Group 6 did a great job presenting the topic of virtual offices being used by all sorts of companies. The idea sounded brilliant because people were saving gas and were able to work from home, but as I thought about it more and more there were many issues that came up that presented some sort of controversy. I began thinking up these questions….The virtual offices are said to be more cost effective and increase worker productivity, but are businesses really more effective or is it just convenient for the employees to work from home. Are the employees working from home, fully focused on their work or are they being distracted with issues at home. Even if they are not being distracted, does the flexible work lifestyle blur the line between work and family life. Does the lack of socialization between employees, lead to disconnect between the organization and clients. The issue of a lack of disconnect may no longer be an issue because of the creation spatially immersive displays.
This research is actually going on at UNC! http://www.cs.unc.edu/Research/stc/. One of the projects being work on at UNC is called the Office of the Future. Their goal is to make people from across the world feel as if they are right next to each other by creating 3D images using the following: panoramic image display, tiled display systems, image-based modeling, immersive environments, and computer graphics. This may sound like jargon to many of us and with the purpose of this class it doesn’t matter if we don’t understand it. How do you think this technology will affect the virtual office…think beyond the simple idea that people will be “sitting” next to each other.
I believe that working from home can be advantageous in certain instances while it can be detrimental in others. If an employee is performing tasks for his/her job that does not require interaction, then it should be fine for a person to work from home. However, if a person is in a leadership role or is often in meetings, then I believe that virtual offices are not good for an organization. You get such a better feel for situations when you are in a meeting in person. Therefore, whether or not virtual offices are good depends on the situation.
ReplyDeleteWorking from home has the potential to be great for an individual with a family, health problem or a number of other things. It also cuts down commuter traffic and office costs. I believe that as long as an employee completes all the tasks necessary and assigned by his or her boss, working from home can be advantageous. I also agree that virtual offices cannot replace all office space as many jobs require face-to-face interaction and a social support network. Overall, my stance is that if it can be done, virtual offices should be created. Otherwise, depending on the job, individuals should continue commuting to work in an office space.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I would prefer to go into an office each day over working from home. I think most people would get distracted if the lines between work and play are blurred. It would take a lot of self discipline to keep from getting distracted by things such as family and leisure activities. While it might work for some people, I think having some direct person to person feedback is necessary to progress in a career.
ReplyDeleteAlthough communication through the Internet is effective and easy to use, I think it often takes away from interpersonal communication skills. For example, I'm sure that most Facebook users would agree that there is a difference between real-life friends and "Facebook friends." When we run into a "Facebook friend" on campus, it can often feel strange to start a real conversation. Because we rely through electronic means to interact with each other, in-person meetings can feel awkward and out of place. Knowing how to socially interact face-to-face with a customer or co-worker is a vital skill that can be easily overlooked and lost when implementing a virtual office.
ReplyDeleteIn particular, virtual office visits between a patient and a doctor can devalue the art of medicine. Bedside manner is pivotal part of practicing medicine so "e-visits" with the doctor may not be as effective for comforting or explaining things thoroughly to a patient.
I think an important step in making a decision about telecommuting is assessing one's own personality and work style. The virtual office isn't suited to everyone. That's abundantly clear at places like this university, where there are a vast number of students who choose to leave their rooms and study in the library before a big exam or while working on an important paper. Some people need a 'work' environment in order to get things done. Others of us are able to sit down in our bedrooms and knock a paper out quickly. For those people, the virtual office can be a great asset.
ReplyDeleteI think telecommuting can be beneficial for some businesses but it really depends on the type of business for it to make a difference. For instance, larger corporations with established infrastructures and corresponding IT support would be better suited for telecommuting workers than smaller companies or startups. Blue chips companies and other developed businesses have a corporate structure in place which I believe makes it easier for employees to work from home and fulfill specific, predetermined tasks.
ReplyDeleteFor similar reasons, I think telecommuting could be a disadvantage for startup companies. I understand that telecommuting could help start ups reduce their expenses but it prevents employees from developing a sense of camaraderie and corporate identity that can be so critical to business success. Thats not to say it can't be helpful in certain situations, but from personal experience, employees need to be at developing companies to help in the day-to-day problems that arise.
I think that the virtual office would be greatly enhanced by the Office of the Future, but I wonder how many offices would be able to afford this new technology, and also what sort of technology would a worker need at his/her home? Obviously all I know about the research comes from the link provided in the first post, so these issues may be addressed in the study. The Office of the Future would provide those much needed contextual clues that provide so much information about what people are saying based simply on their facial expressions and gestures. This is key to physical communication and would help workers feel as though they were actually part of the meeting instead of talking to a flat screen.
