A Performance Assessment Article

A Performance Assessment 1

Running Head: A PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT OF ADVANTAGE.COM

A Performance Assessment of Advantage.com

Authors‟ Names

University of Northern Colorado


Abstract

Advantage.com is a Colorado-based E-learning company operating primarily in a virtual

telecommuting fashion. Advantage.com recently acquired a traditional office-based E-learning

company. A number of the employees of the newly acquired company were retained by

Advantage.com and have to assume telecommuting practices. The purpose of this study is to

conduct a performance assessment and gap analysis between the optimal performance of the

newly acquired component of the company Advantage.com and the actual performance. Data

gathering through qualitative interviews of two employers of Advantage.com and several of the

new employees produced recommendations for increased performance of the telecommuting

employees.


Introduction and History

Several factors contribute to the emergence of telecommuting. An increasing number of

companies are moving to this business model in hopes of lowering costs by reducing office space

and allowing their employees a more flexible work schedule. Computer and telecommunication

technologies are becoming more affordable and cost-effective enabling more businesses to

choose this work environment. A 2005 survey by the International Telework Advisory Group

(ITAC) for WorldatWork report that out of 136.4 million working American, 45.1 worked from

home (ITAC, 2005). The Federal Government has been a leader in allowing employees to

telecommute as seen in Figure 1.

Telecommuting can transform an organization in numerous ways. In the teleworking

business model, work is assigned, received, collaborated on, and sent using a number of

electronic formats including e-mail, instant messaging, file transfer protocol (FTP), cellular

communications, conference bridges, and shared Microsoft Sharepoint shells. In some cases, a

larger company and/or client will utilize paper-based documents and transfer them by postal

services. Some potential organizational impacts are increased productivity, lower absenteeism,

increased ability to retain best employees, decrease in office rental costs, quicker responsiveness

to customers and unexpected events, increased organizational flexibility, and better usage of

information systems. The negative impacts include greater absence of best employees from the

office, loss of synergy in the organization, difficulty in managing telecommuting employees,

increased data security concerns, and difficulty in objectively evaluating the financial benefits of

telecommuting (Pinsonneault, 1999).

Advantage.com (a pseudonym) is a Colorado based corporation that has a “virtual” work

environment for employees rather than a face-to-face traditional office space (Van Tiem,


Moseley, & Dessinger, (2004). Advantage. com specializes in e-learning solutions for

government agencies and private entities. The company produces Sharable Content Object

Reference Model (SCORM) conformant multimedia training materials, designed for both just in

time training solutions as well as products intent on increasing return on investment (ROI) and

performance solutions. Advantage.com has a history of successfully completed contracts, many

of which fall under high-dollar government contracts. While the company‟s original personnel

numbered under ten individuals, the owners of Advantage.com saw a high return on employee

production and met the majority of projects on time and on budget.

Advantage.com recently acquired another e-learning company, Powertrain.com (a

pseudonym), allowing Advantage.com to expand the employee base and acquire even larger

federal contracts to provide training and performance solutions to a variety of government

bureaus as well as to expand their reach into the private sector. Powertrain was a traditional

office-based company headquartered in a major Colorado city. Unlike Advantage.com,

Powertrain required workers to primarily meet in a traditional office environment. Powertrain

provided cubicles and onsite, small conference rooms in which the employees worked and

communicated with each other. Employees had the opportunity to meet regularly with fellow

colleagues, management, and technical support. Moreover, Powertrain employees had easy

access to such fundamental needs as office supplies and computer equipment. Powertrain had a

larger support staff than Advantage.com, including personnel such as content quality assurance

(CQA) and technical quality assurance (TQA). Employees at Advantage.com would often

handle these duties themselves and were used to multi-tasking and prioritizing heavy workloads

in a very deadline oriented environment without the aid of additional support personnel. Though

convenient for Powertrain employees to have such a well-staffed office, the company was


financially burdened and not profitable. Many of the non-essential personnel were let go during

the merger and only essential staff added to Advantage.com‟s payroll.

