Is Telecommuting a Good Option?

Many companies offer telecommuting options for employees who desire a greater work-life balance. Instead of utilizing open office spaces to bring about powerful changes in company culture, firms should value workplace flexibility as a way to lure and keep top talent.

Dell, Aetna and Xerox continue to lead the way with telecommuting options for hard-working employees, while FlexJobs.com caters to job postings that offer nothing but telecommuting positions. Working from home, or not working in the office, may not be for everyone or for every business model. However, more and more employees want that choice. Technology such as cloud computing, smartphone apps and wireless Internet connections help make telecommuting more viable than ever before.

Xerox employs 70,000 people in the United States, and 11 percent, or 8,000 workers, telecommute 100 percent of the time. Aetna has telecommuting options, in some respects, for 43 percent of its 48,000-member workforce. Dell has 100,000 employees, and approximately 20 percent of them telecommute.

Telecommuting options represent a way to land top talent, no matter where those employees live. Not everyone wants to move from Japan or India to Silicon Valley just to work. Instead, companies can cater to the best minds by allowing them to stay at home with family, friends and their community by letting people work from home.

Xerox has employed telecommuting since the 1960s when employees took home key punches to perform data entry work. Aetna and Dell, along with Xerox, view telecommuting as a way to increase profits rather than just as a nice perk. All three firms discuss telecommuting options with employees before sending them away from the office. Not all employees, such as those in manufacturing positions, can work at home. Each manager at Xerox evaluates a worker's skill set, job duties and home environment before deciding on telecommuting.

Each department must properly train employees to ensure they do the job right away from the office. Human resources should take the lead to get workers the skills, resources and equipment they need to work at home. IT and HR must collaborate so both departments know the technical and business aspects of telecommuting for employees.

Telecommuting affects the work-life balance of many employees. Lower-level workers see workplace flexibility as a way to take a break from the daily grind of an office. Managers may have an expectation that telecommuters work 60 to 80 hours per week instead of 40. Whereas mobility means more flexibility, managers may believe underlings should put in more hours because managers have that mindset. However, bosses must realize that they make more money to manage a remote team, and therefore the company compensates them more.

The benefits of telecommuting are amazing. Aetna saved between 15 and 25 percent on real estate costs. The company reduced its carbon footprint in 2014 by saving 5.3 million gallons of gas over 127 million miles driven and cutting carbon dioxide emissions by 46,700 metric tons. Xerox telecommuters drive 92 million fewer miles and save 4.6 million gallons of gas each year.

Telecommuting options reduce company expenses, save employees fuel costs and reduce America's dependence on gasoline. Work-at-home employees at all three of these huge companies are happier, better engaged and more hardworking. Telecommuters may represent the future of American workers since this paradigm cuts costs and raises profits.

Photo courtesy of Mike McCune at Flickr.com