Working at home – Lifestyle AND
Career Choice
It’s becoming
easier. Technology enables working from
anywhere. Go into any coffee shop and
see the number of people working at laptops, holding meetings and sharing cell
phone business conversations with the world at large…
But if you
work for a corporate and are planning a big career, do the advantages of
missing the daily commute and the noise and buzz of open plan space outweigh
the disadvantages?
I do not believe
that absence makes the heart grow fonder in the work environment. In fact, just the opposite.
Teams work because
they are close together. You don’t build
ability in a sports team by everybody practicing in separate venues and coming
together five minutes before a match.
The same goes for a choir.
Or is that changing
with social media? Are people able to
build up great team spirit and work effectively without proximity?
I think it’s
possible unless the model is not consistent.
So if you have a
team of 10 where 5 work in the office and 5 work from home, the chances are the
5 who work together will tend to work more closely together, while the 5
working from home may also build a rapport.
Two teams of 5,
though, loosely grouped into a team of 10 when necessary….
There
does seem to be a fair amount of evidence to show that if the whole team works
from home, the team spirit is easier to create.
Of course, it
depends on what the work is. Some jobs
lend themselves to flexibility and work from home.
So what to
look out for if this is the path you have chosen, and you still want
promotions.
1. Share
that this is your current choice, and
that you are looking to grow your career.
Your boss might believe that working from home is your career choice and not consider you for opportunities.
2. Be
aware that people in the office are more likely to be given those ad hoc type
of projects simply because they are there.
3. Managers
are more likely to build emotional connections with people they see every day,
so in tough times their decision making processes might be influenced by this.
a. Remember
the Executive lift story – there is a view that if you are seen after 5 or
before 8 you are working hard, so if you catch the lift at the same time as
senior execs in the evenings it will add to your credibility. Irritating, yes! Politically savvy? Maybe.
4. Proactive
feedback into the team and management is stress relieving because anything you
get as a manager without asking for it is a bonus!
5. There
is a perception that people working from home are less structured in their time
management ie spread their 8 hour work load over 12 hours. That is OK if management agree to those
terms, but if you are at a swimming gala or toddler’s party when your boss
thinks you are at your desk, trust levels will drop.
6. Learn
to write emails using positive language, it is too easy to blast off a quick
response in writing without realising that it might not be seen as constructive
at the other end.
7.
a. At
Business Connexion and Telkom we are working with the Senn Delaney concept of
“Be Here Now”.
b. A key
component of this is giving your full attention to the space you are currently
inhabiting. So being able to close the
door on work should assist with this.
8. Ensure
that the deliverables are clearly defined and regularly re-evaluated. It is very easy to slip into a comfort zone
and not be aware that your boss is satisfied but not delighted.
9. Should
you be one of a few people who contribute from home, it is important to try and
build relationships.
a. Whether
you are an individual or a branch office, distance can cause exclusion;
b. If you
play golf, try and arrange the odd game with your work mates;
c.
As a woman, (and non-golfer) I have found that finding the right
opportunities to socialise and build relationships at a distance is not easy,
so an awareness of this and communicating that you want to participate in
social events is important.
10. Working
from home also can give your family and friends the impression that you are
available during business hours for personal issues. Have the conversations about this early so
that you can prevent hurt feelings and misunderstandings when you are clearly
at home, but not available.
Working from home
can be productive, time saving and cost effective, but I also know that
changing perception around it is a work in progress.
Traditional company
culture might pay lip service to flexibility and work from home but unconscious
– or conscious - bias against people who are not present daily can have a
negative impact on career growth.
As part of putting
this article together, I discussed the downside of work from home with my colleague,
Cathie Webb. We both adhere to the “getting
everybody together in one room to quickly resolve a problem” principle. While we know that technology (to be really
effective, though, there is a cost) and good planning can assist with this,
efficiencies may be lost. We also talked
about how many good ideas come from spontaneous brain storming sessions.
I am very interested to hear from people who
have made a success of this in a corporate structure, and get their input on
how they have managed the process.
Links, References and Notes
Accsys provides people management solutions ie Payroll, Human Resources (HR), Time and Attendance as well as Access Control/Visitor Management.
The company develops, implements,
trains and services our solutions. We
provide readers, turnstiles, booms and CCTV.
We run both on premise and in the
cloud, as well as mobile options for ESS.
Recruitment, online education and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) are
part of our offering, too.
http://www.accsys.co.za/accsys-peopleplace-talent-management
email:
tschroenn@accsys.co.za
twitter:
@TerylSchroenn
Note:
Thank you for reading Teryl@Work.
Should you wish to use any of the material, please acknowledge this blog
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