The Virtual Employee: Is it Working?

Telecommuting and the number of “virtual employees” in corporations around the United States have grown substantially in the past decade. Between 2006 and 2008 alone, the number of employees telecommuting at least one day each week grew 39%. In 2008, more than 40% of companies nationwide reported that they allowed their employees to telecommute. And while employees are often the ones who seek out telecommuting arrangements – which they see as more flexible – employers have found that telecommuting can help make their businesses profitable. But the question is – is telecommuting working for your company? If so, what makes it work well, and how can other units within your company achieve similar success? If not, are there things that can be improved to ensure that telecommuting works?

Why Virtual Employees?

What is your company’s current policy on telecommuting? Do you embrace it wholeheartedly or give your talent this opportunity only in rare cases? A middle ground is probably the most desirable way to go. While there’s still a persistent stereotype of telecommuters as slackers who just stay home and do not work, studies have shown that tends to be incorrect. In fact, in 2008 nearly a third of companies surveyed reported that they intended to use telecommuting as a way to retain employees.

When planned and executed effectively, telecommuting can be a great talent management strategy because it allows employers to adapt somewhat to employee needs. This makes employees feel valued and happy, and in return, they tend to work hard to let their employer know that they will continue to be a valued asset.

Selecting Telecommuting Candidates

Telecommuting isn’t necessarily right for everyone. How does your company assess who is eligible for a virtual work arrangement and who isn’t? One good baseline is tenure. By requiring employees to have six months, one year, or two years of employment with your company, you can more carefully select people who seem like they would do well in a telecommuting arrangement. 

In particular, length-of-employment is a good baseline because it allows you to develop a good working relationship with a telecommute candidate, and it gives you a record of employee performance in the office. This record can play an important part in assessing how telecommute arrangements may be helping (or harming) the employee’s productivity.

Assessing Their Work and How It’s Working for the Company

To be truly successful with a telecommuting program, every company should have measures in place to assess arrangements. This does not mean visiting each employee’s home to check out their work environment, but rather setting benchmarks for productivity and even ability to communicate and work with a team. You may discover that it is useful to revise annual review policies and review forms. For example, it could be worthwhile to establish telecommuting employee reviews at the 30-day, 90-day, and six-month marks, in addition to the annual performance review. You should also assess communication habits, not just with the telecommuting employee but any other employees who must team with a telecommuter to accomplish tasks. That is, consider the whole-team perspective in assessing how well telecommuting programs work. This is particularly important because studies show that telecommuting can lead to a decline in team cohesion or the feeling that one is part of a team.

The growth of virtual employment arrangements across the United States suggests that telecommuting is being recognized as a useful arrangement for both employee and employer. To make your program most effective, take time to carefully consider how your company approaches its telecommuting options.