The acquisition placed the Powertrain employees in a new situation where performance

of their duties was now in a virtual environment, sometimes referred to as “telecommuting”.

During the preliminary changes, management facilitated the transition of Powertrain employees

to Advantage.com‟s best practices. Much of the company‟s procedural knowledge was provided

via electronic communications, conference calls, and meetings, which typically occurred once

every two weeks in a more traditional office type setting.

For the purpose of this study, the definition of “telework” or “telecommuting” describes

the work environment of Advantage.com. Narrowly defined, telework describes employees who

work at home rather than reporting to a centralized office location (Watad & DiSanzo, 2000;

Nilles, 1992; Olson, 1983, as cited by Siha & Monroe, 2006).

Telecommuting presents unique challenges to workers who have not experienced this

environment. Despite the common assumption that working at home is a positive experience,

not everyone is enthusiastic about telework. Critics cite isolation, lack of supervisory control,

reduced contact with other people, and loss of creativity that may result from workplace

exchanges as problems that could affect production (Fitzer, 1997).

Conduction of a performance assessment and gap analysis looked at the Powertrain

employees who transitioned from a brick-and-mortar office to the almost exclusive

telecommuting environment of Advantage.com. The impetus of this study is to describe the

actual performance of former Powertrain employees in contrast to owners of Advantage.com

desired optimal performance and to subsequently provide suggestion for solutions to bridge the

gap between the two performances.


Research Questions

1. What is considered the optimal work performance for employees telecommuting to

Advantage.com?

2. What is the actual performance of employees telecommuting to Advantage.com?

3. What is the gap between the optimal and the actual work performance for workers

telecommuting to Advantage.com?

4. What are the employees‟ perceived obstacles and challenges for optimal performance

while telecommuting?

5. What tools, materials, or training do employees feel would help in their daily work

performance?

Methodology

Participants

The participants of this study included two of the owners of Advantage.com (Matt and

Jeff), and four employees (Cindy, Jessica, Rhoda, and Walt) who previously worked for

Powertain.com. The participants varied in age, gender, and number of years employed in the e-

learning space. Three males and three females were interviewed at Advantage.com. All of the

interviewees agreed to participate in the study and pseudonyms are used to protect their identity.

Instruments

Two self-devised interview scripts served as the instruments in this study (Appendix A).

We asked different questions of the owners and the employees. First, background information

about the company, Advantage.com, was acquired by asking the owners to give a brief history of

their business and their employee relations. Next, we asked about the benefits and expectations

of employees who utilized the telecommuting work environment. Then we asked questions


relating to the optimal, desired, and actual performance of the employees who telecommute to

work at Advantage.com. Finally, we asked the owners what they do to foster or enhance the

company‟s ability to reach the desired level of performance.

Of the employees, we asked about the biggest changes and challenges they experienced

when they shifted from a face-to-face working situation to a virtual environment. Our follow-up

questions related to the pros and cons of not working in a traditional brick and mortar office

building. Lastly, we asked the employees of Advantage.com to share any suggestions for

improving their telecommuting experience.

Individual interviews lasted approximately fifteen minutes and took place in-person or

via telephone. Recordings and subsequent transcriptions of interviews served as our primary

source of data.

Procedure

The researchers contacted the owners of the company, Advantage.com, to obtain data

about both the ideal performance and actual performance of their employees. Employees of

Advantage.com, who previously worked for Powertrain.com, were solicited to participate in this

study. Researchers obtained interviews from four employees and of the current owners of

Advantage.com. Interviews were conducted in a mutually agreed upon location (or by phone)

and were recorded with an audiocassette recorder. After transcription of audiotapes,

identification of commonalities between employee‟s responses to interview questions was made.

Information from both sets of interviews (employers and employees) generated a needs

assessment. Then a performance gap analysis looked for areas of need. Completion of the gap

analysis generated potential areas of improvement for the corporation Advantage.com.


