Is Teleworking Working?
Benefits and Pitfalls of Virtual Work
Sharon K. Epps
ALA Annual Conference
June 25, 2012
Overview
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My job description (Head of Access Services)
University of Maryland’s Telework Program
My experience as a teleworking manager
Faculty and staff perception
Advice to others
Head of Access Services
• Manage 5 units in McKeldin (Circ/Reserves,
ILL, Stacks, Billing, and Late Night Services)
• 5 direct reports (supervises day-to-day
operations)
• 25 fte staff and 17 fte student workers
• USMAI Resource Sharing Task Group
UMD Libraries Telework Program
• Mandated by State of Maryland (House Bill 870, Chapter
446-1999 Session)
• Established in April, 2002
• State guidelines of 10% staff participation
• Eligible staff – faculty, staff (Non-Probationary), graduate
students
• Performance evaluation of meets or exceeds expectations
• Must complete necessary paperwork/supervisor approval
• Telework arrangement up to 1 year (Renewable)
• Telework 1 day per week
• Currently 14 library staff are teleworking
Why I Telework…
• Job does not require physical presence or face-toface interaction with users
• Live far away in Delaware (92 miles)
• Average commuting time one way is 3 hrs (car,
train, bus) or 2 hrs (car)
• Saves on automobile wear and tear, travel
expenses
• Teleworker since August, 2007
My Job Responsibilities favorable to
Teleworking
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Email, voice mail (at least twice a day)
Conference calls, committee meetings
Committee work
Project management
Performance review documents, job descriptions
Work proposals, budgets, reports, correspondence
Research: data collection/analysis,writing/editing
publications
How do I Manage Staff While
Teleworking
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Maintain good communication
Design and supervise work plans
Set clear goals and objectives
Create milestones and timelines
Meet regularly to assess progress
It’s all about TRUST!!
Benefits of Teleworking
• Less time wasted and less stress from commuting
• Some flexibility in my work schedule
• Able to access my office computer via Virtual Private
Network (VPN) installed on my laptop
• Ability to concentrate fully on very detailed work without
interruptions
• Being able to work on one project for more than an hour or
two without a phone call and walk-ins
• Increased productivity due to not having to commute one
day a week
• Able to meet deadlines, particularly for projects that involve
considerable report writing or preparations
Benefits of Teleworking
• Being able to accomplish tasks that always went to bottom
of list
• Having undisturbed time to be creative/do scholarly work
• No need to travel in severe weather
• Reduced dependence on auto, train, or bus
• Real cost savings and good for the environment
• If I’m late for a meeting, it’s not due to heavy traffic
• Ability to take laptop, cell phone, and mobile devices
anywhere I feel comfortable working
• Saves my sanity!!!
Pitfalls of Teleworking
• Not available to library users who require immediate faceto-face interactions i.e. irate users
• More distractions at home (cannot find a quiet place where
I won’t be interrupted)
• Must stay focused on completing work and be able to
separate work from the rest of life
• Less opportunity to engage with co-workers spontaneously
• Lack of in-person access to colleagues (IT staff)
Colleagues and Staff Perceptions
• Most are accepting and comfortable with my teleworking 1
day per week (know my telework day)
• Some do question how I can be effective as a manager
teleworking
• Must have supervisor’s support and cooperation
• Trust in the competency of my direct reports
• Staff know that I am available to them
• Lots of communication (phone, email)
• Long standing telework program, people have been
teleworking for years
Advice to Others
• Take advantage of existing teleworking programs
• Clear understanding of expectations between you and
supervisor
• Decide upon type of work
• Set goals and measurable objectives
• Research teleworking programs…have a clear picture of
what you want to do and how you plan to accomplish it
• Write a proposal and meet with supervisor
• Be prepared to answer any questions the supervisor has
• If your supervisor is not open to teleworking, ask for a trial
period.
Telework Statistics
• Telework Week of March 5-9, 2012
• Federal government employees were encouraged to
telework 2 days out of the week
• 71,324 Participants saved:
6,413,006 miles
251,774 hours
3,453 tons of pollutants
5.6 million dollars in commuting costs
Telework Exchange. “Bank on Telework: The Telework Week 2012 Impact and Year-over-Year
Benchmark” sponsored by Cisco Systems, Inc. May 2, 2012.
http://www.cisco.com/web/strategy/docs/gov/telework_week_impact.pdf
Teleworking Resources
Articles:
• The Internet Librarian
http://www.homeworking.com/library/case/case-10.htm
• Telecommuting for Librarians by Andrea Delumeau
http://www.liscareer.com/delumeau_telecommuting.htm
• The Untethered Librarian by Karen G. Schneider
http://www.jstor.com/stable/25637724
• Telework.gov (Official Website of the Federal Govt Telework
Program) http://www.telework.gov
• Telework Exchange
http://www.teleworkexchange.com
Teleworking Resources
Tools:
• Free Conference Calls http://www.freeconferencecall.com/
• Google + Hangouts
http://www.google.com/+/learnmore/hangouts
• Skype http://www.skype.com
• ilinc http://ilinc.com
• GoTo Meeting http://www.gotomeeting.com
Thank You!
Sharon K. Epps
University of Maryland
sepps@umd.edu