Sushila,

Nice job.  This topic has been kicked around quite a bit at my workplace over the past several years.  Unfortunately, executive management feels like they can't control us if they can't see us, and so far has a strict prohibition on working from home.  This is a shame I think, and I believe they would see an increase in productivity from us if they changed their policy.  I would estimate that if permitted, I could work from home at least 2 to 3 days per week with no negative impact on my projects.  It's unfortunate that we've gone from a project based to a task based workforce and I put the blame for this squarely on the shoulders of upper management. 

Computer World recently published their annual 'Top 100 Places to Work in IT' (my comany wasn't in there ) and they found that the top three concerns of IT workers were training, technology, and flexible scheduling. 

Recently my group was asked to send feed back regarding an employee survey held last year and one of my team mates sent the following example in an effort to promote telecommuting and flex scheduling: 

Quote:

"This is the Federal Government's plan (my mother works for EPA) :

25% of staff have off every other Friday

25% of staff have off every other Monday

25% of staff have off every other Friday (next weekend)

25% of staff have off every other Monday (next weekend)

Everyone works 8 nine-hour days, 1 eight-hour day per two-week period.

Benefits -

-10% decrease in commuting time/costs

-Fewer cars on the road

-Less fuel consumed

-Very little impact to company                                                              -Fewer unscheduled personal leave days

-Every other weekend is a 3-day weekend

-Abililty to focus without interruption on project-oriented work

Potential benefits of telecommuting -

-Fewer PC's needed - equipment could be shared by I.S. employees who telecommute at different times

-Less cubicle/parking garage space needed 

-With VONAGE VOIP residential phone service, long-distance and phone-forwarding costs disappear

-Dramatically lower gasoline/automobile/Insurance costs, saving employees thousands of dollars per year"

All are interesting points and potential benefits.  And many of these same benefits could be realized if employees were permitted to work from home.  Yet management still doesn't get it.  Hopefully articles like yours and the positive impacts on companies that have implemented telecommuting will make others eventually see the light.