Do bosses feel betrayed when telecommuting is proposed?

[Brat]

I agree TC is corporate culture driven. Also there are some managers who have difficulty managing someone they can't see or meet with regularly.

Human interaction is an important aspect of business.

[ziggy29]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brat I agree TC is corporate culture driven. Also there are some managers who have difficulty managing someone they can't see or meet with regularly.

True, but it also depends on the structure of the organization. If all the employees are in one central office, "face time" may be important. But for an organization like mine, an internal support organization for managers and executives all over the world, being in the office can actually be an impediment. It's not feasible to work "split shifts" to provide timely support Europe and Asia if you have to hit the road for 2-3 round trips a day. But when you telecommute this isn't generally an unreasonable burden. And only a very small fraction of the people we work with would be based in the same office anyway, given a dozen or so major offices worldwide.

Then again, I guess it does play to your point -- that our business requirement to support a global operation does lead to a "corporate culture" that not only accepts but actually encourages telecommuting in certain situations.

[Rustward]

I have telecommuted at least part time for most of the last 20 years. The only problem I ever had was with a particularly doofus manager who had no project management experience, no business knowledge, and who relied on brute force and management by fear to get things done. Thank goodness he is in a minority.

[Brat]

Oh ya, they are the ones most threatened by TC. They can't pick your brain to buttress their inadequacies.

[ziggy29]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rustward I have telecommuted at least part time for most of the last 20 years. The only problem I ever had was with a particularly doofus manager who had no project management experience, no business knowledge, and who relied on brute force and management by fear to get things done. Thank goodness he is in a minority.

Good point. Very often a project manager can make or break a telecommuting experiment. A bad or clueless one can ruin the potential for increased telecommuting if they can't work well with "virtual" organizations.