Several of us at AltamontCowork were interviewed for this report and video.  Check it out!  Coworking rocks and is the future of work!  :-)

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Ready?  You sure?

OK….

It ain’t rocket science…..do it.  DUH. 

• Give your employee a task with a deadline.
• Let them work on it anyplace, anytime.
• Remotely connect with them, everyday if you have to, via any of the millions of ways you can connect in 2011 (video, voice, data).
• When the deadline rolls around, ask this question:  ”Is the task complete?”
• If the answer is “Yes”…you have successfully implemented a telecommuting program.   On to the next task.
• If the answer is “No”….then that employee failed (or you did) try the same with another employee.
• Oh yeah…set up a really nice retirement package for the Old Fashioned Bosses (OFB) who insist that people are not working unless they are seen by the OFB, and make them take it.  Get them out of the way…

COMPANIES:  If you are spending thousands and thousands of dollars studying telecommuting, developing rules and regulations for a program, setting up milestones, goals, and tests, etc…..YOU ARE WASTING YOUR MONEY.

Follow my rules…it’s cheaper.    

Telecommuting = Coworking = Telework

This article was published in the Tracy Press

Go here to read Part 3.

Go here to read Part 2.

Go here to read Part 1.

READ MY 2011 UPDATE FIRST:  Free Telecommuting Advice

Telecommuting: Crossing the Threshold to Work, Part 4

Gas is nearly $4.00 a gallon.  Traffic is horrendous.  Now is the perfect time to start telecommuting.

You probably have all the technology you need:  A telephone, a computer with all the required applications, and Internet connectivity.In the old days, putting all this together was difficult.  Not anymore.  Now everyone can be fully connected 24×7.

The options for telecommute locations have also expanded.  In the old days, you worked at home.  Period.  Now you can work from home, the airport, the train, a hotel, Barnes & Noble, Starbucks, McDonalds, or from a TeleWork Center (which Tracy does not have..….yet).  Cell phones, text messaging, instant messaging (IM), email, and the availability of WiFi hot spots make staying connected a snap.

In addition, advanced applications are now available that allow you to communicate with your remote colleagues as easy as if you were in the same physical location.

You can share your computer, give a presentation, or work interactively on any document, drawing, or program with products and services such as WebEx (www.webex.com), Glance (www.glance.net), GoToMeeting (www.gotomeeting.com).  There are many more but I need to keep this article within 500 words.  I have used Glance and WebEx (and evaluated WebEx on TelBitConsulting.com).  They are great.

If your boss is an OFB (old fashioned boss) and wants to “see the whites of your eyes”, you can videoconference.  Free videoconferencing is available….. all you need is a web cam.ooVoo is one such service (www.ooVoo.com) that allows you to meet with several of your colleagues, exchange files, and chat via IM.  See the picture of yours truly talking with friends in Chicago and Paris.

Other, standards-based (H.323 over the Internet), videoconferencing (VC) products for your desktop or laptop computerinclude Mirial Softphone (www.mirial.com ) and Polycom PVX (www.polycom.com) .  I have tested videoconferencing from McDonalds, Barnes & Noble, and Starbucks.It works great!  Of course there are more advanced (and expensive) VC products for your home or office (using your DSL or cable Internet connection) from vendors such as Polycom, Tandberg (www.tandbergusa.com), Lifesize (www.lifesize.com ), and, the ubiquitous, Cisco (www.cisco.com).  No more excuses that if you are not seen you are not working….now you can be seen.

The old concept of TeleWork Centers in your neighborhood never took off.  However, modern versions of this concept are popping up.  These centers provide (for a low monthly fee) WiFi access, videoconferencing,a conference room, and casual (or more formal) work areas for the commuter who wants to spend a day or two a week closer to home.  You may need a group to meet and work.  Rather than everyone meeting at Starbucks, a TeleWork Center may make more sense.

The world is changing.  Save gas, save money, save time, save the environment.  Stay connected and see your colleagues and boss (make sure they are working too!)….telecommute.

+++++++

NOTE:  It is interesting to read this in mid-2011.  When I wrote these articles, I did not have a clue what “Coworking” was.  Now I have been running AltamontCowork since May 1, 2009  :-)

This article originally published in the Tracy Press.

Go here to read Part 2.

Go here to read Part 1.

Go here to read Part 4.

READ MY 2011 UPDATE FIRST:  Free Telecommuting Advice

Telecommuting: Crossing the Threshold to Work, Part 3

Save money, time, and the environment, reduce traffic, increase productivity, and maintain business continuity.

As we have seen, telecommuting can have significant benefits for both the employee and employer. But not everyone is allowed to telecommute. Not every company has a telecommuting program. And I can see why.

Starting a telecommuting effort is probably the most complex issue in the telecommuting process. Every situation is different and every company, or management team, has its own culture, fears, and prejudices. Your management may be open to new ideas, or they may stifle anything that is new, or out of the norm.

That said, this article will not try to identify every area of possible concern, but, will give you a broad stroke overview of what it may take to start a telecommuting effort at your company and what you need to accomplish, at home, to start telecommuting.

Fundamental Ingredients

The fundamental management and employee ingredients to a successful telecommuting program can be summed up in three words: Trust, communicate, and quantify.

Without these, any telecommuting effort is doomed to fail.

Management must be able to trust their telecommuting employees and, conversely, the telecommuting employee should trust their manager. This includes trusting the employee to work when not in the office, and trusting management to fairly represent the telecommuting employee when it comes to their career and raises.

Management and the telecommuter must communicate effectively and often. Not every minute or every hour, but, on a regular basis. Part of that communication needs to include feedback from the telecommuter to management if they are feeling telecommuting is not working out, and from management to the telecommuter to help them smooth out any bumps in the road.

If telecommuting is not working, then both may agree to terminate and work together to fold the telecommuter back into the “normal” office work environment.

Before starting to telecommute, management and the telecommuter must agree to the specific goals and deadlines to be met. These can be any well defined, easily measureable, goals or tasks such as: number of sales per week, number of new clients per month, or meeting design deadlines. The manager and telecommuter can adjust these goals as appropriate and should regularly monitor and measure progress. If the goals are not being met, the manager works with the telecommuter to identify the problem and try to fix it. If the problem cannot be resolved the manager, per the agreement, can bring the telecommuter back into the office.

Qualities of the Telecommuter’s Manager

Before you get all involved and waste tons of money, read my Free Telecommuting Advice.

We have touched on the qualities of a good telecommuter, but, have not yet listed what would make a good manager of a telecommuter.

Simply put, the manager should possess many, if not all, of the following traits.

The manager should:

• be comfortable managing by results not by the physical presence of the employee.
• be organized and able to set reasonable deadlines for goals and tasks.
• be a good communicator.
• be trustworthy.
• want telecommuting to succeed.
• be flexible and willing to make adjustments if needed.

The manager is not a micro-manager, will not demand that the telecommuter be in constant contact or on IM (Instant Messaging) all the time, and does not expect perfection.

A manager who says “They are not working unless I see the whites of their eyes” would not make a good telecommuter manager (unless he meant by videoconferencing). By the way, that came from a conversation I had with someone in line at the Movie Theater in Tracy.

Formal or Informal

The telecommuting effort can be formal or informal. Either way, it is a good idea for the manager and the telecommuter to sit down together and generate a written agreement of what is expected.

This document will list the number of days to be spent telecommuting, what resources are available for equipment, deadlines, goals, and other productivity measures each expect. This document should be mutually agreeable to both, and both should agree to terminate telecommuting should it come to that.

In NO instance should a statement like this be part of the agreement: “The company can terminate telecommuting for no reason”. There has to be a reason. Both manager and telecommuter should agree to the terms and sign the agreement.

If the company is formally starting a telecommuting effort, a “Telecommuting Administrator” should be assigned. This person is then responsible for planning the breadth and depth of the telecommuting effort.

Some of the tasks include, but, are not limited to:

• Evangelizing telecommuting within the company
• Developing telecommuting guidelines, agreements, and training material
• Recruiting the assistance of Human Resources and the IT Department
• Recruiting and training supervisors and telecommuters
• Monitoring progress and results
• Providing timely information via a blog, newsletters, and / or email

Training is very important for both the manager and telecommuter. Each needs to understand what tasks are involved and what the “do’s and don’ts” are to make the experience the best it can be.

Preparing to Telecommute

As the telecommuter, you are in a position to prove that telecommuting is of benefit to everyone, not just you.

That means you should work extra hard to meet the goals and deadlines you and your manager put down on paper before you started, and you should strive, on your telecommuting days, to remain in close contact with your boss and your colleagues.

What do you need to do at home to prepare?

You should have a work location designated where you can spend eight, or more, hours per day. This location should include an ergonomically correct chair and desk, a computer with the firewall turned on, office productivity tools (document, spreadsheet, email, instant messaging), and antivirus software, a phone line and telephone (or a cell phone), sufficient lighting, office supplies, and an Internet connection.

You need to inform family members, and friends, that you are at work when you are at this location, and that you are not to be disturbed when you are there.

It is important to maintain a set schedule as if you were commuting to work. Get up at the same time everyday, and get ready the same way. Take a shower, get dressed (if you normally wear a tie to work, you can probably be more casual on telecommute days), and “commute” to your work location.

The only difference is that now your commute takes a second (about 5,400 times shorter than a normal 90 minute commute).

Avoid the temptation to work too hard. Take breaks (this is my problem….constant sitting without a break), take lunch, and quit at a reasonable time or quitting point. Turn off the computer, straighten up your desk, and “commute” back over the threshold to the family. Watch out for heavy traffic: two-year olds running back and forth, dog lying in the threshold, etc.

When you are working at home, avoid the temptation to eat too much. Many new telecommuters tend to gain weight. But, do, feel free to take the kids to school, pick them up, and run an errand or two during the day.

Remember….your “goals” are what drive you, not the fact that you are “present” at work. Stick to your goals, meet your deadlines, stay in contact, and everyone will be happy.

If you become lonely, seek out other telecommuters in Tracy and meet for lunch. Or virtually go to work with videoconferencing (Part 5).

Summary

Make sure you and your manager communicate well and have set up reasonable goals and deadlines. Telecommute!

This was also published in the Tracy Press (a long long time ago).

Go here to read Part 1.

Go here to read Part 3.

Go here to read Part 4.

READ MY 2011 UPDATE FIRST:  Free Telecommuting Advice

Part 2: Telecommuting wants you!

TeleWork vs Telecommuting

Since I co-wrote a Telecommuting Plan many years ago, a new term has appeared:TeleWork.Some experts argue that “telework” is more accurate than “telecommuting” since it describes the act of “working” while telecommuting emphasizes the act of “commuting”.That may be good for others, but, we live in and around Tracy, CA and the fact of the matter is: We commute.And we commute a lot.Sooooo, for this series, I believe the word “telecommute” is more accurate for our particular situation even though I may insert “telework” occasionally just to keep current.

Who can telecommute?

If your work day is typical of what was described in Part 1 of this series (that is, you spend most of the day on the phone, on the computer, designing or researching, or in meetings) you can telecommute one, two, or more days a week.

The ideal telecommuter is someone who can work independently and is not easily distracted by the need to wash clothes, mow the lawn, or play with the dog.For that person, the telecommute day can, productively, be used to think, to catch up on writing, to place calls to prospective clients, or “virtually” attend meetings anywhere in the world.

Where can you telecommute?

In the old days, a telecommuter had two choices of work location:home or a telecommute center.For various reasons, telecommute centers never really took off, so the vast majority of original telecommuters worked from home using a telephone and a yellow pad.Yeah, the concept of telecommuting has been around a long time.

These days, technology is such that with a cell phone, a laptop computer, and Wi-Fi Internet connections a person can telecommute effectively and fully from virtually anywhere:Hotels, restaurants, airport, train, or the wilds of Montana.In Tracy, I have connected to the Internet, via excellent Wi-Fi connections, at McDonalds, Barnes & Noble, and Starbucks.In fact, since I have been working full-time at home, there have been times when a trip to Barnes & Noble to work has been a sanity/marriage saver.

Telecommuting Benefits

Although many of the benefits listed below focus on the telecommuter (you!), please don’t misunderstand:Telecommuting should not be thought of as a privilege solely for the employee.Instead it should be considered an alternate work environment that has significant benefits for BOTH the employee and the employer.

Save money

One of the most easily definable cost savings for the telecommuter is the money you can save on gas.Since gas prices are being manipulated to higher and higher prices, the less you drive your car, the more you save.

Let’s look at some typical gas costs and savings.

My friend, Clint Wadsworth, drives everyday from Manteca to Berkeley.Clint’s drive is about 150 miles per day round trip.He drives his pickup truck which gets about 15 miles per gallon (not atypical for a commuter with an SUV).At the time of this writing, Chevron, off of 205, was selling gas at about $3.25 per gallon.

Let’s do some calculations (get your calculator out and check my math) based on Clint’s typical work week (By the way, Clint has a job that qualifies him to telecommute):

1. 150 miles per day x 5 days = 750 miles driven to and from work per week.
2. 750 miles/15 miles per gallon = 50 gallons of gas consumed per week.
3. 50 gallons x $3.25 per gallon = $162.50 for gas per week (or about $8125 per year assuming a 50 week work year). Yikes!

If Clint were to telecommute one day a week he would save $32.50 per week ($162.50/5) or about (again assuming a 50 week work schedule) $1625.00 saved per year.If he were to telecommute 2 days a week, double the savings to $3250.00 per year. That works out to a monthly savings of about $135 to $270 per month.That is quite a chunk of change if you were to invest that in an IRA rather than global warming.

Save time

Looking at an even more valuable commodity, Clint can save time by telecommuting.Clint tells me that he takes about 1.5 hours getting to work and another 1.5 hours getting home.He does this by starting his day at 4 AM and leaving work at 2 PM.If he left during the height of rush hour, that time could easily stretch to 2 hours or more.Believe me, I know.

Using his 1.5 hour estimate, the time Clint saves in transit by telecommuting one day a week is about three hours per week, or 150 hours per year.150 hours means that six full days are now available for Clint to be with his family, or to devote extra time working for his boss.If he were to telecommute two days a week, that saving would double to 300 hours per year, or 12 full days.A bit of his life regained.

Over the course of 20 years, Clint regains 3000 to 6000 hours of his life and saves $32,500 to $65,000 in gas (assuming $3.25 is the max price, and we all know that ain’t gonna happen). Imagine how much you could save by telecommuting three or four days a week, or for the whole week!

Other benefits

The above are just the “hard” calculations.What about the “soft” benefits?How often do you find yourself needlessly passing a slower vehicle and cursing at them (and they back at you)?How often do you find yourself in gridlock and stressed to the max because you are going to be late for work or a meeting?How many accidents happen in a typical day on 205 or 580?One or two days a week telecommuting reduces the risks and studies have shown that a telecommuter is less stressed, happier, and works harder.

That is where your employer reaps the benefits, and more:

1. Employee productivity increases
2. Employee satisfaction is higher
3. Employee retention is higher
4. Office space is freed up, as are parking spaces (Berkeley Lab, where Clint works, has an acute parking problem)
5. The organization can save money on utilities
6. The employer can hire qualified people regardless of where they live
7. The organization can begin to meet anygreen initiative goals they may be striving for

From a state and local government perspective, fewer cars on the road means there is less need to build, or expand, roads.Fewer cars being started and driven means less pollution in the air which means a better environment and a happier Al Gore. Telecommuters may go out to lunch near home helping to contribute to Tracy’s local economy.

Long range pessimists are encouraging telecommuting in the unfortunate event something happens again that prevents people from getting together in a single workplace.

1. The events on 9/11 decimated entire companies.Because of that day, many companies now understand the benefit of geographically dispersing employees.It is very hard for terrorism to reach everyone when they are scattered.Personal note: The Internet is very robust. That September morning I worked (from home) with folks at Columbia University in NYC to provide them with Internet-based telephony and videoconferencing via our gateway in Berkeley. Columbia was on-line and operational when others were down.
2. If a pandemic like the avian flu develops (and many experts predict it will) then working from home allows the company to stay afloat, and governments to keep running, while saving lives by limiting the spread of the virus.

What are the downsides?

From the employees’ perspective, there is the fear that their career potential will be negatively impacted if they are away from the office. Unfortunately, this may be a valid concern (see below). They also fear isolation and can miss the camaraderie at work (this is why telecommuting 1 to 2 days a week is a nice balanced approach to start).

Personal Note: When I was telecommuting, there were times when I did get a bit lonely, and I am the type of person who enjoys being alone.However, thanks to videoconferencing, when the lonely bug struck, I simply connected by video to the office. I was “virtually” there.I could hear the cubicle chatter and see people walk by my cube.Occasionally someone would wave to me, or come into the cubicle to chat.Not to get too far ahead of myself, but, it is very easy to set up a videoconferencing system by the watercooler (a virtual watercooler), or in a break room, to encourage interaction with remote personnel.

From the employer’s perspective, the OFB, old fashioned boss, (many of who are still working and teaching young future bosses (YFB) the same values) wants to see their employees “hard at work” in their cubicle.The OFB thinks that if an employee is not there, they are not working.The OFB can also fear the loss of control over the employees work.They like to have their employees close at hand. Word to YFB’s:Telecommuting is good!

There may be costs involved such as:providing support, providing computer and other equipment, or paying for Internet connectivity.There is also the need to develop, and deliver, training to both the employee and employer and the OFB or YFB must work with the employee to set up specific goals to measure the telecommuters’ effectiveness.

In Part 3, we will take a look at what the employer and employee must do to make the telecommuting experience a positive one.

Until then, give telecommuting a try, stay home one day and work!

YIKES!  That title irritates the living daylights out of me….

“Should Your Company ALLOW Telecommuting?”  I ran across an article today with that title.

How WRONG is that?  Companies should ENCOURAGE telecommuting because:

1. It increases employee productivity.

2. It helps companies meet GREEN initiatives.

3. Telecommuting (or coworking) employees are HAPPIER employees.

4. Telecommuting saves the EMPLOYEE time and money (and damn it…companies should CARE about their employees).

5. It is GOOD for both the EMPLOYER and EMPLOYEE…not just a perk for the employee.  Geeezz..

Get with the program people….ALLOWING telecommuting is backwards thinking, and WRONG…

Since coworking is GREEN, I will concentrate on blogs talking about telecommuting, coworking, and the environment.

Watch it in 240p if it is breaking up (old trailer)

To kick it off, watch the above video by Leonardo DiCaprio….it is simply awesome and should help set the tone for future blog posts.

Get off the roads!  Work remotely….save time, save money, save gas, save the environment, and beccome more productive.  DUH….it’s 2011…tell your OFB (Old Fashioned Boss to RETIRE!).

Watch this blog for more posts soon (minutes rather than days!).

Enjoy.

by Mike Pihlman
Published in Applied Business teleCommunications “View of the Desktop” Newsletter, in August 1995.

If you are old enuf, Applied Business teleCommunications were the folks who put on “TeleCon” at the time the worlds largest conference on videoconferencing, audioconferencing and collaboration.

The year is 2004 and you are video-commuting from your beach front home in Malibu as part of Applied Business teleCommunications (ABC) Virtual Work Program.

7:45 AM. You just came in from your run on the beach. After showering, you put on your sweatsuit and start to enjoy your first mug of coffee as you sit down at your computer to check your video, voice, and electronic mail. You see that there will be a virtual meeting of the ABC staff at 10:00 AM to discuss the presentation you are giving at 1 PM to dignitaries at the National Press Conference in Washington D.C. At noon you and your friend of 15 years, who now lives in Hawaii, will be getting together for virtual lunch. At 2 PM, you are planning to connect to ABC’s digital library to conduct research on holographic videoconferencing using Pacific Bell’s new switched terabit telephone service.

8:35 AM: You check the interactive New York Times to catch up on the news. One article in particular catches your eye. It details the profitable relationship ABC and the cites in the Tri-Valley area have established because of “virtual work”. Using the virtual work program, the magazine and the cities have collaborated to bring millions of ‘Jobs” to the Livermore Valley, and have developed the worlds first 10 mile long walk-thru mall-and superconducting people carrier-on an abandoned stretch of 1-580. The Tri-Valley area is now called “Desktop Valley” and the number of people” virtually working” in the region outnumber those who live there by 10,000 fold. There is no air pollution and traffic jams are limited to occasional slow downs on the ATM 500 Gbps backbone.

