TMI US: Time Manager Q & A Corner

Time Manager Questions and Answers:

Telecommuting Really Does Increase Productivity: The Question is Why?

A study conducted at the University of San Francisco suggests that overall productivity of workers who telecommute actually increases by an average of 16.8 percent. That's significant.

People in the study worked from home one or two days a week. That doesn't mean that if these same people worked from home the entire week their productivity would go up even higher. It's possible, in fact, that too much time away from the office might actually reduce productivity. But at least, according to this six-month study of 44 Northern California office workers, working from home for part of the week suggests that there are some advantages to this pattern of work.

Here are some of the results that the telecommuters reported:

Less stress
Higher job satisfaction
Improved service to customers
Significant improvement in organizational skills.

It's also important in considering a study of this type to note that traffic is particularly difficult in the San Francisco Bay Area. The reduction in stress alone from not having to drive to work could account for the increase in productivity and reduced stress.

It's probably time for researchers to more closely look at this phenomenon. A useful study would be to compare workers who commute in heavy traffic compared to workers who have an easy and short time getting to work. The challenge in research of this type is making sure that all the variables are equal. For example, working from home if there are noisy children around have a negative impact on productivity.

But, as an initial glance at productivity and home work, this study is off to a productive start!

Janelle Barlow, Ph.D.
President
TMI, USA

Please submit your questions to Time Manager Questions and Answers. If you have questions, undoubtedly someone else has the same question. By asking a question, you'll help a fellow Time Manager user become more effective.

Previous "Time Manager Q & A Corner" pages:

    #1 Key Areas and Interruptions

    #2 Daily Plans and Home Offices

    #3 Result Statements

    #4 Reading and Responding to E-Mail

    #5 Sending E-Mail

    #6 Filing According to Key Areas

    #7 Setting up Files for the Whole Office

    #8 Controlling Loose Pieces of Paper

    #9 The Value of Time

#10 More on Results Statements

#11 Managing Time on the Road

#12 How to Get Time with Someone

#13 The Downside of Goals

#14 Thinking Types and Time

#15 Feeling Types and Time

#16 Intuitive Types and Time

#17 Sensate Types and Time

#18 What's Real about Strategic Planning?

#19 What Does Being Strategic Really Mean?

#20 How Perception of Time Influences Goal Choices

    #21 The Four Immutable Laws of Controlling Your Desk

   #22 Decision Making and Cultural Groups

   #23 Paperless Office: Fact or Fiction?

#24 Exit Planning

#25 Speed: Does It Free Up More Time?

#26 Time in the 21st Century

#27 Open Office Plans

#28 The Costs of E-Mail

#29 How Do Senior Level People Manage Their Time?

#30 On Saving Time

#31 Paying the Ultimate Price with Time By Not Getting Enough Sleep

Please submit your questions to Time Manager Questions and Answers by fax or e-mail . If you have questions, undoubtedly someone else has the same question. By asking a question, you'll help a fellow Time Manager user become more effective.

Link to Time Manager

TMI US
8270 West Charleston Blvd
Las Vegas, Nevada 89117

tel: 702 939-1800

fax: 702 939-1804

email: