The Ultimate Commute is No Commute

Teleworking is the perfect option for the shortest commute. It provides for business continuity while eliminating the commute to work. If you can perform work from home, you may be a candidate for teleworking.

In addition to reduced transportation costs, teleworking allows employees to better use the time they would have spent travelling. Companies who offer telework report that productivity is often improved because a major stress is eliminated from their employee’s schedule and workplace interruptions are reduced. When employers and employees focus on the work performed rather the work location, job satisfaction can skyrocket.

Teleworking is greenest of all commuting options, reducing the impact on the environment. It has benefits for organizations, their individual employees, and the broader communities in which we live and work.


Employer Benefits
- Increased productivity, recruitment and retention
- Less absenteeism
- Less time lost due to weather or business interruption
- Smaller carbon footprint
- Lower office and parking costs


Employee Benefits
- Flexibility improves overall quality of life
- More personal and family time
- Less stress from time spent in traffic
- Higher job satisfaction and morale
- Reduced commuting costs


Community Benefits
- Less road congestion
- Improved air quality
- Reduced impact on the environment
- More "eyes and ears" for the neighbourhood

Teleworking can be either on a part-time or full-time basis, on a fixed or flexible schedule. That’s the beauty of telework; a telework program can be designed to suit the unique needs of an organization and its employees.


Considering Telework for You or Your Workplace?
Lots of organizations allow their employees to work at home informally once in a while to finish an important project, or when weather makes travel difficult. With all the IT and communications options available today, this type of informal telework has become common. But a growing number of organizations have chosen to take teleworking a step further and implement a more structured program, with staff teleworking on a regular schedule, in order to gain more of the benefits that telework offers.

Formal telework programs are designed to offer some structure while still maintaining flexibility. A formal program includes the development of policies and agreements that provide direction to managers and their employees working from home. These programs are also easier to monitor to keep track of results and successes.


Getting Started
Teleworking is a new concept for a lot of people, teleworkers and managers alike. To roll out a successful program, either formal or informal, an employer will want to consider how a telework program supports the company’s business and organizational goals. Implementation will involve a number of considerations including training, IT/security arrangements, how to manage teleworkers and who is a suitable telework candidate.


To view this article at its source, please go to http://www.translink.ca/en/TravelSmart/Telework/Telework-Overview.aspx