9:00 AM: Petting your dog, you decide that it’s time to see how things are going at the “office”. You put on your work shirt, comb your hair, open the shutter on your camera, and drag your icon into the “Office” icon on your computer. By doing this, you
electronically walk the halls of your office and as you “peek” into the offices you “see” who’s in and who’s not in HDTV quality video on your computer screen.  Suddenly you “bump” into your supervisor who also happens to be checking to see who is “in”. You both stop to chat for awhile and you notice her eyes are a bit bloodshot. She tells you she stayed up late last night to watch the Rolling Stones 40th anniversary concert on the Internet. Not seeing much action in the hallway, you decide to move your icon to the “virtual watercooler” and wait to see who else shows up. After all, this is where your team really gets most of it’s work done. While you are waiting, you access CNN to catch up on the latest news and put the finishing touches on your presentation.

9:30 AM: Your friend shows up at the “virtual watercooler”. You chat with her for a while and “show” her the latest version of your presentation, she makes a few changes and you decide to go back to your office to practice your speech.

9:40 AM: You have finished practicing your presentation. Your computer “knocks” and you drag the icon of your secretary-who lives in New York-into your office icon. He discusses your physical trip to Chicago, but, has forgotten how to make reservations on the only airline still in existence-”Chat with Pat”. You both “sit down” to figure this out together. After you make the arrangements, you call up the airline for directions to the airport, after all it has been 5 years since you have been there so you need to be refreshed on how to find the airport. They send you a map, and a video showing a virtual car drive from your house to the long term parking lot which is directly adjacent to the terminal building. You call your travel agent to reserve a car at your destination, and to see some of the hotels in the area. One hotel has a particularly nice exercise room and pool so you decide to book a room there. You have no problem
getting a physical room, but all of the virtual rooms are booked. The travel agent sends you your ticket and bar-coded car key, for the laser keylock system, which you promptly print out.

10:05 AM: You drag your icon into your workplace’s “meeting room” icon. As always you are a little late, so everyone looks at their computer clocks, in unison, to give you a hard time. Your partner is there from Kauai, your boss is there from Idaho, both of your team members from Wisconsin are there and there is even a live person in the meeting room who lives in Livermore. Her house is being painted today. You show them your presentation, and they make some minor changes. Everyone saves the presentation on their computers and you save the meeting video and audio for storage on the groups CD-ROM. Before, the meeting ends, you “give” everyone the article you read this morning in the Interactive New York Times.

Noon: You anxiously “knock” on your friends door and she opens her shutter. You have set  up a “virtual Casa Orozco table” complete with “beer and chips”. She shows you the video of her new house and then brings her handheld computer outside-using a 45
Mbps wireless video connection-and shows you around the house and grounds. She happens to be right on the beach and, in fact, heads there so she can eat lunch at the beach. The beach is very wide with pure fine sand, crystal clear blue water, and gently swaying palm trees. A background of green mountains shows you why she moved to “paradise” so many years ago. Renee tells you that the beach is the one used in the movie “South Pacific”. After lunch you decide to get together again next Thursday, but this time, you’ll be on your beach in Malibu.

12:45 PM: You put on your slippers, your “suit” top, and drag your icon into the “National Press Conference meeting room” icon. You see the audience as they are entering the auditorium, and you see your fellow dais mates. You sit and chat with them until it is time for the meeting to start. You give your presentation and everyone applauds your pioneering efforts. Glad to be “out of there”, you decide
to take a virtual driving tour of the U.S.A on your way back “home”. You select the southem route which brings you thru Albuquerque where you decide to “visit” your friend Cindy and her daughter Erika. In a fit of nostalgia you take Route 66 to California while listening to Asleep at the Wheel sing “Route 66″.

2 PM: You log into the digital library for some interesting research into holographic videoconferencing. You plan on implementing this at ABC as soon as the new terabit circuit is installed in your house. Should be week or two.

6 PM: You “leave” your office and decide to watch Monday night football. You access the direct satellite feed from your computer and display the video on the big screen in the family room. You can finally relax, change your shirt and sit down for a relaxing evening with Joe Montana and his broadcasting crew of Deion Sanders and George Foreman (the oldest heavyweight champion at 55 years of age).

6:30 PM: Suddenly in the corner of your screen is your daughter at the University of Kansas. She is having a problem with her homework and is calling to see if you can help. You interactively work with her from your remote control unit. After you are done, she shows you her new dorm room in McCollum Hall and you meet one of her “classmates”. You are surprised to find out the he is from the same town in New York that you were bom in …. small world. Right then and there you decide that you have to make the time to access the latest multimedia clip from KU and see what changes they have made-with all that money from your alumni credit card-in the past ten years. It’s been a long time since you’ve done your virtual “Memorial Run” through campus. Maybe tomorrow but right now.

