http://www.egeniq.cominfo@egeniq.com

@egeniq

Day Camp 4 Developers 2 - March 5th, 2011Ivo Jansch

The Business CaseFor Telecommuting

About Egeniq

‣Startup‣Mobile‣Geeks‣Distributed‣Lean

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About Ivo

‣Enterprenerd‣Author‣Developer‣@ijansch

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Traffic Jams

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Congestion Statistics

Bloomberg January 2011 Report:‣ Traffic congestion cost the U.S. $114.8 billion in time

and fuel in 2009

‣ Congestion in 2009 wasted 28 gallons of fuel per commuter

‣ Chicago and Washington tied for the most congested urban area with commuters delayed by 70 hours a year on average

Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-01-20/traffic-jams-cost-u-s-114-8-billion-in-time-fuel-in-09-institute-says.html

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Quick Win

If every office worker will work from home just one day a week, most countries would no

longer have a congestion problem.

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Telecommuting Statistics

‣40% of working population could work from home (at least part time)‣2% considered home primary work place

(2008 number)‣13% occasionally telecommuted‣Telecommuter numbers expected to grow

33% in the next 3 years (private sector)Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telecommuting

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The Bottom LineSavings and Costs when telecommuting

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Telecommuting Direct Savings

‣Office Space‣Office Supplies‣Travel (time and money)‣Utility Bill

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Telecommuting Direct Costs

‣Home office supplies‣Communication cost (phonebills, internet)

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Telecommuting Indirect Savings

‣Well-rested staff = more productive staff‣Happier staff = more productive staff‣Larger talent pool = more skilled staff‣Less congestions = better economy

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Telecommuting Indirect Cost

‣Communication Efficiency Loss‣Disconnected Staff = Less Productive Staff?

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Benefit: Increased Reach

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The Work / Life Balance

‣Adjust work to family instead of vice versa‣Drop the kids off at school‣Tasks between parents more evenly

balanced

‣The line between work and spare time is fading

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CommunicationColocation is Overrated

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The Tale Of The Office Door

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The Tale Of The Two Towers

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Communication Is Changing

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Talking To The Penguin

Also known as ‘talking to the cat’19

The Increased Talent PoolRecruiting Telecommuters

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The Increased Talent Pool

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Please leave your friends and family behind for this amazing job

The Increased Talent Pool

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?!?!?!

The Increased Talent Pool

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Great Developer

My company

Great Developer

Great Developer

Great Developer

Hurdles

‣Salary differentiation‣The “London Tax”‣The Interview Process

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International Distribution Hurdles

‣Laws‣Taxes

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The Distributed WorkplaceThe Cloud As An Enabler

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The File Server Is Dead

‣Documents in the cloud• Google Docs• Dropbox

‣Applications in the cloud • Private or public

‣Source Control

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Broadband

Ubiquitous, fast internet28

Day To Day OperationsChallenges

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Project Management

‣Skills required• Communication skills• Communication skills • Communication skills• Communication skills

‣Needs to believe in telecommuting

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Four Ways To Structure A Team

‣No Telecommuting• Agile ‘colocated teams’ principle

‣Distributed Teams• Two ore more colocated teams working on different parts

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Four Ways To Structure A Team

‣A few team members telecommute• Works well if some components are isolated • Be wary of isolation

‣Everybody telecommutes• May not be ideal for everybody

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Security

‣Teleworkers are a threat to corporate IT• Email leaves the firewall, scary!• Not being in control of the desktop• No control over where information goes

‣Ways to cope:• Standardization• ‘Bring your own device’ policy

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International Telecommuting

‣Timezone Challenges• (At what time is the #dc4d lunch break for you?)

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Telecommuting RequirementsIt’s not for everyone

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It only works if everybody’s on board

‣Employee Buy-In‣Management Buy-In‣Customer Buy-In

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Management Requirements

‣Project Manager communication skills‣Results Driven

• ‘Manage by objectives’ vs close scrutiny

‣Self Regulation‣Shared Responsibility

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A Couch Is Not An Office

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Workplace Requirements

‣Ergonomic desk and chair‣Good working conditions‣Environment where you can concentrate

• Common interruptors: kids, pets and partners

‣Proper internet connection

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Telecommuting != work from home

‣Coworking spaces‣Telework centers‣Shared office space

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Alternative: Nomad Workers

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‣Work packages• Stories• Tickets

Job Requirements

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Can I work from home tomorrow?

Telecommuting EnablersIncreasing chances of success

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Know Your Coworkers

‣Learn to read people.

• That’s brilliant.

• That’s BRILLIANT!!! :-) :-)

• ... that’s brilliant. :-(

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Use Face To Face Meetings Differently

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Channel Communications

‣Use the right medium:• Practical things: skype chat• Emotions and politics involved? voip / phone• Asynchronous stuff: email

‣ Intrusive Instant Messaging• Context Switching still applies

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Architecture Based Work Distribution

‣Bad:• Monolithic applications• Tied Coupling

‣Good:• Service Oriented• Design By Contract• Loosely Coupled• Componentized• Layered

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Mobile

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Telecommuter Friendly Offices

ICTU Offices The Hague

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Telecommuter Friendly Offices

ICTU Offices The Hague

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The Next StepsTelecommuting Is Just The Beginning

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The Paperless Office

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Say Goodbye to Office Hours

‣Work whenever you’re most comfortable‣Work when you’re productive‣Synchronize with clients and coworkers

when needed

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Final ThoughtsAlmost There

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The Misinterpretation of ‘Work’

“I’m going to work”:• 1. The act of starting to work on something• 2. Transporting oneself to the work place

“Work is what you do, not where you go”• Start seeing work as the verb instead of the noun

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Thank you! Questions?

http://www.egeniq.cominfo@egeniq.com

@egeniq

http://www.egeniq.comivo@egeniq.com

@ijanschhttp://joind.in/2526

Credits

‣ ‘This is what I call telecommuting’ by Tina Lawson - http://www.flickr.com/photos/ddfic/456799827/

‣ ‘Traffic on 2nd Avenue’ by Oran Viriyincy - http://www.flickr.com/photos/viriyincy/3889343455/

‣ ‘365::295 - The Two Towers’ by Darren Kirby - http://www.flickr.com/photos/badcomputer/5106649784/

‣ ‘Dnamo Incubator Opening Day’ by Oriol Pascual - http://www.flickr.com/photos/sustainablerotterdam/4057036860/

‣ ‘The new workplace collaboration’ by Tom Purves - http://www.flickr.com/photos/thomaspurves/361807318/

‣ ‘SuSE and Tux’ by Lee Jordan - http://www.flickr.com/photos/leejordan/379872501/

‣ ‘Girls with a laptop’ by Tom & Katrien - http://www.flickr.com/photos/inferis/266391949/

‣ ‘Another day at the office’ by Peter Kaminski - http://www.flickr.com/photos/peterkaminski/1486766/

‣ ‘Baking bread’ by Christian Guthier - http://www.flickr.com/photos/wheatfields/3567317673/

‣ ‘Foosball’ by Yun Huang Yong - http://www.flickr.com/photos/goosmurf/505509952/

‣ ‘iPad Case’ by Yutaka Tsutano - http://www.flickr.com/photos/ivyfield/4497654605/

‣ ‘Bob Braden’ by Carl Malamud - http://www.flickr.com/photos/publicresourceorg/2253006522/