Being constantly connected has huge advantages, but is there one crucial thing these gadgets don’t let you do — turn off? The causes of the perceived tendency of remote workers toward workaholism are debatable, but new surveys reveal one thing is for sure: The problem is global. Read more »
Stanford University researchers partner with a Chinese travel agency to do a rigorous scientific test of the effects of allowing telecommuting, using a large sample and control group. The results are heartening for fans of remote work and might be enough to convince skeptical bosses. Read more »
Telecommuters whose employers are based in one state but who work out of another can run into tax headaches, as both states claim a portion of their pay. Now, it appears congress is making another effort to eliminate the double bill for remote workers. Read more »
The caffeine may be flowing and the atmosphere comfy at your local coffee shop, but working there isn’t without its annoyances, which is why WorkSnug set out to solicit ideas and develop a ‘Coffee Shop Code of Conduct.’ Now the results are out. Read more »
Work used to be a place. Increasingly, we can get stuff done from nearly anywhere. That’s changing how companies procure talent and workers build careers, but how fast are these changes are percolating through the economy? Today oDesk puts some numbers to the trend. Read more »
From breaking down barriers to the flow of information within the organization to communicating with customers, enterprise social tools are often hailed as a next-generation solution for improving the business bottom line. But how many workers are actually using them? A survey finds out. Read more »
Coworking magazine Deskmag presented the results of its second annual coworking survey at the Coworking Europe Conference last week. While the findings confirm that coworking is well-loved by participants, the numbers also indicate there are some challenges ahead for the movement. Read more »
Simply joining a coworking space is obviously a necessary first step to joining the movement, but it’s not enough to get the maximum benefit out of participating, according to Genevieve DeGuzman, the co-author of a coworking guide. She offers tips for newbies to find their footing. Read more »
Right now, social is hot, with businesses betting nearly everything is best handled by consulting friends. But when it comes to enterprise productivity tools, a pair of Facebook alumni are challenging the notion that social is fundamental with the launch of their task-focused product, Asana. Read more »
In the tech blogosphere, chatter abounds about the latest collaboration tools, cutting edge ideas and the future of gadgets. But back on solid ground in cubicles, conference rooms and coworking spaces across the land, how much tech knowledge is actually filtering down to average employees? Read more »
Remote work has boomed during the recession as job seekers look beyond traditional office-based gigs and companies embrace any opportunity to cut costs. That boom in nontraditional work has fed enthusiasm for coworking spaces. But will this enthusiasm outlast the tough economic times? Read more »
Luckily, when Cora Rodenbusch’s programmer husband caught a bad case of wanderlust, she found herself in a dream situation for a would-be digital nomad: employed by an open-minded purveyor of remote collaboration tools eager to drum up publicity and put its products to the test. Read more »
No segment of the economy looks exactly buoyant right now, and small business hiring is no exception, but what does that have to do with the future of work? Plenty, suggest new reports showing that tepid hiring, is partially down to rise of freelancers. Read more »
Andrew McAfee and Erik Brynjolfsson’s new book Race Against the Machine, about how smart machines are taking white-collar jobs, plays on popular anxieties about the future of work. But at least one futurist thinks a machine-filled future might actually make us more human. Read more »
The future of work, a lot of commentators seem to agree, is shaping up to have a lot more independent contractors, contingent workers, freelancers and the like, and fewer regular full-time employees. But these folks can’t join unions of bargain collectively. Does it matter? Read more »
The impact of more remote workers on the built environment is a fascinating subtopic of the future of work. Will office spaces shrink? Transport plans change? Now there’s a new question about a world of remote workers – will they all move to the exurbs? Read more »
Tech sites present plenty of speculation on new tech and ways of working. Is this just the jabbering of pundits or is all of it making a difference on the ground? A conversation with Barry Frangipane, the co-author of The Venice Experiment, proves work is changing. Read more »
Web conferencing tools are a double-edged sword; you can connect with your team anywhere, but there’s no way to know if they’re listening intently or honing their doodling skills. Fear of distraction may be understandable but it’s also misplaced according to experts. Read more »
Usually, remote work involves plenty of communication and self-promotion with near strangers, but psychologists have good news for those who find this reality daunting – selling yourself to strangers is generally much more fun than we expect. And for reasons that will surprise you. Read more »
Social media is great for generating and sharing ideas. But the sorts of ideas that get the most attention and move to the top of the list or ticker are often just controversial. Now robotics is offering a possible solution: replace lists with dynamic blooms. Read more »
