Today's post comes from a talented friend who has had the unconventional experience of being an in house lawyer working remotely. Sarah Tuchler McElvaney is assistant General Counsel at Deltek, Inc., a Virginia-based software and services firm specializing in providing information and tools geared towards project-based businesses. She lives in Austin, Texas with her husband, two children, and co-worker dog Abby.
This month marks my 7th anniversary of working
exclusively from home as in-house counsel.
I am frequently asked how I got this gig and what it takes to get one
like it. Getting my first telecommuting opportunity
was based on a set of unique circumstances that would be hard to orchestrate (a
GC about to announce his resignation, a couple pioneers in the group having
done it successfully before me). But after
three years in that job and seven years with the company, I had also
established myself as a known quantity within the department; I like to think
that helped, too. There was nothing to
stop my employer from letting me go if I didn’t pull my weight or deliver on
expectations. It probably also didn’t
hurt that I was the lowest paid attorney in the department. I was insanely inexpensive when taking my
salary and volume of work product into consideration. Add the reduced costs by releasing my office
real estate and one less person using office printers, internet, office
electricity, phone, coffee, parking, etc, and it seems like a no-brainer.
(Note: these have never been reimbursed expenses for me but of course are
required for me to perform by duties.)
You probably dream up the positive aspects as you envision
yourself walking in your fuzzy slippers from your bed to your laptop on your
sofa. And I’m not going to pretend telecommuting
not a great benefit, but there are some negatives.
·
First, there is a much smaller separation
between work and the rest of life. For me these days, the work day ends when I
have to leave to pick up kids from daycare, but before kids, it didn’t end
until I ran out of energy. I was always on, day and night, weekends and
holidays. While great for the employer,
it’s not so great for the employee’s work/life balance. It also establishes an expectation of
immediate response times and that expectation is very difficult to change. I
still work the occasional late night after the kids are in bed but I try hard
not to.
·
Second, you can easily become a loner. I have to make a concerted effort to get out
of the house a couple times a week to interact with people. I “talk” to people
on IM and email, and of course spend lots of time on the phone, but not having
any physical interaction with colleagues or friends can be very isolating.
·
Can physical separation from the leadership team
have an impact on your career development? It depends on your company’s
leadership team and company culture, but I would say quite possibly. There’s
something about face time that seems to provide an advantage over remote work
even if you put in more hours than everyone else. You’re also not there when
someone pops by with a question. Out of
sight can mean out of mind. It’s not fair, in my opinion, so consider the impact
telecommuting might have on your career path and whether it fits your
priorities or plans.
·
Developing relationships with colleagues and
others in your company is a little more challenging when you’re not physically
present. When you don’t get to talk
daily about your kids’ accomplishments, your dog’s latest antics, your spouse’s
snoring, or compliment a friend on their cool new boots, you just don’t make
the same connections as easily or as deeply as you do when you sit down next to
someone every day. You don’t get the
vibe of the office. You have to make an
extra effort to reach out and talk to people to stay connected.
Starting off with a remote employee is scary for an employer
unless they know you well because until they know they can trust you, they’re
taking a risk that you are not going to produce or that your work quality may
not be properly reviewed or up to par.
When you’re sitting in an office, others can see you working and that
gives supervisors some comfort, even if they’re not literally looking over your
shoulder. The technology environment has
changed a lot over the years. Today you can be almost anywhere without the
confines of a traditional office and still be “there.” But for some managers, it’s just not the same. It takes time to build trust.
Transitioning to remote work is challenging for the
employee, too. I know I had a certain
level of paranoia that people would think I wasn’t working. (I also come from a “butts in seats” culture
and there were nasty emails if you weren’t in your office by 8:30am, even if
you worked until 2am, in the office no less!)
So when I started working remotely, I answered emails and phone calls no
matter what time they came in. With my next job, I was hired as a telecommuting
employee. I got that job in large part
based on my successful history of remote work.
I traveled a little more in the beginning but that helped establish the
relationships. Shortly thereafter came a corporate instant messaging program,
which also functioned as a test to my dedication – if I didn’t respond
immediately, it looked (to me) like I wasn’t sitting at my desk working. That
was probably more self-imposed pressure than anything. Five years later things are a little more relaxed
(except at quarter end) and the company acknowledges that people are located in
varying cities/countries and time zones.
Where you sit is less of an issue as long as you are
available when needed and get your work done.
Personally, I’ve also adjusted my career expectations and put a greater
emphasis on the importance of work/life balance. So this is working for me. My ideal would be
home 3 days and in an office 2 days, but I’ll take what I can get. How can you start working remotely? I would suggest the following tips for getting
your current employer to try it out, or if you’re looking to propose a remote
gig, be prepared to address these issues:
1.
Test your
technology. Make sure you have a
clear phone line and a sufficiently fast Internet connection. Make sure you can access the documents you
need as well as email and IM. (We have shared
network space where my group stores signed contracts, internal documents for
legal department only use, etc. so I can access everything from anywhere.) Are
there comforts of your office that will be missed at home, like a headset or a
wireless mouse? Get them. If you need to
sign documents, make sure you have a good printer and a scanner or fax.
2.
Check your
company’s policies – technology, privacy, taking documents out of the
office, etc. If there are discrepancies
between what you’re proposing and your company’s policies, you’ll need to
address how you will be able to stay in compliance while at home.
3.
Go paperless.
Start to review documents online, and if you are a tree killer, start to get
used to relying on electronic documents. It takes time, but it’s key to being
able to work remotely. If you’re always lugging a ream of paper with you, and
you forget your paper, you won’t be very efficient at home. If I do print, I print on recycled paper
(that has my kid’s daycare menu on the other side, for example). All paper gets used twice in my house! If you
print confidential documents, make sure you have a good shredder too.
4.
Float the idea
with your manager and propose 1-2 days a week. Be prepared to describe how this will work,
how you can be reached, and why this is a good idea (hint: focus on why it’s
good for the company and not all about you personally).
5.
Look for
successes and keep track of them.
When it’s time to reevaluate how it’s going, it’ll go much better if you
have concrete examples of things that you were able to accomplish more
effectively away from the office.
6.
Seek support
with your clients. If they support
your proposed schedule and they see an improvement in your response times, ask
them to email your boss.
7.
Be transparent.
If you are working a part-time remote schedule, make sure those in the office
that are used to poking their head in to say hello know how to reach you. Nothing
undermines your attempt to work remotely more than the appearance of you not
being accessible. This doesn’t mean you’re not allowed to take a lunch break,
though, so don’t set the expectation that if you’re working from home you will
be available every minute of the day.
That would defeat the purpose.
The flexibility of being able to working from home is
wonderful, and it is a really important factor in making my work/life balance
manageable, but it takes effort. Finding
that balance can take a while, but if you can get the opportunity, take
it. It’s so worth it.
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