PLANNING

The Planning attribute of management consists of three primary areas: goal setting, people building and standards setting. It requires a manager to establish the mission and goals of the organization and the "roadmap" to be followed to ensure success. In the virtual office environment, additional factors need to be considered to assure that the telecommuters are equipped to contribute to the overall success of the organization.

Setting performance objectives for telecommuters (2.1)

A successful manager must ensure that their people are aware and knowledgeable of the organization goals and objectives. Perhaps more importantly, the manager must be certain that the employees understand what is expected of each of them to help the team achieve success. In the traditional office setting, managers can utilize numerous processes for setting performance objectives with employees. Some of these require face-to-face contact and the ability to actually see the work in order to monitor progress. With informal and direct contact limited in the virtual office, some management techniques may be better suited to accomplish this task.

The manager can use any of several suggested approaches for setting objectives with employees. The table lists five potential approaches which managers of telecommuters can use.

1 Management by Objectives (MBO), utilizing milestones and regular review sessions.

2 Frequent and ongoing communications to establish priorities and goals.

3 Empowering the telecommuter to establish objectives and measure their own progress toward completion.

4 An itemized list of expected results - weekly, monthly, quarterly.

5 A formal telecommuting agreement, signed by the employee and telecommuter, that defines expectations, performance standards, and tasks.

1	Management by Objectives (MBO), utilizing milestones and regular review sessions.
2	Frequent and ongoing communications to establish priorities and goals.
3	Empowering the telecommuter to establish objectives and measure their own progress toward completion.
4	An itemized list of expected results - weekly, monthly, quarterly.
5	A formal telecommuting agreement, signed by the employee and telecommuter, that defines expectations, performance standards, and tasks.

Managers of telecommuters feel a strong need to maintain frequent and ongoing communications with their employees to ensure that they are aligned with the organizational mission and goals. This technique allows the manager and employee to identify and gain consensus on the priorities to be assigned to the work tasks. It ensures that as situations change in the workplace, performance objectives can be modified accordingly to remain focused on the critical work activities.

In addition, managers feel strongly that telecommuters must be empowered to establish and monitor their performance objectives. Employees who are aware of the overall direction of the organization are often in the best position to identify how they can best contribute to the success of the organization. Managers of telecommuters who empower their employees to fully participate in the establishment of their objectives and provide them with the ability to monitor their progress toward achievement of their goals realize the greatest payback from each individual in the work group.

The Official Handbook of the American Telecommuting Association (1993) entitled Eliminate Your Commute offers some practical advise for managers of telecommuters. The author, Robert Moskowitz, suggests that with a little advance planning, managing telecommuters can be easier and more effective than managing employees who report to the office for work each day. Basic strategies that he suggests for the manager to use include clearly identifying and communicating what the telecommuter is expected to accomplish by discussing each project and their specific contribution. To avoid any delays receiving input or producing deliverables, the manager and employee must agree on critical deadlines. Moskowitz suggests backing up these meetings and conversations with memos or written assignments to verify that agreements have been reached. On a regular basis, these work plans should be reviewed and revised to reflect changing conditions and priorities. He suggests that these review sessions be scheduled well in advance and that they occur at least monthly. The manager must make it clear to the telecommuter that he or she is expected to be prepared to discuss the relevant assignments at that time and that excuses will not be tolerated.

Providing support and equipment for telecommuters (2.2)

Managers of telecommuters have a broad range of options available in establishing and maintaining office equipment for their telecommuters. Often, the options are established on a company-wide basis. However, their is usually some latitude provided to the individual managers to ensure that the telecommuter receives the proper level of support. Consideration must be given to the financial resources available, the need for standard configurations and compatibility, networking capabilities, and the skills of the employees.

Possible approaches and solutions to the coordination problem include the following:

1 Test equipment, software, and dial-in configurations in the office prior to establishing the home office.

2 Equipment for the home is considered based on the ease of maintenance and the ability to get it quickly repaired when necessary.

3 The telecommuter is responsible for all equipment purchases and maintenance; little or no support is provided by the company.

1	Test equipment, software, and dial-in configurations in the office prior to establishing the home office.
2	Equipment for the home is considered based on the ease of maintenance and the ability to get it quickly repaired when necessary.
3	The telecommuter is responsible for all equipment purchases and maintenance; little or no support is provided by the company.

Discussion

To minimize frustration and maximize productivity, it is important that the equipment to be used by the telecommuter be fully operational when deployed in a remote location. For this reason, it is wise to fully test the equipment in the office prior to establishing the home office. Physical access to technical resources and expertise is often more readily available in the office to resolve any problems experienced during the initial start-up and testing period. In addition, employees can remain productive and avoid the feelings of anxiety and helplessness if delays are encountered repairing the equipment or resolving compatibility issues.

Prior to moving the equipment to the home office, the telecommuter should be fully trained on the operational and maintenance procedures.

Table of Contents

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E-Mail to Bruce McGraw <bruce.mcgraw@cogtechinc.com;

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