IMPLEMENTING A TELEWORK POICY WITHIN THE MARINE CORPS TO REDUCE COST AND IMPROVE WORKFORCE SATISFACTION
Prepared for
Jerry Lewis,
Deputy Director of Programs and Resources,
United States Marine Corps
Prepared by
December 12, 2011
MEMORANDUM
TO: Jerry Lewis, Deputy Director of Programs and Resources
FROM: Name, Programs and Resources Analyst
DATE: December 12, 2011
SUBJECT: Implementing an Organizational Telework Policy
Here is the research report that has been completed in response to the Government Efficiencies Working Groups’ recommendations.
While the Marine Corps does not currently have a successful telework policy implemented at this time, but we currently have a partial capability from a technology standpoint. This puts us in situation that is ripe with opportunities to change the organization’s work environment in ways that will benefit all parties involved.
With many new changes in the information technology solutions available in the market place it is now possible to do work anywhere and at any time. The implementation of a strategy to take advantage of this change in the work environment can lead to quantifiable savings in real estate costs and improve the employee work life balance. Improved energy savings and a decrease in building costs are organizational benefits from the implementation of a teleworking policy within the organization. Current Information Technology Systems should be reviewed to determine if they could be redesigned to enable teleworking. These changes would allow for the reduction of the organization footprint while improving the satisfaction of Marine Corps employees.
There will be some challenges with implementation from a manager’s point of view as it relates to the access they have to employees during the workday. While this may be a challenge, it is not an insurmountable one for the Marine Corps as an organization. This report might also be used in the future during one of the many workforce studies that go on during the budget review process that the Marine Corps Programs and Resources Department go through on an annual basis. While not a consideration for this conversation, it will helpful during future evolutions of the workforce development and budget review processes.
If there are any comments or questions in regard to this report please let me know so that they can be addressed. My point of contact number is (703) 555-1212, and my email address is email.
CONTENTS
Page
Executive Summary …………………………………………………………………………………….. iv
What is teleworking capability……………………………………………………………………............ 2
Who should be telecommuting.………...…………………………………………………………............ 2
Barriers to implementation ………...………………………………………………………….................. 3
Conclusions and recommendations ……………………………………………………........................... 3
Works Cited …………………… ……………………………………………………........................... 4
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
FIGURES
1. Anticipated Telework Pool Percentages …………………………………………………............ 2
Executive Summary
This report analyzes the Marine Corps challenges in developing and fully implementing an organizational telework policy and presents recommendations for a successful program.
Marine Corps Real Estate Savings Possibility
Changes in the information technology solutions available in the market place makes it possible to do work anywhere at any time. Implementation of a strategy to take advantage of this change in the work environment can lead to quantifiable savings in real estate costs and improve the employee work life balance.
The Marine Corps can get energy savings and a decrease in building costs if it considers teleworking in its construction planning and office rental processes. Current Information Technology Systems should be reviewed to determine if they could be redesigned to enable teleworking. These changes would allow for the reduction of organization footprint needs while improving the satisfaction of Marine Corps employees.
What are the Teleworking Needs to be Successfully Implemented
What is teleworking, and what kind of worker is considered for this program? How does an organization transition from the standard employee scheduling model to one that fully implements the new teleworking concept fully and successfully? There are considerations that will need to be addressed by both the USMC and the employee to make a program that will benefit both parties.
The Benefits from Implementation of an Organizational Telework Policy
By implementing a telework policy within the Marine Corps there are significant savings that can be uncovered by both the USMC and the employee. Teleworking gives the employees the opportunity to work from home either on a routine schedule or in extreme circumstances. This aspect in and of itself has many facets that impact all parties involved, to include the community as a whole:
1. Employees’ primary benefit of telecommuting is being able to generate savings associated with commuting related costs. 2. USMC gets to actualize cost savings by decreasing the cost associated with workspaces, parking, and the associated energy use by employees. 3. Communities surrounding the organization with a telework policy benefit by decreasing commuter congestion during peak traveling hours.
The Marine Corps can use this as an opportunity to take a leadership role in the community as a whole while also improving the satisfaction of employees at the same time. These changes will improve the organization in both the short term and the long term.
IMPLEMENTING A TELEWORK POICY WITHIN THE MARINE CORPS TO REDUCE COST AND IMPROVE WORKFORCE SATIFACTION
INTRODUCTION
With many new changes in the information technology solutions available in the market place it is now possible to do work anywhere and at any time. The implementation of a strategy to take advantage of this change in the work environment can lead to quantifiable savings in real estate costs and improve the employee work life balance. Improved energy savings and a decrease in building costs are organizational benefits from the implementation of a teleworking policy within the organization. Current Information Technology Systems within the Marine Corps should be reviewed to determine if they could be redesigned to enable teleworking. These changes would allow for the reduction of the organizational footprint while improving the satisfaction of Marine Corps employees. Some of the questions that will be addressed are:
1. What is teleworking? 2. What kind of worker is considered for this program? 3. How does an organization transition from the standard employee scheduling model to one that fully implements the new teleworking concept successfully?
There are considerations that will need to be addressed by both the USMC and the employee to make a program that will benefit both parties. It also requires behavior changes that go beyond the immediate scheduling concerns that managers will face, and that issue will be communication processes and practices. Structurally, this may be one of the most important considerations that will have to be addressed in order for a successful implementation of any telework or telecommuting program that would be considered.