Data analysis

Semi-structured interviews were conducted to collect data from the participants and were

fully transcribed. Direct interpretation drew meaning from single instances (Creswell, 1998),

and thematic analysis identified commonalities between responses. Development of a table

broke statements into categories and subcategories and then was used to identify common ideas

and themes. Responses were color-coded by interviewee. An analysis of the table revealed

commonalities between responses. Additional graphs were developed to isolate themes related

to telecommuting benefits and challenges (Appendix C). This information allowed

contemplation of potential gaps in performance.

Use of triangulation techniques assisted in establishing levels of trustworthiness and

dependability. Researchers believe there is a certain degree of generalization here that can be

applied to other similar situations. The audience should judge this for themselves.

Needs Assessment

Employer Perspective

Morrison, Ross, and Kemp (2004) define needs as “a gap between what is expected and

the existing conditions” (p. 32). We have ascertained that there is a gap between what the

owners of Advantage.com want and expect, and what actually exists. Although the owner‟s

concede that, they really are more interested in employees completing their tasks in an efficient

manner than in actually tabulating the hours on-task, they suspect that their employees will spend

6-8 hours a day working on-task. In Jeff‟s (one of the owners) words, “The clock figures into it.

We plan our tasks with the assumption that an individual is going to give very focused attention

to [the task] for six to eight hours a day.” In terms of what is actually happening, the newly

acquired employees are having deadline issues. According to Matt (another of the owners), “…I


think that we‟ve a long way to go to achieve optimal performance. We talked about performance

in terms of meeting task deadlines.”

Another gap includes developing camaraderie and fostering more of a team atmosphere.

As Jeff put it, “It takes a conscious effort to communicate in the telecommuting environment. I

think there‟s more opportunity for social interaction in an office environment, which is one thing

that I think [our new employees] have probably missed, and we need to consciously create some

of those activities.” Matt added to this by saying, “We‟re also trying to create a culture that is

sustainable. We hold ourselves to specific stated values around a quality of life and if anything

we are falling short on the quality of life dimension right now, because we do have some real

bottlenecks from a deadline standpoint. So I think we‟ve a long way to go from a team

cohesiveness standpoint and also from a quality of life standpoint”.

An additional potential gap related to the use of technology. Addressing this issue, Matt

said, “There‟s a lot more we could do with technology also, to make telecommuting more

efficient…we do things like SharePoint editing pretty well, but there are limits to our use of

technology and we could probably go further.”

Employee Perspective

The major areas of need identified by the employees included communication, task

management, and motivation. Clark and Estes (2002) list communication as an important

organizational gap. “Communication has been constant and candid for those involved in plans

and progress. Trust increases the spread of commitment to change goals on all levels. The

informational and corrective feedback components of communication help people adjust the

knowledge and skills they are using to accomplish goals.” (p. 118). Telecommuting requires

different communication skills (Pinsonneault, 1999). In terms of communication, there were two


contexts discussed by employees: communication to accomplish work goals, and social

communication with others. Jessica, one of the new employees, states, “Before if I had some

down time, even if it was just a few hours it might be easy to get up, go over and ask somebody

„hey, what can I help you with?‟ When you‟re working in a virtual environment it‟s more

difficult to gauge how busy the other person is – you don‟t gossip or chat about what you‟re

working with on a more frequent basis, but you‟re not quite sure how to be helpful.” Related to

this, Cindy said, “I feel that there are some miscommunications, and you can‟t say „Hey, come

over and look at my screen‟ and get things hammered out right then and there”. Rhonda felt that,

“it‟s difficult to get instruction in a way for you to take down something new. I think it‟s done

easier face-to-face.”

Regarding task management, Walt said, “I came from an environment, where everything

was run by management. And, so without having someone there right away or being unclear of

what the expectations were, I felt, at first, that I didn‟t know where the lines were drawn.”

Jessica said, “I think the daily task management is more difficult”. Clark and Estes (2002)

address this problem as being one of three critical causes of performance gaps. They state in

their discussion of organizational barriers, specifically inadequate work processes: “Whenever

you modify the knowledge level or the motivation level of an organization, you will find the

need to adapt the work processes accordingly” (p. 45).

