Teleworking in the ATL taking off! (Atlanta: insurance, home, cost)

[arjay57]

This is part of the low hanging fruit we've often talked about. It doesn't cost a dime, it requires no new infrastructure, and it can be implemented immediately.

Can you imagine how many billions we'd have to spend trying to build new rail lines or roads for 58,000 people? And how many years it would take?

And just think what the business community could do if it puts its shoulder ot the wheel on this! Wow!

The fastest-growing commute is having no commute at all, other than moving from the bedroom to the home office. Teleworking is more popular than ever, thanks to modern technology like wi-fi, laptops, and smart phones, and the increasing embrace of this practice by employers.

The numbers are striking. In 2008, about 150,000 metro Atlantans worked at home, the Census survey found – about 5.7% of all commuters. By 2017, the number soared to more than 208,000, or 7.3% of commuters, a whopping 39% increase.

Read more....Data Dive: How Metro ATL Gets to Work

[Need4Camaro]

Originally Posted by arjay57

This is part of the low hanging fruit we've often talked about. It doesn't cost a dime, it requires no new infrastructure, and it can be implemented immediately.

Can you imagine how many billions we'd have to spend trying to build new rail lines or roads for 58,000 people? And how many years it would take?

And just think what the business community could do if it puts its shoulder ot the wheel on this! Wow!

This is something that is widely underrated and really needs to be a thing. There are tons of jobs who want employees to come in to do the exact same things that can be done at home. Thing is employers like to micromanage their employees and it isnt as easy to do remotely, that and they have to 'justify' their brick and mortar.

[markjames68]

Some positions lend themselves well to working from home, some don't. And I'm not just talking about customer-facing roles.

Creative/collaborative positions are harder to do when everyone is remote. Not impossible, but it's not as effective. Marketing, development (team-based, not individual coders each working on a separate product) generally have better results when people are co-located.

But I agree - many people are micromanaged into an office when they really could be working from the office one day, home another, etc. Even if people worked from home 1-2 days a week that would relieve a lot of commuting stress.

[JMatl]

I'm in my 7th year of doing it, and I frankly don't ever want to work in an office again. It has many advantages, including allowing us to be a one car household.

At our Company, the entire workforce below the Upper Management level is now remote. We were able to downsize our office space nationwide, productivity improved and absenteeism dropped. We are treated with dignity and respect, and it is easy to tell who is slacking off through the numbers. We have a great team that works very well together and supports each other, so it has been a win-win for us by any measure. The only downside is that we don't get together as much as we would all like, but it happens at least once a year.

[flamadiddle]

I'm in IT and I've been working remote for ~5 years now. Do not miss the office at all. The only time I see any of my colleagues is for annual conferences and the rare occasion that I need to travel to a site. With Internet connectivity as fast and stable as it is and tools like webex/cheap unlimited calling, why do you need to sit in your car for 2 hours a day?

Agree that more should work from home.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by markjames68

Some positions lend themselves well to working from home, some don't. And I'm not just talking about customer-facing roles.

Creative/collaborative positions are harder to do when everyone is remote. Not impossible, but it's not as effective. Marketing, development (team-based, not individual coders each working on a separate product) generally have better results when people are co-located.

But I agree - many people are micromanaged into an office when they really could be working from the office one day, home another, etc. Even if people worked from home 1-2 days a week that would relieve a lot of commuting stress.

Obviously telecommuting will not work for everybody but it can make a huge dent, as the numbers already show.

[markjames68]

Originally Posted by arjay57

Obviously telecommuting will not work for everybody but it can make a huge dent, as the numbers already show.

And improve employee engagement.

https://www.inc.com/scott-mautz/a-2-...from-home.html

But of course the company I worked for a couple of years ago REDUCED telecommuting. You can imagine how well that went over.

[Hokiehaven]

I've been doing it for 14-15 years or so, I've been able to work anywhere and we've moved a handful of times. It makes it much easier looking for one job than two when we had to move.

[sedimenjerry]

My company is doing a pilot where you can work from home 2 days a week. From what I hear (I just started a few months ago), it's been a raging success so far. It will likely continue and possibly even be expanded. They've already made the switch to be completely paperless. We use Skype for business. You're connected with everyone in the entire company. Makes it very easy to communicate. We can also share screens which really replaces the need to even go over to someone's desk to show them something. Hell, I'm in training but my "coach" is actually in New York. I've attended a lot of training sessions from other people in locations like Seattle and Chicago.

My dad had surgery last September. He couldn't work at all for a few months (required for his insurance). Then he finally convinced his company to let him work from home once he was a little better. He said he had no problem doing just about everything he needed to. Only about 5% of his job even requires him to go to the office really. It was far worse for him to actually go back to work in January.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by markjames68

And improve employee engagement.

https://www.inc.com/scott-mautz/a-2-...from-home.html

But of course the company I worked for a couple of years ago REDUCED telecommuting. You can imagine how well that went over.

Ugh. Very good point, mark.