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11 – 20 of over 1000
Article
Publication date: 1 May 2002

D.B. Ilozor and B.D. Ilozor

This paper reports findings on the significance of management communication strategies to telecommuting, based on a survey of telecommuters at IBM Australia. With increased…

1912

Abstract

This paper reports findings on the significance of management communication strategies to telecommuting, based on a survey of telecommuters at IBM Australia. With increased adoption of telecommuting, many strategies have been proffered to ensure that telecommuters have appreciable levels of job satisfaction. Low levels of job satisfaction can lead to unduly rapid employee turnover that is detrimental to business operation. The objective of this paper is to ascertain the perceptions of telecommuters at IBM Australia on a number of telecommuting practice measures, and to suggest how job satisfaction can be improved and maintained at high levels by giving greater attention to particular communication management strategies in Australia. Although the management communication strategies proffered in the literature appear to apply generally, this study concludes that a few aspects are distinctively applicable to the Australian environment. Those aspects should be specifically noted by those interested in benefiting from telecommuting practice.

Details

Logistics Information Management, vol. 15 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0957-6053

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 May 2006

Mardene Rosalee Carr

The paper seeks to show how telecommuting can be employed to advantage in the Jamaican library system.

Abstract

Purpose

The paper seeks to show how telecommuting can be employed to advantage in the Jamaican library system.

Design/methodology/approach

A questionnaire and a literature review were utilized in this research paper. The primary research tool was a 12‐question questionnaire that was administered to all levels of library staff across the island. Articles covered in the literature review ranged from 1988 to 2004. This range was used to give a general idea of telecommuting from early on to present day.

Findings

The paper finds that library staff all over Jamaica were interested in the concept of telecommuting.

Originality/value

The paper provides information as to the benefits of incorporating telecommuting into the Jamaican library system.

Details

The Electronic Library, vol. 24 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0264-0473

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 November 2013

Patricia Martinez and Carolina B. Gómez

This study aims to examine how the amount and type of flexibility in work schedule (flextime) and work location (telecommuting) may be related to receiving fewer training and…

1209

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine how the amount and type of flexibility in work schedule (flextime) and work location (telecommuting) may be related to receiving fewer training and development opportunities. Given that under flextime, employees remain at the work location, while under telecommuting employees are removed from the regular work site and social system, the paper expects that as employees have more telecommuting flexibility, they will receive fewer training opportunities, which in turn will be associated with more negative job attitudes and behaviors.

Design/methodology/approach

Participants (n=298) were recruited from a healthcare and a software development firm. Employees provided self-report ratings of their intentions to quit and supervisor supportiveness. Supervisors rated employees' citizenship behaviors and the flextime, telecommuting and training and development practices for the job positions.

Findings

As employees possess greater flexibility to telecommute, they received fewer training and development opportunities, while employees with greater work schedule flexibility (flextime) actually received more training opportunities. Additionally, the paper finds that training and development mediates the negative relationship between telecommuting flexibility and organizational citizenship behaviors. Thus, as employees had greater telecommuting flexibility, they exhibited lower levels of organization citizenship behaviors.

Research limitations/implications

This study provides evidence of how greater telecommuting flexibility that leads to decreased training and development opportunities may negatively influence employees' citizenship behaviors. The study also supports that flexibility to work away from the regular work location and not schedule flexibility, is the key antecedent. The findings suggest that supervisors should monitor the amount of training opportunities provided to employees with telecommuting flexibility.

Originality/value

This is one of the few studies to examine telecommuting flexibility: the extent to which employees can work at home and modify their schedule in order to do so. It is also one of the few studies to compare how work schedule and work location flexibility may be differentially related to training and development. The paper examines the potential trade-offs between this flexibility and receiving fewer training and development opportunities.

Details

Management Research: The Journal of the Iberoamerican Academy of Management, vol. 11 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1536-5433

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 28 December 2021

Mohd Tariq Jamal, Imran Anwar and Nawab Ali Khan

Based on self-determination theory (SDT), the present study aims to assess the effect of managerial (manager trust and support), work (job autonomy) and individual (intrinsic…

1575

Abstract

Purpose

Based on self-determination theory (SDT), the present study aims to assess the effect of managerial (manager trust and support), work (job autonomy) and individual (intrinsic motivation) characteristics on job performance of telecommuters in a pre- and post-coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak period and is further studied longitudinally after six months of continued mandatory telecommuting.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected from information technology (IT) sector employees in three phases and model fitness, reliability and validity of the data for all three phases were assessed through CFA models, while the hypotheses were tested through path analysis.