Among business leaders, knocking the competition is an age-old pastime, and when we reported on complaints that online labor marketplaces like oDesk are driving down wages for freelancers, Mike Paolucci, CEO of U.S. focused labor platform Solvate, saw his opening. Meanwhile, oDesk fires back. Read more »
Everyone kissed goodbye to the jobs-for-life model long ago. Now pundits are arguing that for many of us jobs in their entirety are about to become a thing of the past, replaced by ‘the gig economy.’ Might women do better in this new work reality? Read more »
In a shift that’s analogous to the movement toward cloud computing, work is changing from a place to a network armed with collaboration tools, and this change raising questions about environmental impact. But are we underestimating the green benefits of new ways of working? Read more »
Even though research shows men value working from home as highly as women, the perception persists that telecommuting is of particular value for mothers. Why? Working from home is often cited as a way to cut down on childcare costs. Total myth, say experts. Read more »
Telecommuting offers well-publicized benefits, but Census Bureau figures show only four percent of workers actually work from home. What makes telecommuting so challenging? The Workforce Institute asked two veteran work-from-homers to discuss their on-the-ground experience with remote work in this interesting podcast. Read more »
When it comes to piecing together a career as an independent worker, online marketplaces like Elance and oDesk can seem like all upside. But is this the whole story? A small business consultant suggests these sites present an often overlooked problem for freelancers – lower prices. Read more »
Co-working is a growing movement. How can you tell? It has a guide. Andrew Tang and Genevieve DeGuzman spoke to freelancers, startups and space founders for their book Working in the UnOffice: A Guide to Coworking. What did they discover about where the movement headed? Read more »
Coworking has been popular among entrepreneurs, techies and creatives for years, but it seems the idea if finally breaking out of its niche beginnings and going mainstream. The proof? A recent article in the staid Wall Street Journal lays out the evidence. Read more »
Politicians may be wrangling over various approaches to job creation, but the right and left seem to agree that with nine percent unemployment, America needs more jobs. Not author and marketing guru Seth Godin. He thinks we need to get over the whole idea. Read more »
When Staples.com surveyed workers to find out what would improve life at the office, they were probably hoping to hear answers like fancy printers or chairs, but one of the top results was a change no merchant can supply: Getting rid of the office entirely. Read more »
The project-based sites like Elance cater to the highly skilled, while errand-running apps like TaskRabbit aim to help monetize your spare time Now MinuteBox, a startup launching today, is hoping to combine both ideas, offering skilled experts a way to monetize their free moments. Read more »
When we say remote work, we usually have one sense of the word in mind –distant from colleagues. But remote has another related meaning: rural. MacKenzie-Childs is remote in both senses. We spoke to the CEO about the benefits and challenges of remote, remote workers. Read more »
Even Emily Post would be out of her depth in the world of modern technology, so WorkSnug is asking remote workers on the ground to weigh in with their rules for coffee shop worker etiquette – and offering a prize to the most popular suggestions. Read more »
Adaptable to a variety of work situations, tech friendly and easy to get off the ground, are coworking spaces a solution to rural areas’ economic woes? A non-profit in central Appalachia is hoping so as it prepares to open a space this fall. Read more »
According to a study from the Yankee Group, in the eyes of American business, the primary use of 4G is for telecommuter and remote worker access, with nearly half of companies planning to use it for that purpose within two years. Read more »
San Francisco-based start up Xobni has been trying to improve the Outlook and Blackberry email experience for a while now, but today they’re launching their latest contact management platform and related products for Gmail and Android under the brand name Smartr. Read more »
New research from Forrester doesn’t just reveal that consumer phones are invading the enterprise. It also confirms some realities we see under way at offices every day and undercuts other so-called trends often mentioned by media cheerleaders (including GigaOM). What are they? Read more »
It’s hard to be against flexible work arrangements. but despite a lot of talk in support of new ways of working to help knowledge workers keep their sanity and families intact; a new survey shows many managers are merely paying lip service to the idea. Read more »
With its launch last week, London-based start-up Wazuko aims to jostle its way into the buzzing idea/ innovation management space and help companies cultivate more good ideas. But what sets this service apart form its competitors? We spoke to co-founder Simon Hill to find out. Read more »
Coworking is a well-established trend in some areas, yet as coworking spaces expand into new cities, the owners need to educate people about the benefits and engage in some creative marketing to lure entrepreneurs in. Read more »
