#1 Top 5 Stories of 2011 - Working at Home Has Growth Potential

By Margaret Hansen, JobsInME.com

Whether you're at home, in an airport or under the Tuscan sun with a laptop, telecommuting has not only skyrocketed into possibility, its potential for growth is enormous.

According to a recent study [PDF] by the Telework Research Network (TRN), 45 percent of the U.S. workforce holds a job that is compatible with at least part-time telework, yet only 2.3 percent of the workforce considers home their primary place of work - a sizable gap.

According to Telework 2011: A WorldatWork Special Report [PDF], while most companies offer telework options (37 percent formally, 60 percent informally depending on department/manager), only 28 percent announce the telework benefit to new recruits, which might partially explain the gap in the number of potential vs. actual telecommuters: workers just aren't aware of this offering.

Is It Right for You?

The University System of Georgia has come out with a handy assessment [PDF] of what's needed from you, your job and your workspace in order to telecommute well.

Some other WorldatWork trends about telecommuters:

Nearly half telecommute almost every day
They consist of slightly more men (56 percent) than women (44 percent)
Their median age is 40
44 percent are college grads

Tasks That Can Be Remote

According to the TRN, more than 70 percent of the work-at-home population holds management, professional, sales, and office jobs. The USG list, although not all-inclusive, includes tasks that could be performed away from a central office:

Analysis
Auditing
Batch work
Calculating
Data entry
Design work
Dictating
Drafting
Editing
Evaluations
Field visits
Graphics
Project management
Reading
Record keeping
Reports
Research
Telephoning
Word processing
Writing

If your job or skill set includes some of these tasks in addition to others that require your physical presence in a company office, perhaps a part-time telecommute option would work well.

What's in It for Companies?

The WorldatWork study, in conjunction with Dieringer Research Group, Inc., noted that employers like to offer remote work options because they:

Support business continuity strategy
Reduce real estate costs
Attract talent from wider labor pools
Improve employee engagement/satisfaction/retention
Are seen as a benefit or reward, as opposed to a "right"

Telework can also be used by companies to tap into disabled candidate pools.

Why Telecommute?

Whether you're wishing to decrease your carbon footprint, balance personal responsibilities with work or just work more productively with fewer interruptions, there seems to be a growing interest in telecommuting.