I have a longish commute. It starts at around 7 a.m. with one two year old and several bags of miscellany in tow. I catch the 7:35 (OK, OK it’s usually the 7:50 … and sometimes the 8:20) train into the city – a trip that’s an hour and five minutes. Nine times out of 10, I am at my desk by nine. I do sometimes bring work-related tasks along for the ride, but if it’s between a spreadsheet, a good book or even (yes!) a nap, the latter options will always win out.
As Alstin winds down on the lease for our current office space, our team has started to give some thought to telecommuting. I’ve often wondered how much more productive I could be starting my day at 7:35ish from a home office.
According to WorldatWork, nearly 29 million Americans now work remotely. Their Telework Trendlines 2009 report based on data collected by The Dieringer Research Group found:
· Many workers not currently telecommuting think some of their job tasks might be suitable for remote work
· The most common locations for remote work are home, car and a customer’s place of business
· Occasional telecommuting is on the rise
Will there someday be a virtual Alstin?
The flexibility to work from anywhere simply put sounds great – great for overhead and great for attracting and retaining our talent. However, I am talking about “the a-team” here. What happens when you farm a great team out to a different playing field?
Does your company offer telecommuting as an option for select positions? Are you one of the 29 million Americans working remotely? Do you wish you were?
Give us your take on this topic and we’ll come back around to update you on how Alstin is evaluating and assessing the possibilities of telecommuting.
