"When Less Is More" -- on telecommuting

[Darren Dirt]

Amen, cyber-brother!



When Less Is More
By Tony Long
02:00 AM Jan, 18, 2007

The foundation of this column rests on the premise that too much technology is often a bad thing, that those who Google least Google best. But nothing in existence is ever all good or all bad, right?

So this week, let's talk about one aspect of technology that's a potential benefit indeed. It involves the internet, and laptops, and Microsoft products (mostly), and e-mail and all that stuff. Thrown together and stirred in the right pot, they create an alchemy that can liberate us from the tyranny of the office.

In little words, you can work whenever you damned well feel like it and actually be more productive than you are while languishing in a cubicle, surreptitiously flogging your detritus on eBay. And assuming the second part of that statement is true, your boss -- if he's got half a brain in his head, which, alas, many do -- should have nothing but praise for you. ("Hey, these three-hour work days are just killers, aren't they, babe? Why don't you take Tuesday off?")

A new kind of flexibility and freedom are the promise of the many office applications out there. Because if not, then there's no material difference between an Excel spreadsheet and a ledger book so you might as well ditch the computer, dip your quill in the inkwell and throw some more coal on the fire.

I've been harnessed between the shafts longer than many of you have been alive. I've had clock-watching bosses before and they're a drag. They mistake physical presence for productivity and bleat like sheep in a slaughterhouse if you bail out early. Thirty years ago, when we lacked the wherewithal to work outside of work, spending a third of your life in the office made some sense. No more.

This column is being written from home. Technically, I'm writing it on my dime. But maybe I'll just go in and work six hours tomorrow instead of eight (although our company-mandated work day is actually seven). That'd be roughly a wash. The company gets what it's paying for -- all this brilliant insight -- and I get an early slide to get on with the most important thing in my life, which is living my life. "And they all lived happily ever after."

It's true that certain professions will find it inconvenient to work remotely, or whenever inspiration strikes. A surgeon, for example, can't really perform a splenectomy from the golf course (though I wouldn't put it past one to try); a bartender can't pour your Glenlivet neat from his rumpus room La-Z-Boy. But if you make your living staring at a computer all day, well, it doesn't much matter where the computer is, does it? You've got the phone, and e-mail and instant messaging to stay connected, if that's necessary.

The scenario I've outlined above is currently being put to the test by Best Buy, an electronics retailer with a reputation for being something of a sweatshop. Now the company is experimenting with a results-only work environment, an idea that is gaining some traction in the wider world. In other words, we don't care how many hours you spend at work -- or even which hours you spend at work -- as long as the work gets done, and done well. Or, as Raiders owner Al Davis used to say before the Raiders stopped listening to him, "Just win, baby."

This is logical, practical and humane. Throw in a six-week vacation plan and you'll have the most contented employees on the planet. And contented employees, like contented cows, produce the best milk.

Of course, you have to sell this idea to the boys on the fifth floor. And since conventional management wisdom preaches that your average employee is already a shiftless, ungrateful lout sponging off the company's largesse, it'll be a tough sell in most places.

Which is why it's so important for this Best Buy experiment to succeed.

In the end, if technology can give me more time to ponder the universe, master the oboe, pen a sonnet, woo a lover, or drink myself blind on a sunny afternoon, while still paying me a princely sum to support my profligate ways, then the Luddite has mellowed a little bit this day.

[Bixby]

I am responding to this article from my home office.

[Thorin]

Best Buy [...] is experimenting with a results-only work environment, an idea that is gaining some traction in the wider world. In other words, we don't care how many hours you spend at work -- or even which hours you spend at work -- as long as the work gets done, and done well.

The danger that lies in not working a set number of hours is that you might expect to get four tasks done in a week and your boss might expect you'll get six done.  "It doesn't matter how long you work, as long as the work gets done" suffers from the vagueness of not defining what work needs to get done.  We all think we'll be able to get away with working less hours, but what if the outcome of this experiment is that we end up working more hours?

I prefer to have a set number of hours that I've agreed to work in a week or a month and just ensure I put in that many productive hours.  Being able to do it from home or on the weekend or early in the morning, that's definitely a bonus and makes my life easier, but being able to say, "I didn't get six tasks done because they took longer than the 37.5 hours I agreed to work this week", needs to remain as a fall-back for when bosses try to squeeze too much out of you.

[Lazybones]

I would have to digg around, but I think I saw another article recently about how telecommuters where often over looked for raises and promotion because of the lack of face time with management and the boss. This is a little different if you are contractor, but in a more stable postion in a company I can see it being a problem.

[Shayne]

I make my own hours working from home, and I gotta tell ya, without a doubt I can do nearly double the work here then in a traditional office environment.  Then you factor in the hour getting ready in the morning, the hour of commuting there and back, the hour getting relaxed.  Etc, what should be an 8 hour day is something in the 11-12 hour range.

Now think about the work day itself.  Suppose you would 8-5.

8-9 -> Spend reading emails, reading some news, chatting with co-workers
10-11:30 -> Actual work
11:30-12 -> Pre-lunch break
12-1 -> lunch break
12-12:30 -> post-lunch break
12:30-4-> Actual Work
4-5 -> reading email, news, dont feel like working anymore, chatting with co-workers.

I'm not saying this is how everyone operates, but while I was at Upside that pretty much sums it up.  Not included in my schedule is the 5 meetings I attended weekly, each taking an hour and pretty much amounting to about 10 minutes of real details.

