Teleworking is proving increasingly popular among Irish SMEs looking to make the most of their workforce. From the company's perspective, home-working staff are happier, less likely to leave the company, and quite possibly more productive. Likewise, many employees see teleworking as an opportunity to improve their work-life balance, gaining extra hours that would be normally be spent commuting and avoiding the stresses of traffic congestion.
Growing interest
SMEs are jumping at the opportunities presented by teleworking in greater numbers than ever before. Research by mobile operator O2 shows that, in many cases, management is setting an example for the rest of the business. "Teleworking is definitely growing in popularity amongst Irish SMEs. In 2004 just 25 percent of SME owner/managers were working from home at least one day per month, whereas in 2008 this figure has almost doubled to 47 percent," says Billy D'Arcy, head of corporate and business sales at O2.
The increasing availability of broadband is no doubt also fuelling the trend. D'Arcy says the prevalence of mobile technology is also a factor, as staff can now access the office network from home. Furthermore, technologies like voice over IP (VoIP), and the delivery of applications through the software-as-a-service model, are enabling firms to remotely but securely use functions traditionally reserved for office locations.
According to a recent 'mWorking' study by Vodafone, the example being set by business leaders has led to an improvement in the attitudes of Irish employees towards teleworking. "The Irish workforce is embracing mWorking: 75 percent of [survey] respondents found mWorking was good for them personally, and 71 percent of mWorkers would recommend mWorking to colleagues," says Colm McVeigh, director of business and enterprise at Vodafone Ireland.
Mutual benefits
Technology may be the key factor enabling wider adoption of remote working, but the driving force behind the trend is the benefits teleworking offers both companies and staff.
"The thing people demand is flexibility," says Patricia Callan, director of the Small Firms Association (SFA). The SFA is currently drawing up a set of guidelines to help SMEs implement a remote working strategy. Callan says having such a strategy in place can help retain talented individuals. "Staff want a better work-life balance. If SMEs can help facilitate this, then businesses have a better chance of keeping skilled staff on board."
Remote working has other benefits for bosses too, including the significant savings that can be made in terms of office space and facilities. By reducing the number of staff on site, businesses can operate in a smaller environment. Callan says the high cost of commercial rent is making firms look for ways to curtail the amount of office space they require.
The added bonus to this saving in office space is an increase in productivity. O2's study found that teleworkers can actually be more productive than office-based staff because they have fewer distractions. The study found that 36 percent of those who telework said they do so in order to avoid office distractions and increase productivity.
Monitoring activity
But while some staff may get more work done, businesses should still ensure they monitor remote workers. A recent UK report found that teleworkers are two and a half times more likely to look at pornography online than their colleagues in the office. Nefarious activities such as these can be countered by implementing security measures that allow monitoring of the websites staff access, whether at home or in the office. By overcoming such obstacles, business can feel more secure about the activities of teleworkers.
Staff monitoring can also play in a role in ensuring that home-working staff don't begin to feel isolated from the rest of the team. In the future, remote interaction will become easier as cutting-edge conferencing technologies, which enable users to be virtually anywhere in real time, become mainstream. Until that day, however, it is critical for managers to maintain real contact with staff through phone calls and regular face-to-face meetings.
In part two, we'll take a closer look at the tools that enable teleworking and examine the security implications of remote working.