* IT pros discuss their telework styles
Hair Club for Men founder Sy Sperling will go down in history for uttering the company’s trademark phrase, “I’m not just the president, I’m also a client.”
Just as Sperling maintained his infamous dual role, some of the IT folks who shared their views on telework in last week’s newsletter are in positions that let them not only provide IT support to remote employees but also do their own jobs from home – sometimes, anyway.
Jason Kennedy, senior systems and network analyst at Canadian IT consulting firm Tsunami Communications, says he frequently works from home when he isn’t required to spend time at client sites or doesn’t need boardroom-type facilities. “Everything I need to get my job done is at my home office,” he says.
Looking ahead, he expects to continue to work from home as much as he does now, possibly less if he takes on more client-facing responsibilities. “We have a pretty good balance right now, but as the corporation continues to grow, I’ll find the necessity for more interaction with clients and partners puts me in the office or field,” he says. “That said, there will still be days where I can manage the operations and handle client requests remotely from the home office. I enjoy the environment I’ve created for myself there and feel I can really get quiet, focused time.”
Steve White, director of customer services systems at electric utility PacifiCorp in Portland, Ore., used to work from home one day each week. A recent job change has put that arrangement on hold, but White hopes to return to working from home one day each week down the road.
“It made for a very productive day,” White says. “I would get all the documentation and analysis work done during that day as there were fewer interruptions.”
For White, the main advantages of working from home were the elimination of a one-hour commute to work and a chance to reduce his tax burden, since his residence is in a state without a personal income tax.
White says most of his responsibilities could be taken care of from a home office, with the exception of some delicate managerial tasks. “When having performance-management discussions with folks that are underperforming, I prefer to do that face-to-face,” White says. “There are also some meetings [that] I’m better off attending in person to ensure the relationships remain strong and I am providing the right level of visibility to my main clients.”
Bernie Donnelly, vice president of quality assurance and control at the Philadelphia Stock Exchange, says he does some work from home, but it’s typically limited to conference calls or sifting through e-mail at night or on weekends.
For the most part, Donnelly’s job keeps him onsite at the Exchange. “My particular responsibilities for ensuring [the integrity of] all changes to the production, mission-critical systems require me to interface with a number of representatives throughout the organization. All are not necessarily available at the same time, so a conference call would not work,” he says.
As the Philadelphia Stock Exchange migrates to all-electronic trading systems, users will gain more remote access options, Donnelly says. But the enhancements will keep IT on the premises. To support this environment, key personnel need to be immediately available and onsite, he says.
After hours, remote access technologies give systems administrators and communication experts the tools they need to provide off-shift technical support. “In the event of an incident, the on-call personnel are contacted automatically and [log on] remotely to address any and all issues,” Donnelly says.
Donnelly sums up the conundrum of finding qualified IT people who can work from home – you tend to want them around. “Finding personnel who can be trusted to work independently and are knowledgeable in your systems is a very difficult challenge. These are the very people you want around to deal with the unscheduled events that require their expertise,” Donnelly says. “By providing this support remotely during the business day, the resolution to events is delayed. There is nothing like a face-to-face during a crisis to ensure a timely resolution.”
How do you think IT support and telework mix? Send me your thoughts at abednarz@nww.com