Findings

Perceived manager trust and support increases job performance and the effect strengthens with an increase in telecommuting extent. Job autonomy had similar effects with the exception that employees did not enjoy autonomy when mandatory telecommuting arrangement was initially introduced. Lastly, intrinsic motivation fades away as employees continue to work permanently from their homes.

Practical implications

Permanent full-time telecommuting is expected to continue for the unforeseeable future; the present study suggests that while ensuring increased trust, support and job autonomy to employees, managers must also ensure that employees do not feel professionally isolated and attempt to keep individuals intrinsically motivated.

Originality/value

The authors assess the effect of managerial (manager trust and support), work (job autonomy) and individual (intrinsic motivation) characteristics on job performance under three different types of telecommuting arrangements (voluntary part-time, mandatory full-time and continued mandatory full-time) by collecting data in three different time frames from the same individuals.

Details

International Journal of Manpower, vol. 43 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7720

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 January 2022

Ramin Bashir Khodaparasti and Hooshmand Bagheri Garbollagh

Telecommuting can reduce traffic congestion, energy consumption, prevalence and a death toll of COVID-19 among employees due to less transportation and fewer physical contacts…

Abstract

Purpose

Telecommuting can reduce traffic congestion, energy consumption, prevalence and a death toll of COVID-19 among employees due to less transportation and fewer physical contacts among employees, on the one hand, and efficiently develop their use of information and communications technology, on the other hand. In this regard, the present study aims to explore antecedents and consequences of telecommuting in public organizations.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used a descriptive survey method to collect data. The statistical population includes all employees of government organizations in West Azerbaijan province in 2020, which according to the collected information, their number is equal to 63,079 employees. Based on Cochran's formula, a sample size of 686 people was obtained; stratified random sampling was used to select sampling. The process of calculating the sample volume was such that after referring to the preliminary sample and processing the collected data, the variance of the given answers was approximately 0.446. After obtaining the variance of the data, assuming a maximum acceptable error of 5% and a significance level of 0.05, the Cochran's formula calculated the sample size to be 686 people. In order to collect and measure data for the study, a standard questionnaire and the collected data were analyzed using structural equation modeling.

Findings

Findings indicate that there is no meaningful relationship between the employees' physical job conditions or the quality of their life with telecommuting and that telecommuting does not have a significant effect on their life. However, job burnout, training and telecommuting experience have a significant positive effect on telecommuting, which in turn has a positive and significant effect on job security, job flexibility, organizational performance and overall productivity of employees.

Research limitations/implications

This research is a cross-sectional study, and its data have been collected in a certain period of time, while longitudinal research can provide a richer result. Future research can benefit from the impact of employee isolation and telecommuter organizational commitment.

Originality/value

This study hopes to contribute to the increase of the scientific knowledge in the telecommuting field and to allow organizations to rethink the telecommuting strategies to optimize resources and costs and to improve the organization's productivity without harming the quality of life and well-being of their workers.

Details

Kybernetes, vol. 52 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 April 2002

Itzhak Harpaz

The phenomenon of telecommuting has implications for individuals and organizations, and society generally. Examines the advantages and disadvantages of telecommuting to the…

22400

Abstract

The phenomenon of telecommuting has implications for individuals and organizations, and society generally. Examines the advantages and disadvantages of telecommuting to the parties involved and affected by it. Key advantages to individuals are increased autonomy and flexibility; to organizations, increased human resource capacity and savings in direct expenses; and to society, a reduction in environmental damage, solutions for special‐needs populations, and savings in infrastructure and energy. Advantages are weighed against disadvantages: to individuals, possible sense of isolation, lack of separation between work and home; to organizations, costs involved in transition to new work methods, training, and damage to commitment and identification with the organization; finally, society is faced with a danger of creating detached individuals. Discusses implications of the suitability of individuals to telecommuting.

Details

Work Study, vol. 51 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0043-8022

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 22 February 2021

Mohd Tariq Jamal, Imran Anwar, Nawab Ali Khan and Imran Saleem

A sudden shift of work from the office to home amid global lockdown demands exploration of factors that facilitate or obstruct remote working and their impact on practical and…

4511

Abstract

Purpose

A sudden shift of work from the office to home amid global lockdown demands exploration of factors that facilitate or obstruct remote working and their impact on practical and psychological outcomes for the employee when individual mandatorily telecommutes full-time with no prior experience of the same. Based on job demands and resources model (JD-R), the present study explores the role of certain job demands and resources on negative and positive outcomes through mediating role of strain and well-being, respectively.