At home I set my own hours.  this morning I was up at 7:30, i went straight to the computer did some small fixes, ate some cereal.  worked till 11:30 had a shower and now im eating lunch.  Ive already put in a solid 3.5 hours of work.  Im gonna hit the gym at 3:00 like I always do, probably watch a movie this afternoon.  Do some more work later tonight 9-12 probably.  Another 3 hours there.  An hour or 2 this afternoon.  The difference is that this is productive work, no meetings, no co-workers chatting about weekend plans.

I do miss the office environment for the company of my fellow co-workers, but I have made it my mission to get out a lot more during the week and weekends to offset my hermit like existence and so far its done well.  My food budget is down (no more eating out for lunch or drinking the pint at lunch), my weight is down (no more eating out for lunch or drinking the pint at lunch), my productivity is up, my freedom is up (if i dont want to work till 12 i dont have too).

I would find it very hard to go back to an 8-5 white collar gig.

[Adams]

Hey... I was talking to you at 10:30... 

My current gig has me coming in at 7:30 and Leaving at 4:30... I could come in at 7 and leave at 4 or come in at 8 and leave at 5 really all they want is 8 hours work.

[Darren Dirt]

4-5 -> reading email, news, dont feel like working anymore, chatting with co-workers.

lol, for me that varies from a "low" of 3-5 and a high of 4:45-5

[Thorin]

Suppose you w[ork] 8-5.

8-9 -> Spend reading emails, reading some news, chatting with co-workers
[9]-11:30 -> Actual work
11:30-12 -> Pre-lunch break
12-1 -> lunch break
[1]-[1]:30 -> post-lunch break
[1]:30-4-> Actual Work
4-5 -> reading email, news, dont feel like working anymore, chatting with co-workers.

I'm not saying this is how everyone operates, but while I was at Upside that pretty much sums it up.  Not included in my schedule is the 5 meetings I attended weekly, each taking an hour and pretty much amounting to about 10 minutes of real details.

I changed the numbers to reflect what I think you were trying to point out; all changes are within brackets.

I'll agree with you that Upside operated (and possibly still operates) on this schedule.  One of the things that bothered me enough to make me leave was how people would goof off most of the day and then log in at night or on the weekend to do the work they should have done during regular hours, just so that they would be seen as a hard worker that puts in extra hours.  However, I would seriously hesitate to use how people work at Upside as an example of a typical white collar IT/software development job.

I think that the way I work at Sierra is much closer to the experience of a typical white collar IT/software development job.  It is much less about face time and much more about getting your work done.  Although we still have to be here at certain times for meetings, there is a definite focus on trying to reduce the amount of time we spend in meetings, including only talking about stuff that affects everyone attending the meeting.  Although there is still a requirement to come into the office in case clients need to get a hold of us, we can always leave a message on our answering service that directs the client to call one of our backup resources.  We have the option of working from home (as my team lead has done for a couple of days now); if we're needed the contact numbers are available, but again, there's a definite focus on not calling people for trivial things when they're at home.

I'm happy for you that you landed a gig where you can work from home, and that you're more productive when working from home.  Working from home doesn't work in some situations, though, like if:

- You're not self-motivated: Being in the office clearly delineates that it is work time now, instead of play time (lots of people at my work don't visit forums during the day for this very reason)

- There's people at home that distract you: If the wife or the kids see you at home they will probably come and talk to you, especially if you're in a common area like a living room

- You need people to bounce ideas off of: If there's no one around to discuss your latest great idea on how to improve code quality, you can easily convince yourself that something is a good idea when it really isn't

- You need to meet with clients: Most jobs in IT do still require face-to-face meetings with clients ("clients" being defined as the people or companies you're creating or maintaining software or hardware for, including the company you work for).  Electronic communication, while great most of the time, can still cause horrible misunderstandings thanks to its lack of inflection.  Writing emails that convey their meanings with little to no misunderstanding takes a long time and multiple edits - in comparison, a face-to-face meeting lets you quickly determine whether the client is bothered or not by the extension of the deadline that you need

[Shayne]

I will admit that my situation is different then say yours or Druid's when working from home for Upside or Sierra, or whomever. I basically work for a web startup company and they have given me a rather large profit sharing (actual numbers, not the phony numbers Upside magically makes).  Staying motivated is a little easier when I get monthly profit sharing cheques as well as monthly numbers showing growth, customer issues, etc.

Nobody around to distract me.  My financ? works during the day.

I have people to bounce ideas off of.  We stay in touch with the office through the use of MSN.  Its mandatory that it always be on regardless if we are around or not so that messages at least build up and we can see them when we return.

Meetings with clients (at least for me) have been done remotely with a webcam, phone (vonage long distance is free), as well as couple trips to Vernon.  I will freely admit that email and IM can mess up the tone and create misunderstandings, its worse when its easier to show things in pictorial format.  A pen and paper is easier then photoshop or mspaint.

It works for me, I enjoy it.  What I like most is the ability to see the sun when I choose.  Huddled into a cubical for the best hours of the day seems like such a waste.  If I can do it during the cold dark evening then all the better.  I would rather be coding and working at 10:30pm then watching a brainless sitcom on the tube.

[Shayne]

Oh, and about the Upside thing, try working in support, we actually put in full days, on a few occasions I would be dealing with a critical issue and remoted into some server in Germany when the guys in development rush in and start shooting us with Nerf weapons.  The argument of happy people work better is great, but when work actually needs and is getting done can't we just let it get done?!?

Upside development is horrible for it.  Lots of free time, then deadlines come and people get all pissy about the 6 days a week @ 12 hours.