A challenge not addressed by every interviewee, but still worth mentioning, is

motivation. Clark and Estes (2002) list this barrier as another of the three critical factors.

“Motivation influences three very critical aspects of our work and private lives-first, choosing to

work towards a goal; second, persisting at it until it is achieved; and third, how much mental

effort we invest to get the job done” (p. 44). Cindy commented on motivation by saying, “I‟d


say one of the challenges is to get motivated and get all of your work done so you can play. I

think there is the „well I don‟t have to do this right now…I‟ll just go watch TV or something.‟

Because you don‟t have set hours with telecommuting, you‟re more likely to have as much time

or as little [time] to get what you want to get done.”

Gap Analysis

After reviewing the comments made by both the employees and the employers, we have

identified a gap in performance that may relate to a significant change in the organizational

culture of their work environment. The culture of both the work environment and the types of

groups that form in this new environment have changed from a traditional on-site office where

interaction takes place in-person, to a telecommuting home office where interactions are not as

commonplace and require conscious effort.

According to Clark and Estes (2002), “processes tell groups of teams or individuals how

to combine their separate work procedures into a smooth functioning unit” (p. 104). The new

employees acquired by Advantage.com have moved from a social environment to a more

isolated one, resulting in alterations in communication, performance integration, and possibly

motivation. The previous two changes (communication and performance integration) are the

focus of this performance assessment. Changes in motivation due to the different work

environment are expected in certain cases. “Motivation is the product of an interaction between

people and their work environment” (Clark & Estes, 2002). The culture of a work environment

“involves beliefs about the importance of individual initiative and competition, and the value of

group process and collaboration” (2002, p. 111). It may be important to consider how different

employees perceive competition or other incentives, and what role that plays in affecting their

motivation.


The owners are not aware of many of the issues that employees have because of a lack of

communication relating to complaints or problems. They know that such problems must exist,

and are aware that they should attempt to ascertain them. Matt states, “One of the tasks I‟ve had

on my plate, and haven‟t gotten around to, is [developing] an employee barometer”. He goes on

to say that this barometer would, “ask questions about number of hours worked, periodically per

month, or each day over the past month; number of days traveling because a lot of our work does

require travel; general rankings of satisfaction with the job; [and other] things of that nature, so

we can have a quick look at how the staff is feeling, and how they perceive their own

performance.”

These findings are consistent with others. Fitzer (1997) found that lack of supervisory

control and reduced contact with other people resulted in diminished production. This may be

due to a lack of experience by management to effectively supervise telecommuting staff

(Pinsonneault, 1999)

In addition to asking about and evaluating the challenges faced by both the employers

and employees, we asked employees about the benefits of telecommuting and suggestions they

had for improvement. Because work could be completed from anywhere, some of the benefits of

the telecommuting environment include flexibility in schedule, fewer interruptions, more control,

not having to commute, and having unlimited time for vacations.

When asked about benefits to telecommuting, Cindy said, “I love the idea that I can go on

vacation anywhere I want and almost have unlimited time for vacations that I can fit in as long as

I am able to bring my office with me and get my work done.” Walt said, “The benefits far

outweigh the negative. I can go from just the economics of not having to spend a ton of money

on automobile fuel, to being able to manage my own time.” About flexibility in schedule,


Rhonda had this to say: “it does make it easier, if you‟re going through a bout of insomnia –

which I am. If you‟re going to be up at 4:30 a.m., you might as well be on the computer doing

work at 5:00.”

Some of the suggestions for improvement made by the employees at Advantage.com

included a physical space to work from (at least part of the time), more program management

meetings, and events that are more social. According to Jessica, it would be good to have “a

place to work from, productively, maybe one day a week or one day every other week”. Cindy

said, “One thing that I really like is having some face to face time with everyone once in a while.

Having a meeting every other week, for example.” Walt brought up policies by saying, “for

instance, it seems like there isn‟t clarity about what days are holidays.”

Potential Causes for a Gap in Performance

Employees experience problems related to task management due to breakdowns in

communication and lack of camaraderie, or teamwork, because of the telecommuting

environment.