Design/methodology/approach

A data sample of 371 IT sector employees was collected and confirmatory factor analysis model was run to assess the model fit indices, convergent and divergent validities of the data. While proposed hypotheses of the study were tested using structural equations modeling (SEM) technique.

Findings

It was found that workload pressure, task interdependence, professional isolation and family interference in work lead to exhaustion and further stress, whereas the presence of autonomy and schedule flexibility and sufficient technology resources improve employee work-life balance and further better productivity and performance and job satisfaction. Improved well-being was also found to reduce stress for full-time telecommuters.

Practical implications

This study provides implications that will help in doing away with exhaustion and stress for employees and ensure business continuity in emergencies like COVID-19 pandemic.

Originality/value

There are no past instances of mandatory full-time telecommuting arrangement by organizations, and researchers never had the opportunity to study it. This research, based on the JD-R model provides for the first time empirical insights into the experiences of mandatory full-time telecommuting during COVID-19 induced lockdown.

Details

Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Administration, vol. 13 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1757-4323

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 7 October 2020

Rocco Palumbo

The disruptions brought by COVID-19 pandemic compelled a large part of public sector employees to remotely work from home. Home-based teleworking ensured the continuity of the…

27199

Abstract

Purpose

The disruptions brought by COVID-19 pandemic compelled a large part of public sector employees to remotely work from home. Home-based teleworking ensured the continuity of the provision of public services, reducing disruptions brought by the pandemic. However, little is known about the implications of telecommuting from home on the ability of remote employees to manage the work-life interplay. The article adopts a retrospective approach, investigating data provided by the sixth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) to shed lights into this timely topic.

Design/methodology/approach

An empirical, quantitative research design was crafted. On the one hand, the direct effects of telecommuting from home on work-life balance were investigated. On the other hand, work engagement and perceived work-related fatigue were included in the empirical analysis as mediating variables which intervene in the relationship between telecommuting from home and work-life balance.

Findings

Home-based telecommuting negatively affected the work-life balance of public servants. Employees who remotely worked from home suffered from increased work-to-life and life-to-work conflicts. Telecommuting from home triggered greater work-related fatigue, which worsened the perceived work-life balance. Work engagement positively mediated the negative effects of working from home on work-life balance.

Practical implications

Telecommuting from home has side effects on the ability of remote workers to handle the interplay between work-related commitments and daily life activities. This comes from the overlapping between private life and work, which leads to greater contamination of personal concerns and work duties. Work engagement lessens the perceptions of work-life unbalance. The increased work-related fatigue triggered by remote working may produce a physical and emotional exhaustion of home-based teleworkers.

Originality/value

The article investigates the side effects of remotely working from home on work-life balance, stressing the mediating role of work engagement and work-related fatigue.

Details

International Journal of Public Sector Management, vol. 33 no. 6/7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3558

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 2001

Margaret Tan‐Solano and Brian H. Kleiner

Introduces the concept of telecommuting before discussing the benefits of the process. Outlines the negative effect and then considers the legal implications. Discusses the…

2627

Abstract

Introduces the concept of telecommuting before discussing the benefits of the process. Outlines the negative effect and then considers the legal implications. Discusses the considerations required when setting up a telecommuting programme. Concludes that telework must be an integral part of any organization’s management strategy in the twenty‐first century and will play an important role in helping increase output, reduce costs and address growing concerns of work and family life.

Details

Management Research News, vol. 24 no. 3/4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0140-9174

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 August 2003

Mahmoud M. Watad and Peter C. Will

Telecommuting programs transform communication patterns, performance management, corporate culture, and potentially the work itself. This study addresses middle managers’ views…

3352

Abstract

Telecommuting programs transform communication patterns, performance management, corporate culture, and potentially the work itself. This study addresses middle managers’ views concerning the introduction of telecommuting programs in their organizations. Middle management views are important, because telecommuting directly impacts their positions, and their support is vital to ensure its successful implementation. The findings indicate that the majority of managers perceived cultural change as the most difficult issue to resolve when introducing a telecommuting program.

Details

Business Process Management Journal, vol. 9 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-7154

Keywords

11 – 20 of over 1000