Telecommuting is a great option today and many people opt for the lifestyle that it provides. Thus provide people with the opportunity to be closer to home, to avoid commutes, and to often avoid some of the office politics and inefficiencies that might exist by being on site in a group of other people. However, everything comes with a price; and it seems that everything is a two-edged sword. Let’s take a look.
I know many people who telecommute. I have done it myself, rather sparingly, and it worked for a short while and then actually did not work. But taking a broader look, I can see more clearly now the pluses and minuses of it. What I have found to be a plus is that I was able to get to work right away and work solidly for long periods of time without interruption. This allowed me to get a tremendous amount done.
Having been primarily involved with on site teams and present on all prior projects, I didn’t mind the lack of personal contact for a period of time. However, my assignment evolved and I needed to build a team in a co-located office to continue to build the project. Getting into a common office with that team, I realized what I was already growing to miss. I loved it and I gained a completely new outlook and appreciation for being together. Yes, if you have the right team, you can be every efficient — and much of the efficiency is in the team work itself. Much work is not individual work, but does require team interaction.
The Opportunity For Leadership – The Missing Link
I have not really thought of it this way, but telecommuting is an option that has limited leadership potential. If you really enjoy being a leader, you probably will have some issues with telecommuting. The reason for this is simple. If you are not face to face with those that would have you lead and with those who you need to lead, how can you possibly lead them? How can you possibly do a better job than someone who is willing to be there? I have seen other situations where people were in leadership roles and opted to do more telecommuting on a regular basis. I saw a rapid decline in their effectiveness as leaders in these situations, which reinforces the point.
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John Reiling, PMP
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2 responses so far ↓
1 LouisvillePM // Nov 26, 2008 at 1:48 am
John,
I understand your point, but I personally enjoy leading teams from the phone and don’t think that I need to be sitting across from people to lead them.
In my mind, online collaboration is where the money is, as I can have the team dial into an 800 number, create/view a document from one screen, that my stakeholders can see on their screens, and save it on a server without having to send the minutes out for review to make sure I captured everything.
I do think that promotion potential may be hindered by opting to telecommute for long periods of time , but I think that a leader can be every bit as effective from the phone, E-mail, IM and personal visits depending on the team and the situation.
-chris
2 John Reiling // Dec 2, 2008 at 9:33 pm
Chris, I have had numerous discussions with others since I wrote this post, and just about all of them said the same thing you did! I think it is a matter of perspective. There is a podcast by Jack Welch, former GE CEO, in which he asserts that coporate leadership posts will be elusive to those “who are not present”. I think there are various types of teams, virtual and physical, and upper management leadership entails dedication and attention to both.
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