1. Problems in understanding instruction arise because of the physical separation of a

support network: employee-employer and employee-employee. This results in questions

answered ineffectively (due to miscommunication). It also may result in a hesitance by

employees to ask questions of employers or fellow employees because communication

requires a much more conscientious effort.

2. Another problem arises because of the culture, or “quality of life” (employer‟s term),

resulting from isolation of employees. Employees miss social interactions with others.

They are working in an absence of a physical team situation. This may affect their ability

to integrate their portion of a product with the other employee portions of a product


(referred to as process). Additionally, there may be motivation breakdowns due to the

lack of structure in the telecommuting environment illustrated by the quote by Cindy

about the temptation to watch TV when working at home.

Implementing Solutions

Weekly program management meetings

By having weekly or biweekly meetings, preferably where employees and employers

meet face-to-face, many of the communication problems could be alleviated. In addition, this

would help employees feel more of a connection to a team and satisfy their desire to interact with

each other in a social setting.

Increase planned employee camaraderie & teamwork

First, plan non-work related gatherings for employees to interact (possibly around

holidays), such as Christmas parties, and barbeques. Second, have a common meeting place for

teams to get together to work collaboratively. Plan the calendar year so the deadlines are more

spaced out, and not bottlenecking around the holidays, when most employees want time off.

Ensure that employees participate in organizational activities. Also, keep employees informed of

events concerning the organization by the use of a monthly or weekly calendar of events

(Pinsonneault, 1999).

Establish good communications of a regular basis and insure communication is effective

between managers, telecommuters, and the other employees.

Because the Advantage.com employees are not required to observe regular office hours,

managers should try to be more accessible, by phone, fax, instant messaging, or frequent email.

A relationship of confidence between the worker and managers is crucial for success. Managers

may have to adopt a more supportive role rather than a supervisory role. Determine how


accessible employees need to be. An example might be if you want employees to carry cell

phones with them at all times or how frequently they should check their email or messages.

Establish clearly defined goals for all employees.

It is important to clearly establish the goals. Every team member of each work team

should have a very clear and specific description of their performance goals, how to know when

they are (or are not) achieving those goals, and the business reason for those goals (Clark and

Estes, 2002). Of course, employee assignments should align with and support organizational

goals and set expectations. Not only do employees need to know what they are supposed to do,

they need to know how well they are supposed to do it. Managers should clearly communicate

performance standards. Set interim deadlines on projects and stick to them. Be sure to record

directions, project changes, and updates in writing. Focus on what has been accomplished and

provide regular evaluation and feedback on projects. This keeps work practices from deviating

from established goals and objectives (Pinsonneault, 1999). Quantity, quality, timeliness, and

cost-effectiveness of the project are four general measures that managers should review with

employees. Communicating performance on these measures should be frequent. Employees

need feedback on their performance in order to maintain good performance and to improve

overall. In addition, employees need to keep supervisors informed about work progress. Good

communications between supervisors and employees is essential for successfully completing

work and is especially necessary in a telecommuting environment. Supervisors should not let

telecommuters feel as if their performance does not matter or that no one ever notices their

achievements. All employees want to feel appreciation for their work. Recognition should

always be part of the supervisor's performance management style (U.S. Office of Personnel

Management, 2001).


Possible training needs

There is an assumption that employees and managers who are transitioning from a work

place environment to a telecommuting environment have all the skills they need to perform their

tasks. Pinsonneault (1999) recommends that organizations should have three distinct trainings:

employee training, manager training, and team training. Employees may need training to work

productively in the context of telecommuting, including making sure that they can properly use

IT equipment, effectively communicate using technology, and understand the procedures and

practices of the company. Managers may need training in effectual communication, relationship

building, and project management. Team training consists of bringing teams together to discuss

how telecommuting projects will be handled and effective ways of team management. Clark and

Estes (2002) state:

Effective training must provide …a specific procedure that shows …exactly how to

accomplish a performance goal. The procedure must be described completely and

clearly. It must describe how and when to make all necessary decisions and follow up

with all necessary actions on the job. These procedures need to be sequenced as

performed on the job and must be accompanied by demonstrations of the procedure, by

opportunities to practice them during and after training, and with feedback to correct

performance mistakes (p. 71).