TELEWORK - THE BEGINNING
The concepts behind teleworking were dreamed up about forty years ago by a former rocket scientist by the name of Jack Nilles. He coined the terms telecommuting and teleworking during a time period when he was tackling the problems associated with traffic congestion. At the time it was envisioned that this revolutionary idea would have a dramatic effect on the congestion within communities. These predictions for wide scale implementation never materialized.
In fact, the government has had a great many barriers hinder implementation within its organizations. While there are lessons to be learned in previous failed instances of teleworking, the Marine Corps aggressive work force development program sets the stage for a successful program utilizing existing practices. That fact when mixed with the current support within the Department of Defense makes this the perfect time to push forward with telecommuting within the Marine Corps. There is policy and organization reinforcement that will help facilitate the necessary changes within the work force.
WHAT IS TELECOMMUTING CAPABILITY
Telecommuting is a concept that allows for an organization to incorporate a virtual workspace within its structure. In this environment managers and employees operate remotely from each other in a manner that allows for multi-state or even multi-national work groups. With this type of capability there will be a greater opportunity to recruit professional and analytical talent that would be geographically based in other regions. This non-geographically based competency is a much needed capability multiplier during this time of financially constrained budgets and government downsizing. If this capability multiplier is not fully implemented it should at the least be used in austere environments that do not provide for an inherent capability to support operations. While recognizing that this dynamic work environment does present many great opportunities, the challenges that come from the physical separation inherent within this concept will need to be addressed before wide scale implementation would be accepted within the Marine Corps.
WHO SHOULD BE TELECOMMUTING
The question on who should be telecommuting is actually related to a work section, if not even project specific within that work section. There is no way to logically identify a section at the macro level and dictate a blanket telework policy and anticipate the results. The results would be varied from section to section because of what the particular communication requirements are for the project that are handled at the worker level. If the section relies on a workplace synergy to facilitate a result that could not be achieved form one single person, and geographical requirements exclude other option, then it should not be implemented in that section. While there are some examples within the Marine Corps that fall into that model, the majority of business does not necessitate that type of work environment to be successful; this places the majority of the workforce within the eligible teleworking pool.
Figure 1
Anticipated eliglibility
BARRIERS TO IMPLEMENTATION
During the implementation phase of the Marine Corps telework policy steps would have to be made to mitigate resistance to the policy. Some of the main challenges that will be encountered will have to do with training of both managers and employees on the mechanics of the program. Confusion on either side has been demonstrated to have detrimental effects on teleworking success. Often management has issues with the inability to communicate with employees in a face to face meeting when needed. When looking at this from macro level most of the issues can be attributed to two factors. One factor is the employees fear that not being in the workspace will be harmful to their career. The second factor is a fear on the managers’ side that is centered on the apparent loss of control of the employee, mostly regarding communication needs. If steps are not take to address all of these factors a successful implementation of telework would not be expected, as there would be push back from all levels within the Marine Corps as a whole.
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
In order to successfully implement a successful telework program within the Marine Corps there would need to be some preemptive steps taken to ensure buy in from the workforce. A corner stone of the new policy would be a training course that would encompass employees from the organization executive level to the wage grade level to ensure that all personnel received the appropriate training needed to move forward with a successful policy. The training would focus on the mechanics of and policy on the Marine Corps telework program. Additional focus would need to be placed on the reinforcement of the enhanced communication capability provided by existing information systems technology and how to properly utilize it to improved management ability.
There is also a paradigm shift that needs to occur before the Marine Corps telework program will achieve permanent and lasting effects upon the organization. One situation that will need to be addressed is the employees fear that not being in the office to interact with management face to face will impact their career in negative ways. This organizational predisposition to geographically based work groups will need to be addressed in manners that will transform the acceptable work group to one that is in keeping with the Marine Corps telework policy. If steps are not taken to address all of these factors a successful implementation of telework would not be expected within the timeline needed to achieve investment by the Marine Corps military and civilian workforce. On a cursory level these cultural changes seem difficult, but the flexibility that is inherent within the Marine Corps will help to facilitate the necessary changes.
WORKS CITED
Bailey, D., & Kurland, N.,(2002). A Review of Telework Research: Findings, New Directions, and Lessons for the Study of Modern Work. Journal of Organizational Behavior,23(4),383-400.Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/4093813
Cascio, W.,(2000).Managing a Virtual Workplace. The Academy of Management Executive,14(3),81-90. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/4165661
Hawkins, B., Hill, A., Miller, C.,(1996). Work and Family in the Virtual Office: Perceived Influences of Mobile Telework. Family Relations,45(3),293-301.Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/585501
Jackson, P.,(1992).Organisational Change: The Role of Telework?. Management Research News,17(5/6),50-51.doi:10.1108/eb028240
Pyöriä, P.,(2011).Managing telework: risks, fears and rules.Management Research Review,34(4),386-399.doi: 10.1108/01409171111117843
Ramani, S.,(2000). IT Enabled Services: Growing Form of Telework. Economic and Political Weekly,35(260,2305-2307.Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/4409451
Telework.gov.(2005). The Status of Telework in the Federal Government 2005.Retrived 1 December 2011,from http://www.telework.gov/Reports_and_Studies/tw_rpt05/status-intro.aspx
Tremblay, D.,(2002).Balancing work and family with telework? Organizational issues and challenges for women and managers. Women In Management Review,17(3/4),157-170.doi: 10.1108/09649420210425309
