Telecommuting

Telecommuting is generally understood as a practice by which the characteristics of the traditional workplace suffered modifications. It virtually sees that the employee will not go to work in the office, in a conventional 9 to 5 position. Before going any further, it has to be stated that telecommuting is not applicable in all fields of work. It cannot for instance be used in manufacturing, industry or agriculture, but it has been successfully integrated in the services sector, mostly Information Technology related jobs.

The first reaction when someone hears that another person is working from home is that of surprise, followed by a either "That's gotta be awesome; I would love to work from home" or "Really?! I think I would go crazy". These two sentences capture the entire essence of telecommuting. To better explain, I will pin point to some advantages and disadvantages as they are felt by the employee.

Advantages
1. The first and foremost advantage of telecommuting is that of getting an enhanced sense of freedom. You will generally be able to start work at whatever time you want and end at whatever time you want, with the single condition being that you successfully complete your tasks.
2. You will gain more time as you will no longer have to commute. Additionally, you will also save the money you would have generically spent on transportation.
3. Telecommuting is the perfect solution when you take care of a dependent, such as a young child, your spouse or a parent.
4. The sense that you are in control will improve the very quality of your life, the most relevant example being given by the reduced levels of stress associated with telecommuting

Shortages
1. You will probably be alone most of the day. While this may not be an issue to the less socially interactive people, it will be a dread to those how appreciate the company of peers, who love the coffee break and the adjacent gossip and so on.
2. Since you are no longer under the direct supervision of the boss, you could be tempted not to complete your work; this could either mean that you become agglomerated pending the deadline, or that you fail to deliver and suffer the professional repercussions.
3. Telecommuting virtually implies that you will run your little office at home. This translates into increased costs for you. Throughout your working hours, you will use your own heater, your own electricity or water, to end up paying increased bills.
4. Finally, the fourth disadvantage is that you consume your own resources. You will for instance incur the adjacent costs with the wear off of your computer; you will wear off your own printer, consume your own paper, ink and so on.

The situation is also complex for the employer, who encounters both advantages as well as limitations, pegged to telecommuting. Probably the most relevant example of an advantage is that of significantly reduced costs with operating the traditional office – he no longer has to rent or purchase as big a space; his utility bills are lower and he is not forced to supply the staff member with water, coffee or other aliments. On the other hand, there is the major disadvantage of losing the control over the company's operations. This situation is created due to the introduction of decentralization, as a direct consequence of telecommuting. What this basically means is that telecommuting has to be adopted only when the employer is certain that his employees are sufficiently responsible and driven to complete their tasks, without the direct supervision of the leadership team.