Writing a formal contract

Write a formal contract that will specify the responsibilities of the employees and clearly

state Advantage.com‟s expectations. Begin the contract by defining what telecommuting means

for the company. Answer the question: What are the expectations for employees who

telecommute? Next, create a Telecommuting Request Form that you can use to consistently


evaluate each employee's fit (and cost) as a telecommuting candidate. It is also important to

create a Telecommuting Agreement that eligible employees should review and sign (Appendix

D). This agreement will include the following:

Duration of the agreement

A definition of the telecommuter's work schedule

Pay and attendance including holidays, sick leave, maternity/paternity leave

Overtime

An outline of the probationary period, if applicable

A list of all work-related items provided by the company

Acknowledgement that the employee will take precautions to protect company owned

equipment from damage or theft

Acknowledgement that the employee will return all company property upon

termination or resignation of employment

Acknowledgement that the employee is responsible for addressing legal or tax-related

issues that arise from his or her use of the home as a place of business

Inspection of workplace to ensure proper maintenance of business equipment

Reimbursements

Workers‟ Compensation

Work assignments

Management and protection of business records and documents

Curtailment of the agreement

Performance location


Also, be sure to include a statement of compliance with existing and future OSHA and

worker's compensation regulations

Establish tasks that are suitable for telecommuting

Not all tasks are well suited for conducting in a virtual environment. Analysis of which

tasks are better suited for different environments should be made. For example, tasks such as

high informational content which do not require direct contact from supervisors or colleagues as

compared to tasks which could be more effectively completed with a team face to face.

Programmers and instructional design employees need extensive periods of mental concentration

and are better suited to non-interruptive environments. Collaborative tasks require more

immediate communication and may need an office space environment. To decide if a job can

easily be done at home, evaluate it by three key criteria: how portable the work is, whether it has

a measurable start and end, and whether it requires a lot of in-person interaction.

Assessment of employee personality types

Not everyone is suited to telecommuting work. Studies have suggested that young and

inexperienced employees do not make good telecommuting candidates because they do not have

much experience in the work force. Other employees may feel socially deprived or less

autonomous individuals may feel disoriented when confronted with the high discretionary

environment of telecommuting (Pinsonneault, 1999). Assessment of suitability of employees to

this environment is a critical evaluation the owners and managers must make. Employees‟ self-

efficacy is associated with telecommuting success in that it affects overall productivity and job

satisfaction.


Conclusion

The findings of this study provide information for the owners and managers of

Advantage.com with valuable information concerning telecommuting for the newly acquired

employees as well as existing employees. While gaps currently exist between the optimal

performance desired by the owners/managers of Advantage.com and the actual performance of

new employees, no systematic barrier exists to prevent success in reaching the objectives. By

adopting all or some of our suggestions, the gaps should begin to close.

It may be prudent for the managers and owners of Advantage.com to begin a trial period

incorporating some of our suggestions (e.g., weekly meetings and social events). We suggest

that the employee barometer would be a good way to collect data both before and after the trial

period. One of the owners mentioned the lack of a benchmark (for comparison), and the

barometer would be one way to establish one. Improving communication is a critical

recommendation. Establishing clearly defined and codified business and personal goals will

keep all employees of Avantage.com on target and aware of company practices. The use of a

telecommuting agreement will set terms and conditions for employees. There exists a possible

need for training for employees, managers, and teams to ensure all policies and procedures are

clearly understood. Additional training for managers in effective management and

communication of telecommuting employees may be necessary. An evaluation of what tasks are

suitable for telecommuting environments as opposed to tasks that require some degree of face to

face collaboration will make job assignments more time and cost effective. Finally, an

assessment of personality types of employees may determine what employees would be more

effective in certain types of tasks.


