This month, Commuter Connections unveiled new resources to help employers adopt telework programs. While these resources were developed to advance a goal in the Transportation Planning Board’s Visualize 2045 plan to expand telework and other options that reduce solo car trips, they are also of value during the COVID-19 outbreak as employers turn to telework to help ensure the safety of their employees, the continuity of their business operations, and to do their part to protect the community through social distancing.
The telework resources, which can be found on the Commuter Connections website, include sample program guidelines that can be used to construct a telework program and a sample Teleworker Agreement. The site also lists teleworking “Do’s and Don’ts” for both managers and employees related to communication, productivity, and management.
Commuter Connections has promoted telework, offered employers assistance in establishing programs, and tracked its steady growth in metropolitan Washington for the past several decades. According to its most recent preliminary State of the Commute Draft Survey in 2019, 35 percent of commuters reported working remotely or from home at least occasionally, which is up from 19 percent in 2007. These teleworkers represented 1,073,000 regional workers.
Below are Helpful Links to Telework Resources:
Telework Poster
To promote telework within your organization, download a PDF version of the poster.
Sample Teleworker Guidelines
These short policies provide basic information on recommended program descriptions, employee eligibility and availability, considerations, hardships, legalese, parameters, technology (if needed), and other issues that safeguard employer and employee arrangements. The guidelines also contain language for piloting, expanding, or terminating programs.
Sample Telework Agreement
Formalizing telework arrangements with a Teleworker Agreement helps set measurable expectations for the teleworker and management.
Shared Workspaces/Coworking Spaces/Telework Centers
Communicate seamlessly with your office, colleagues, customers, and potential customers. These locations provide entrepreneurs, growing businesses, and established corporate teleworkers with a variety of settings. Features include workstations, high-speed internet, and other amenities which may consist of photocopiers, VoIP/telephony, meeting rooms, and video conferencing.
In general, shared workspaces and Telework Centers are better suited for more established professionals. These types of locations work on a twelve-month lease arrangement and are known for providing more traditional amenities such as conference rooms, professional office furniture, photocopiers, audio-visual equipment etc. Some also offer receptionists, pantries, and separate private offices. Coworking spaces are more ideal for start-up businesses, freelancers, and entrepreneur-types looking for an affordable creative atmosphere to pursue their passions. Usually, coworking spaces can be leased for a shorter period, between three and six months.
There are countless facilities in the metropolitan Washington region, each offering a unique, productive, and flourishing environment. Regardless of location, each offers a surrounding of like-minded people and allow for independence while at the same time a collaborative, supportive community not available when working from home.
For more information, download the presentation.
Partial List of Centers within the Washington, DC region:
* Multiple Locations
Self Help Guide for Employees
Ever wonder why you have to work so hard to get to work? More and more commuters are discovering a smarter way to work by teleworking. Rather than commuting to the office every day, they work at home, or at a shared workspace, at a coworking center, telework center, or from an employer’s satellite office one or more days a week. This help-guide is designed to help individuals determine if telework is a suitable option for them, and, if so, how to introduce or expand a telework program within their organization. To learn more about how teleworking can improve your lifestyle while keeping your boss happy, please download the “Keep the Job, Lose the Commute” presentation.
Manager Do's and Don’ts for Teleworking
Manager Do's
Communication
- Develop good communication and access procedures for your employees so they are clear about meeting times and availability when teleworking, for example, suggest that teleworker email their team when starting and ending their telework day
- Integrate teleworkers in innovation exchange such as brainstorming with the use of technology
- Communicate with the teleworker like you would in the office
- Plan meetings when your teleworkers can participate
- Consider short team huddles or online meetings
- Encourage good communication skills, such as responding to emails and voicemails in a timely manner
Productivity
- Manage by measuring results
- Build trust through troubleshooting with the teleworkers
- Encourage goal setting - use the Telework Task Schedule or Daily Log
- Delegate assignments equitably among your teleworkers and non-teleworkers. Think creatively of how work can be re-organized for the purposes of teleworking
- Provide feedback in a timely manner
- Ensure that you have a performance evaluation process in place for both teleworkers and non-teleworkers.
Managing
- Be prepared if telework doesn’t work well and allow the employee to terminate participation
- Do consider expanding the telework program after the emergency period
- Use telework as an opportunity to strengthen your management skills
- Make sure teleworker has IT contact information
- Ask for feedback on the teleworking program
- Trust your teleworkers
Manager Don'ts
Communication
- Don’t call teleworker every hour to check on progress
- Productivity
- Don’t set unattainable goals
- Don’t expect perfection; there will be adjustments needed
- Don’t set unrealistic deadlines for projects
- Don't select employees that are not productive in the office to telework
Managing
- Don’t neglect problems
- Don’t expect everyone to be a successful teleworker
- Don't begin new projects during the telework period
- Don't require face to face or team meetings during an emergency period unless necessary - some technology alternatives are Skype or conference call
- Don't feel obligated to continue the arrangement if it's not working