Activate Email 
INDUSTRIES
INDUSTRIES
May 30, 2007
Collaborative Technologies Lead to Increase in Virtual Workers/Telecommuters
By Susan J. Campbell, TMCnet Contributing Editor
As the price of gas continues to skyrocket and the highways become more congested, the idea of working out of a home or branch office can seem very appealing. Some industries are finding that such arrangement, while it can be challenging, can reduce costs, ensure more qualified employees and reduce attrition. As a result, virtual workers and telecommuters are increasing substantially.
According to Nemertes’ latest benchmark, “Branch Office Best Practices,” 62 percent of participants are planning to increase the number of their branch-office locations. On average, branch offices will grow 11 percent in 2007, up 8.9 percent from 2006. Growth of the branch office is being driven by global expansion, employee attraction and retention, merger and acquisitions, cost savings and environmental concerns. The study was based on five months of in-depth interviews with 120 IT executives.
The effective management of the virtual workplace has become more comfortable due to collaborative technologies. More than 80 percent of companies are “virtual workplaces,” meaning at least some of their employees work away from their supervisors and/or workgroups.
“On average, organizations classify 27 percent of their employees as virtual,” says Robin Gareiss, executive vice president of Nemertes Research, in a Wednesday statement. “The message from upper management indicates the success of the virtual workplace depends on three factors – IT infrastructure, ability to manage and ability to perform.”
Telecommuters can also be more productive thanks to collaborative technologies. Benchmark participants reported that on average, 17 percent of employees telecommute. Growing revenue was found to be the leading business driver, as well as improving employee productivity. Gareiss noted that the decision to allow or even to promote telecommuting depends greatly on the vertical industry or job function.
The study did find a correlation between an organization’s IT culture and their propensity toward becoming a virtual workplace. Those who defined their IT organizations as “bleeding edge” tend to have the smallest number of branch locations, but the largest percentage of growth in their branch offices and the largest number of virtual workers.
Aside from the results of the study, the benchmark also includes recommendations and best practices for branch-office decision making, WAN
equipment for the branch, and overall WAN services trends and guidelines on categorizing branch-office policy.
equipment for the branch, and overall WAN services trends and guidelines on categorizing branch-office policy.Managing employees in a virtual or telecommuting setting can be challenging for the organization, but it can also be rewarding for both the organization and the employees. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to deploying virtual workers or telecommuters and the organization must look at its internal structure and what it hopes to accomplish by implementing such an arrangement before it can be successful. Once deployed, however, the benefits can be immediate.
Want to learn more about virtual workers? Then be sure to check out TMCnet’s White Paper Library, which provides a selection of in-depth information on relevant topics affecting the IP Communications industry. The library offers white papers, case studies and other documents which are free to registered users.
Communications industry. The library offers white papers, case studies and other documents which are free to registered users.Susan J. Campbell is a contributing editor for TMC (News - Alert) and has also written for eastbiz.com. To see more of her articles, please visit Susan J. Campbell’s columnist page.