Upon completion of the trial of the implementation of our suggestions, the owners of

Advantage.com should consider a formal evaluation to assess any progress. Following our list of

suggestions, as well as continuing to gather their own data during the trial period, will provide

valuable guidelines for improvement for the corporation.


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Appendix A

Interview Questions

Interview questions for the owners of Advantage.com:

1. What is a brief history of Advantage.com‟s business and employee relations?

2. Why do you offer telecommuting as an option for employees?

3. What benefits do you see coming from telecommuting employees?

4. What expectations do you have of your employees who telecommute?

5. What challenges do you see in communicating assignments and work-related information

to your employees?

6. What is your desired optimal performance of your telecommuting employees?

7. How do you foster the desired performance?

8. What has been the actual performance of employees who are now adapting to the

telecommuting environment?

Interview questions for new Advantage.com employees:

1. What has been the biggest change between working in a face-to-face environment as

opposed to a virtual office?

2. What challenges are you experiencing because of the new change?

3. Do you see benefits of telecommuting over meeting in a traditional office space?

4. What cons are you experiencing working in a virtual environment as opposed to a face-

to-face office environment?

5. What suggestions do you have for improving your telecommuting experience with the

owners of Advantage.com?


Appendix B

Themes established through an interview with the owners

Optimal Performance

Typical workweek is unproductive for average American employees.

Telecommuting allows for a 20-30% increase in productivity.

Our employees will be focused on work activities for 6-8 hours a day.

There is flexibility in the times that employees choose to work.

We have good people that want to do a good job.

We have a model designed that will over time self-select the people who are extremely

efficient.

Actual Performance

Actual performance is difficult to benchmark.

Our company is more efficient now than we have ever been.

Employees have been ramped up on profits.

We have processes that insure a quality product in a reasonable amount of time.

We get it right the first time.

We fall short of our optimal performance goals.

Company Needs

An employee barometer to assess quality of life.

Further use and upgrades of technology.


Appendix C

Themes established by an interview with the employees

Challenges

Daily task management.

Difficult to gauge how busy another person is.

Difficult to get instruction.

Alone too much; little contact with fellow employees.

Miscommunications.

Motivation.

Benefits

Flexibility and an adjustable schedule.

Not having to commute.

Few interruptions.

Unlimited time for vacations, because they can bring work with them.

Can use Instant Messaging to enhance communication with others.

Taking control of time management.

Suggestions

A physical space to work from (e.g., a hybrid environment similar to the one they came

from with Powertrain.com, where they work three days in an office and two from home).

Increase the number to weekly Program Management meetings.

Working with other groups in the country.

Increase the number of events for social interaction.

Have an employee manual for policies and clarity on holiday/sick leave.


Figure 1. Increase in the number of federal employees who telecommute from 2003 to 2004.

From “The Status of Telework in the Federal Government 2005” by General Service

Administration, Office of Personnel Management, 2005.


Benefits of Telework

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

Adjustable

schedule

Mobile office

(WiFi)

Time

management

Instant

Messaging

Qu

an

tity

of

Resp

on

ses

Series1

Figure 2. Benefits of telework.

Challenges to Telework

00.5

11.5

22.5

33.5

44.5

Off

ice M

ate

rials

Lack o

f S

ocia

l

Connection

Pro

cra

stination

Mis

com

munic

atio

n

Qu

an

tity

of

Resp

on

ses

Series1

Figure 3. Challenges to telework.


Appendix D

TELECOMMUTING AGREEMENT EXAMPLE

The following constitutes an agreement between [Your Business] and [Employee].

[Employee] agrees to participate in the telecommuting program and to adhere to the applicable

guidelines and policies. [Your Business] concurs with the employee's participation and agrees to

adhere to the applicable guidelines and policies.

Terms and conditions. The telecommuting agreement is subject to the following terms and

conditions:

Duration. This agreement will be valid for a period of [specify term] beginning on [start date]

and ending on [end date]. At the end of that time, both parties will participate in a review which

can result in the reactivation of the agreement.

