Telecommuting as an Issue Facing Human Resource - Research Paper Example

? Telecommuting By Your Your School May 28, This paper covers a major issue facing the human resource field today, telecommuting. The three main problem areas highlighted include: calculating work hours, maintaining office culture and community, and keeping lines of communication open. Human resource theories and practices are highlighted that make the transition to telecommuting easier and more effective for the human resource department and the organization as a whole. Telecommuting The smell of freshly ground coffee permeates the air inviting all to take their first morning sip. Rays of light slip through the recently washed window, as the sun begins its journey through the sky. A copy machine sounds in the background as well as the quiet hum of hundreds of people beginning their day in their cubical. This is the typical office scene that has defined work culture for the past several decades. There is a change on the horizon, however, that has begun to alter this scene and could prove to permanently change what the ‘typical’ office is defined as. This change, brought on by advance technology and rising cost for both employers and employees is, telecommuting. Telecommuting, or an employee working from home, is quickly becoming the norm for many employees today. It comes with both benefits and challenges, and as with most changes to the workplace, the responsibility for ironing out this transition has been placed on human resource shoulders. However, by taking an in-depth look into the specific challenges this change brings, such as: calculating work hours, maintaining office culture and community, and keeping lines of communication open. One can successfully apply good human resource strategies to them, and affectively integrate this new technological practice into the company for all to benefit. The first challenge brought by telecommuting is how to calculate hours worked. When an employee is working from home it is hard for a company to affectively manage whether or not time is spent working or doing other things. One successful approach to this issue is implementing performance management skills for all departments company wide. Performance management bases rewards, and job recognition on the outcome produced, as well as the process one takes in achieving to said outcome. This proves most beneficial when trying to manage the success of an employees work hours when they are away from the office. The company can then set up a schedule for how many hours it should take to complete a task and pay the employee accordingly. This type of performance management is not only beneficial for employees that are telecommuting, however, it also benefits for all employees and managers. The American Society for Public Administration, upon switching to a performance management style, stated that, “Requirements for outcomes-based performance management are increasing performance-evaluation activities at all government levels” (Heinrich 712). This increase in performance evaluation activities comes as a direct result of the fact that performance management focuses on the steps needed to complete the task, it allows room for the employee to feel comfortable asking for help when needed, and not just when a major problem arises, and it gives direct feedback and praise for a job well done. This management style also requires continual communication between employee and management, which helps the telecommuter stay, focused and connected with their company. Another challenge telecommuting brings, that relies heavily on the human resource department to remedy, is maintaining office culture and community when employees are not working in the office. A study done by the Journal of Applied Psychology found that telecommuting less than two days a week had little to no affect on the workplace relationships, however, they stated, “ high-intensity telecommuting (more than 2.5 days a week) accentuated telecommuting's beneficial effects on work-family conflict but harmed relationships with coworkers” (Gajendran, and Harrison 1524-1541). One reason the working relationships are harmed when a co-worker works from home, is the lack of day to day interactions. A method for overcoming this obstacle and keeping the employee involved and connected with those in the office is by creating a mentorship program. A mentorship program would then pair up individuals who are in the same or related fields so that they foster working relationships, and aid one another in the growth and learning process within their field. This would not only keep the telecommuting employee consistently connected with the work place but it would also advance productivity in the company. The Journal of Workplace Learning stated, “Global mentoring programs can help support training and development programs by matching mentors and proteges from different cultures, encouraging information exchange and connection with employees from other regions” (Stanek 66-73). Another way to maintain office culture and community is to insure the telecommuting employee does report into the office training events throughout the year. These not only helps the employees to meet and get to know one another on a personal basis, but it also helps to make sure everyone is on the same page and moving with the company in the same direction. Training is also helpful in equipping the employee with the essentials they need to bolster job performance, and enhance output. In this way training also helps with one of human resources main goals, employee retention. Susan Heathfield stated in her article, Training and Development for Employee Motivation and Retention, “In fact, this opportunity to continue to grow and develop through training and development is one of the most important factors in employee motivation” (Heathfield). The final challenge that must be met when undertaking telecommuting employees is that of keeping the lines of communication open. The Journal of Applied Communication Research found that, “Coworker liking was positively related to teleworkers' informal communication satisfaction with coworkers, and with their organizational commitment and job satisfaction” (Fay, and Kline 144-163). This means that communication within a company was directly related to how well an employee did and how much they enjoyed there job. This communication becomes an issue at times when dealing with telecommuting employees. This is due to the fact that individuals work from home may work non-traditional hours. However, those in their company, who still report to the office, are still on the traditional hour time frame. This can lead to problems in communication availability. One way to insure positive communication when an employee is not working in the office, is to set up a schedule for said, employee, when they must be available to communicate with there team Having a set schedule set up for the telecommuting employee will allow all involved to know the best time to reach and communicate with one another. Another method to insure the flow of communication is to set up weekly meetings between the telecommuter and their manager and team members. This can be a face to face meeting or, if need be, a virtual meeting. Setting up a time and date allows for consistency and helps to open the flow of communication, allowing all members and employees to stay on the same page. Management Research News published an article on virtual meetings stating, “In today's competitive global economy, organizations capable of rapidly creating virtual teams of talented people can respond quickly to changing business environments. Capabilities of this type offer organizations a form of competitive advantage” (Bergiel, Bergiel, and Balsmeier 99-110). So whether virtual or in person meetings have the ability to keep lines of communication open, and as this article reiterates they give companies the competitive advantage. After taking a look at the issues that can arise when implementing a telecommuting employee such as: calculating work hours, maintaining office culture and community, and keeping lines of communication open: it becomes apparent that having a human resource department armed with proven strategies for overcoming these issues is the most affective way to make a smooth transition. What one visualizes as the typical office scene may be permanently altered, but the personal relationships and collaboration essential to a successful, growing organization must be maintained. Telecommuting is the way of the future and human resource departments will need these informed, essential strategies to implement a constantly successful, conversion. References Bergiel, Blaise J., Eric B. Bergiel, and Phillip W. Balsmeier. "Nature of Virtual Teams: A Summary of Their Advantages and Disadvantages." Management Research News. 31.2 (2008): 99-110. Print. Fay, Martha J., and Susan J. Kline. "Coworker Relationships and Informal Communication in High-Intensity Telecommuting ." Journal of Applied Communication Research . 39.2 (2011): 144-163. Print. Gajendran, Ravi S., and David A. Harrison. "The Good, the Bad, and the Unknown about Telecommuting: Meta-Analysis of Psychological Mediators and Individual Consequences. ." Journal of Applied Psychology. 92.6 (2007): 1524-1541. Print Heathfield, Susan M. "Training and Development for Employee Motivation and Retention ." Training and Development Options (2011): n. pag. Web. 31 May 2011. . Heinrich, Carolyn J. "Outcomes-Based Performance Management in the Public Sector: Implications for Government Accountablitity and Effectiveness." Public Administration Review. 62.6 (2002): 712. Print. Stanek, Mary B. "Global Mentoring Programs: Business Relationships Beyond Traditional Borders." Journal of Workplace Learning. 13.2 (2001): 66-73. Print. Read More