Ika 28 ng Mayo 2009: I Hate Telecommuting

The early bird catches the worm..... Why is it that I don't feel like catching a worm today? I was at the office early........ There is this rushed work which kept me at my home PC sooooooo late last night, actually until the break of dawn...... I was waiting for submission of outputs from our staff and only one arrived. I could have turned off my PC after processing that output. But no.... I had to wander off into the blogosphere and beyond. That's the thing about working with the aid of technology. I tend to lose myself in it. I also blame the frappe I had at Starbucks where I held a review session with a student early evening yesterday. I wasn't supposed to take anything with caffeine in the evening as it affects my sleep.... and I am an occasional insomniac! Worse is I had to go to the office early for our presentation to the boss.

Sometimes, I'd like technology not to work so efficiently. Telecommuting is one of the consequences of the fast-paced technological development. Long distance telework is facilitated by such tools as virtual private networks, conference calling, videoconferencing, and Voice over IP (VOIP). It can be efficient and useful for companies as it allows staff and workers to communicate over a large distance, saving significant amounts of travel time and cost. As broadband Internet connections become more commonplace, more and more workers have enough bandwidth at home to use these tools to link their home office to their corporate intranet and internal phone networks.

This is one area where I can be inconsistent. In another post, I was all praises for technology as it affords me the chance to make my hectic life manageable. I guess it all depends on what you're doing. Obviously, I don't have the appetite for this job I am doing ....... but it's one of those necessary evil.

Technology feels like a pest today..... making me lose sleep over work. It gives one no escape from work even beyond the normal call of duty. That goes for other gadgets..... the celfone gives access to your boss to invade your privacy and encroach on personal time.......... with a camera your boss can even see what you're doing. Sometimes, I just would like to leave all these things behind and live a simple life. When these gizmos were non-existent, I didn't mind at all that I live an undisturbed life. Some marketing guys had to condition us into thinking we need these devices. Now, we can't do without them!

Telecommuting, e-commuting, e-work, telework, working from home (WFH), or working at home (WAH) is a work arrangement in which employees enjoy flexibility in working location and hours. In other words, the daily commute to a central place of work is replaced by telecommunication links. Many work from home, while others, occasionally also referred to as nomad workers or web commuters utilize mobile telecommunications technology to work from coffee shops or myriad other locations. Telework is a broader term, referring to substituting telecommunications for any form of work-related travel, thereby eliminating the distance restrictions of telecommuting. All telecommuters are teleworkers but not all teleworkers are telecommuters. A frequently repeated motto is that "work is something you do, not something you travel to". A successful telecommuting program requires a management style which is based on results and not on close scrutiny of individual employees. This is referred to as management by objectives as opposed to management by observation. The terms telecommuting and telework were coined by Jack Nilles in 1973.

Pardon me for the rather unpleasant mood today. I am sleep-deprived and I am rushing to meet my deadline!

Related Posts:
Ten Things I Love about Telecommuting

PS: Nasira nag paboritong tsinelas ng pangalawang anak ko dahil nginatngat ng aso. Sa umaga at hapon kasi pinababayaan magtakbuhan at maglaro ang siyam na aso namin. Itong mga tuta na nagngingipin siguro ay mahilig manguha ng mga tsinelas at sapatos at pagkatapos ay ngangatngatin. Minsan pinababayaan lang ng dapat bantay nila na magngatngat ng kung ano ano. Sino ba me kasalanan niyan? Tao o aso? Basta nakakainis at kailangan palitan ang paboritong tsinelas ng anak ko!