6:55 PM: Back to the football game

Coworking has been gathering momentum in the past year or two.  As more and more coworking locations are established, more people learn what it is, there is more exposure, then more people learn about it……  That snowball effect is at it’s very early stages, but, in a year, or two, the awareness of coworking will increase exponentially.

It’s 2010 Folks

Where does a person work when they are not commuting to a centrally located office that took 2 hours to get to…..in traffic?

Well….they can work at home, at a cafe, at the airport, in a hotel, in an executive office, virtual office, or at a coworking location.  Anywhere, anytime, anyone.

The mobile workforce has arrived!  Well, it CAN arrive.  :-)

For those small businesses, freelancers, independents (and the rare commuter) what are some options for “office space”?  Lets take a quick look at the differences between two of the options:  a virtual office and coworking.  Remember I run a coworking location…so I am just a bit jaded, but, as a wannabe journalist…I’ll try my objective hat on.

Really Quickly

A Virtual Office is a traditional office environment….the only difference being a virtual office is shared and limited.  But it follows the traditional way of thinking for an “office”:  Secretary/Receptionist, phone, desk, file cabinets, 10 x 10 office with a door.

Coworking is a radically new way to work in a shared community.   Work in an open space, use private rooms for meetings or phone calls, use your own cell phone, and do your own work…all of it.  In most cases….your entire work life is your laptop or other mobile device.

Please keep this in mind as you read the following…..This just a guideline, places vary in what they offer, so the appropriate changes may be to be taken into account:

Receptionist:

• Virtual Office yes
• Coworking no (who needs their cell phone answered?)

Telephone Service:

• Virtual Office yes
• Coworking probably not (cell phones, Google Voice…duh)

Fax:

• Virtual Office yes
• Coworking many do, some don’t (old fashioned anyway…get with the future!)  :-)

Private Office with a desk:

• Virtual Office yes
• Coworking some yes, some no

High class fancy digs:

• Virtual Office probably (a great place to show off your wealth and status)
• Coworking many, but they tend to stress casual functionality.

Conference Room:

• Virtual Office yes (mostly for extra cost)
• Coworking most (mostly free with membership)

Access to Office:

• Virtual Office limited number of days / month
• Coworking unlimited and/or  limited membership options per month

Community:

• Virtual Office no (close your door and work by yourself)
• Coworking yes (collaborate, do things together, birthday parties, help with problems….evening gatherings, meetings, seminars, classes…..!)

Free WiFi:

• Virtual Office probably not
• Coworking yes (it is ingrained in the coworking culture)

Free Coffee:

• Virtual Office probably not
• Coworking yes (again this is ingrained in the coworking culture)

Month by Month rentals:

• Virtual Office probably not, but, some are moving towards this
• Coworking probably yes, but other options available

Monthly Cost Example (valid as of Nov 17, 2010):

Most Office Hours:

Virtual Office in Tracy, CA (from their web site): 40 hours in office, with all the phones, mail, receptionist, etc:

$135 set up, $275 per month (12 months committed), $325 per month (3 months committed)

AltamontCowork: Unlimited time in office (24×7), you answer your own cell phone, printer/scanner, free coffee, free WiFi, free IT support, conference rooms are free, mail:

$150 per month, month by month, no set up fees.

Least Office Hours:

Virtual Office: 10 hours per month in office, $135 set up, $160 per month (12 month commit), $200 per month (3 month commit)

AltamontCowork: 24 x7 unlimited hours in the office,  $150 per month, no set up fees, month-by-month.

Membership:

• Virtual Office no (it’s an office….business….you rent…period)
• Coworking yes (it’s a community of like minded people working, collaborating,  and having fun, it’s from the heart)

Typical Virtual Office in Tracy, CA (very nice)

AltamontCowork, Tracy, CA

Summary

Some people may need the features offered by a Virtual Office while some may fit better in a Coworking location.

A possible general rule:  If you work at a Cafe to get out of the house…you will like coworking.  If you are a high powered future executive needing to impress…a virtual office is for you!

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