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New Virtual Office Aims to Help Cut Down Office Costs, Carbon Footprints
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Cisco, a global networking giant, knows first-hand the importance of a flexible work schedule. The company employs about 60,000 people worldwide, and 20 percent of them -- about 12,000 workers -- spend at least part of their time working remotely.
So when the company today announced its Cisco Virtual Office, a "zero-touch" tool to plug workers at remote offices into corporate headquarters, it brings its own experience to bear on the problem and its solution.
The Virtual Office, which consists of a wireless internet router and a phone system, has a host of environmental and business benefits. By allowing employees to work remotely either occasionally or full-time, companies can reduce their real estate needs; the cost of heating, cooling and furniture associated with office space; reduce fuel consumption by employees; and as a result reduce a company's overall carbon footprint.
Beyond the economic and environmental benefits, there are less-tangible business benefits to allowing for a more flexible workforce. According to Fred Kost, Cisco's Director of Security Relations (and a part-time telecommuter himself), building remote work into business operations can vastly expand the pool of available workers to any company.
"The best people aren't always local," Kost explained, "whether they're thousands of miles away or just working from home, this makes it easier to get them to work."
Flexible work also boosts employee morale and satisfaction, Kost said; and having the Virtual Office in place for workers who either log more hours or are especially critical to business operations can help keep data secure when employees are working after-hours or if power outages or other malfunctions render the main office unusable.
In addition to the data and voice capabilities of the Virtual Office, Kost explained that Cisco will eventually add a Telepresence feature to enable high-def video conferencing from remote offices.
Licenses for the Cisco Virtual Office start at $700 per seat; more information is online at http://cisco.com.
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With office rental
With office rental increasing, it doesn't make much sense to have a physical office. I believe the future of most businesses will be virtual and leveraging off using a virtual office space.
Remote Offices as another option
Although virtual home offices are very economical, there are many workers who prefer the structure and infrastructure provided by a professional office located outside the home. These workers can still telecommute, but might want to do so from a remote office.
Remote Office Centers lease individual offices, internet and phone systems to workers from different companies in shared centers located around the suburbs.
Telecommuting is analogous to an exercise program. Some people are able to maintain a consistent workout program in their home with home equipment. Others can not maintain their routine unless they have a place to go (a gym), which gets them out of the house and around other people. Telecommuting works the same way. Some workers are very efficient working out of their home. Others will do better from a remote office located down the street, but outside the home.
Remote Office Centers are fairly new, but they can be found in many cities. There is a free web site that lists Remote Office Centers by city:
http://www.remoteofficecenters.com
The "Other Side" of Telecommuting and potential cost savings
It is always great to see successful companies who are proud of their stance on Remote Work and willing to share it with others. Many companies I have met don't advertise that they allow Telecommuting or are just too stubborn or scared to implement it. With all of the advances in technology, it's a wonder why more companies aren't embracing Remote Work? I have a theory on this though, my theory is that it is because they are afraid of "The other side." This "other side" I refer to is the Human Component.
It's easy to invest in Technology and generally easy to address problems with the technology. What isn't easy to predict and often overlooked in regards to investments, are the people actually doing the Remote Work! So many companies say they allow Telecommuting, but leave it up to the individual managers to determine the guidelines. The results of which are always different policies, procedures, requirements, and management practices for each department and specific manager. This leads to not only huge inefficiencies, but also massive LEGAL RAMIFICATIONS, if every manager has a different set of rules, there are bound to be inconsistencies and overlooked guidelines.
I always suggest for companies to first look at the jobs and people who will be working remotely. What is going to change for these employees? How will Remote Work affect their pay, workload, job advancement, bonuses, time, and many other issues. Technology is of course essential to making all this happen, but shouldn’t be the main investment. If you want Remote Work or Telecommuting to work for you, invest in the people first and build your technology strategy around them. Often times you may not need as large of an investment as once thought. For more informatin check out www.freetelecommutingpolicy.com
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