Work hours. Employee's work hours and work location are specified in the Attachment at the

end of this agreement.

Pay and attendance. All pay, leave and travel entitlement will be based on the employee's

primary business location. Employee's time and attendance will be recorded as performing

official duties at the primary business location.

Leave. Employees must obtain approval before taking leave in accordance with established

office procedures. By signing this form, employee agrees to follow established procedures for

requesting and obtaining approval of leave.

Overtime. The employee will continue to work in pay status while working at the home office.

An employee who works overtime that has been ordered and approved in advance will be

compensated in accordance with applicable law and rules. The employee understands that [Your

Business] will not accept the results of unapproved overtime work and will act vigorously to

discourage it.

By signing this agreement, the employee agrees that failing to obtain proper approval for

overtime work may result in removal from the telecommuting program or other appropriate

action.

Business owned equipment. In order to effectively perform their assigned tasks, employees may

use [Your Business] equipment at the telecommuting location with the approval of [Your

Business]. The equipment must be protected against damage and unauthorized use. [Your

Business] owned equipment will be serviced and maintained by [Your Business]. Any equipment

provided by the employee will be at no cost to [Your Business], and will be maintained by the

employee.


Inspection. The telecommuting location will be inspected periodically to ensure that proper

maintenance of [Your Business] equipment is performed, and that safety standards are met.

Notice must be given to the employee at least 24 hours in advance of the inspection, which must

occur during normal working hours.

Liability. [Your Business] will not be liable for damages to the employees' property that result

from participation in the telecommuting program.

Reimbursement. [Your Business] will not be responsible for operating costs, home

maintenance, or any other incidental cost (e.g., utilities) whatsoever, associated with the use of

the employee's residence. The employee does not relinquish any entitlement to reimbursement

for authorized expenses incurred while conducting business for [Your Business].

Workers' Compensation. The employee is covered under the Workers' Compensation Law if

injured in the course of performing official duties at the telecommuting location.

Work assignments. The employee will meet with [designate contact person] to receive

assignments and to review completed work as necessary or appropriate. The employee will

complete all assigned work according to work procedures mutually agreed upon by the employee

and [the contact person] according to guidelines and standards stated in the employee's

performance plan.

Employee evaluation. The evaluation of the employee's job performance will be based on

norms or other criteria derived from past performance and occupational standards consistent with

these guidelines. For those assignments without precedent or without standards, regular and

required progress reporting by the employee will be used to rate job performance and establish

standards. The employee's most recent performance appraisal must indicate fully achieved

standards.

Records. The employee will apply approved safeguards to protect [Your Business] records from

unauthorized disclosure or damage. Work done at the telecommuting location is considered

[Your Business] business. All records, papers, computer files, and correspondence must be

safeguarded for their return to the primary business location.

Curtailment of the agreement. [Specify whether the employee may continue working for your

business if the employee no longer wishes to telecommute. Also specify the circumstances under

which the telecommuting agreement will be terminated by your business (e.g., if continued

participation fails to satisfy business needs) and the consequences of that termination on the

worker's continued employment.]

Employee: ___________________________________ Date: _________________

[Contact person]: ______________________________ Date: _________________


Attachment

The following hours and locations are agreed to in support of the Telecommuting Agreement.

Primary Business Location: _____________________________________________

Telecommuting Location: _______________________________________________

General Work Hours:

Day Hours Location (home, office, other)

Monday: ______ - ______ ___________________________

Tuesday: ______ - ______ ___________________________

Wednesday: ______ - ______ ___________________________

Thursday: ______ - ______ ___________________________

Friday: ______ - ______ ___________________________

Saturday: ______ - ______ ___________________________

Sunday: ______ - ______ ___________________________

Comments (Schedule flexibility, etc.):

____________________________________________________________________

Signatures:

Your Name: ___________________________________ Date: ________________

Employee: _____________________________________ Date: ________________

Employee Information:

Name: _______________________________________________________________

Address: _____________________________________________________________

City, State and Zip: _____________________________________________________

Documents

A Performance Assessment Article