”. Telework means your employees are working when and where they are most effective, whether that’s from home or elsewhere.
MYTH: Teleworkers are not as productive as their office counterparts
Telework statistics demonstrate that in a formal telework arrangement, in an environment that manages employees’ success through objective-setting and outcomes rather than by line of sight, telecommuters are 15 to 40% more productive than their office counterparts.
In a 2007 national survey, 78% of managers reported that their telecommuters were more productive or as productive as their office-bound colleagues (FutureStop Trends@Work, Korn/Ferry International, Jan. 16th, 2007. Survey polled 1,320 global executives in 71 countries).
MYTH: The costs and logistics of telecommuting don’t make it worthwhile
The truth is that many of your staff are already telecommuting on an ad-hoc basis. This might look like them working from their blackberry in the field or working from home after hours, but many are likely already doing it informally.
By implementing a formal telework program, organizations can start capturing, measuring and reporting the savings associated with these arrangements: desk-sharing (reducing real-estate costs), trip reporting (measuring greenhouse gas emission reductions) and reduced energy costs.
MYTH: Telework programs mean I will never see my staff
Telework does not mean employees are out of the office all day, every day. Although most employees report a desire to participate in some kind of telework arrangement, very few want to be full-time telecommuters.
Telecommuting may simply mean that your staff are “peak shifting” or coming into the office and leaving outside of rush hours. The specific arrangement that will be most effective for individual organizations and staff needs to be examined on a case-by-case basis. Almost all organizations are able to find a model that works for them.
MYTH: Telework programs don’t help attract staff or limit employee turnover
According to a huge compensation survey of 1,400 CFOs conducted by Robert Half International, 46% said telecommuting is second only to salary as the best way to attract top talent. Additionally, 33% said telecommuting was the top draw.
Implementing a telework program is a great strategy for limiting employee turnover.
Employee
MYTH: Telework programs can’t benefit me
If you are fortunate enough to be a telecommuter, or have experienced telecommuting, the benefits are obvious. What is not as obvious are the benefits that large telework programs have for commuters that don’t actually telework.
Imagine if 10% of the commuters you share the roads and transit system with were suddenly working from their homes. Would this positively impact your day? Imagine the reduction in pollution.
MYTH: Employees prefer traditional work arrangements
A recent study by Mitel reported that employees are more likely to stay at their current jobs if their employer lets them telecommute. In addition, 88% of those polled feel that telecommuting is a "good" or "great" idea. Twenty-six per cent of teleworkers said they would re-think their job if their employer did not have a teleworking program.
Other telework statistics suggest that employees would be willing to accept a pay cut in exchange for more flexible work arrangements.
MYTH: Working remotely will impede career advancements and opportunities, will endangers job security
Urban mythology would have us believe that employees that telecommute are the first to go in a round of layoffs; that it is “risky” to be out of sight and out of mind. The reality is that the average teleworker is a highly skilled, highly educated, valued employee who was probably given the opportunity to telecommute because of their top-notch job performance.
Environment/Society
MYTH: Telework programs don’t truly benefit the environment or impact pollution
According to Scott Flemming, CEO of Teletrips, if just 1000 of Calgarians telework once a week for a year, they would offset the average electricity consumption of 175 Canadians annually.
According to Scott Flemming, founder of Teletrips, if just 1,000 Calgarians telecommute once a week for a year, they will offset the average electricity consumption of 175 Canadians annually.
Other ways to look at it:
• In CBC’s One Million Acts of Green challenge, 23,000 telecommuting Canadians have saved close to 1.5 million kilograms of greenhouse gasses
• Bell Canada’s 2007 Corporate Responsibility report states that through their internal telework program, employees reduced their travel by approximately 110 million kilometres a year, saving a whopping 20,000 metric tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions annually
MYTH: Telework programs can’t contribute to healthier communities
Telework has many other far-reaching societal benefits including:
Telecommuting Jobs for the Disabled & Mobility Restricted
Consider the implications of an established and well-run telework initiative offering telecommuting jobs to the disabled population. There are still far too many talented people who are un- or underemployed because of physical barriers to work.
Telework arrangements help mitigate many of these barriers, allowing employers better access to this highly effective and diverse workforce.
Emergency Preparedness
Modern economic sustainability depends on the connectivity of our workforce. When considering a regional and robust business continuity plan, telework becomes a must-have tool in the arsenal.
Imagine if Calgary were suddenly burdened with a snow or ice storm, an act of terrorism or even a pandemic: how would downtown Calgary look? How would we run our businesses? The fact is that we don’t need to be at our desks to complete our jobs.
More Time Spent Doing the Things We Love
Canadians can recoup about an hour of their day by eliminating their commute. Imagine if you telecommute just two days a week: that is over four days or 96 hours a year of additional time to do the things you love.