ReplyDeleteThere's no way I'd get as much accomplished if I "went to work" at my own house. I think it could be appropriate as a virtual version of a conference call, but when it comes to your daily work, human interaction is essential for most jobs. If one becomes accustomed to social interaction only through the computer, there is a human element that's lost, which undoubtedly will hinder rather than help a business that relies on relationships. While this is a personal choice, I think most would agree that interacting through a computer is far more casual, which will result in less productivity whether conscious of it or not. Uniforms are issued in many private schools because tests have proven a direct relationship between better dress and better grades, and I think this same principle can absolutely be applied in the professional world.
ReplyDeleteIncreasing productivity is definitely a factor in determining whether virtual offices would be beneficial for companies. My concern is the same as above. This blurs the lines between professional and personal. It is important to keep work separate from personal life. It would make the home seem like the office and that person would never get a break. This can be detrimental to a person's mental health and could definitely decrease productivity. Although this could increase productivity when making contacts with international partners, having oversight of employees in one location is important for productivity. Offices from home would also make work a 24/7 commitment/obsession. Without oversight, employers have no control over the image their employees are presenting from their home environment.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Chris said about not getting as much work accomplished at home as you would in an office setting. Speaking from experience (albeit minimal), I get much more accomplished when I am in an environment that is more serious and less distractions are available. That being said, I believe the virtual office will have a significant impact in the future. Multimedia will soon allow people to almost be in the office while being at home without any of the lag experienced with these technologies now. If not working from home, I at least see this software being beneficial to companies to keep individuals from having to travel to other offices for meetings.
ReplyDeleteI have been going back and forth about this virtual office for weeks now and everyday I change my mind. Personally I think the situation is huge because of some experiences I have had as I have taken an online class and tried to complete a group project just using email, aim, and threads.
ReplyDeleteIf the job is something that is very individual then I don't think working from the home can be negative. Obviously there are distractions at home, but there are distractions everywhere you go if you aren't focusing or ready to work. For instance I took an online class last summer and I just planned 3 hours during the afternoon where I would work on my school things. I LOVED not having to go into the class and I think I learned more because I worked at a time when I was aware and set up an environment that suited me best. Also I know a lot of jobs that have to do with sales have virtual offices. Each sales person just works from their house, but most of the time they are in stores/meetings selling products so I think its appropriate and smart that they don't have to go in and out of an office daily.
On the negative side I agree with many of you that its important to interact face to face with other employees because in the big picture everyone is apart of the same team. I had a small group project here and we never got together to finish the product and everyone did their parts on their own time and the final piece wasn't great. I think if we had worked together in person it would have been stronger. I feel like because we were laying in bed/around our house doing the work some of us slacked off because no one was making us focus or pushing us to get it done then. Also we all admitted we waited till the last day and didn't allow enough time on it, which wouldn't have been the case if meetings to get together were set up.
Wow the Office of the Future research is really interesting. It kind of freaks me out to think about “sitting next to” someone so far away. I don’t think I like the idea of that very much. If I’m working from home, I’d rather be working at home and on my own.
ReplyDeleteI think that virtual offices are good ideas for certain industries. As a freelance illustrator and designer, I work from home on a regular basis and, for the most part, I enjoy it. I think the home office is an ideal situation for this kind of job as collaboration isn’t necessarily the most important part of getting the job done. At the same time though, I would prefer to have set hours for completing my work. Working on your own time seems like a great idea until you take on too many clients/classes and find yourself running out of time entirely.
I agree with Emily's assessment. Virtual offices can succeed in some industries, but they can certainly fail in others. I also think a company's values and mission would play a big role in the success of a virtual office for that company.
ReplyDeleteCrispin Porter + Bogusky, an advertising agency in the United States, has offices located in Colorado and Miami. For all advertising projects, people from both locations work together in a team to create an advertising package that their clients will like. It seems to be a successful method in this industry. However, in an industry where the job is repetitive and monotonous, I do not think a virtual office would succeed.
I tend to think that working from home is a great idea if it is done only 1 or 2 days out of the work week, because I think that interacting with people throughout the work day is an important way of maintaining social contact with other people. I don't think that the environmental benefits (less commuter miles driven) merit the elimination of person-to-person interaction, nor do the productivity benefits. How much work do employers want us to be doing?? Most people are already working 50 hour weeks (since the average 8-5 workday is quickly being extended), asking people to stay isolated in their houses so that they get just that much more work done because of a slight productivity increase is not healthy for workers.
ReplyDeleteI strongly agree with previous comments regarding the necessity of social interaction. Of course many programs and internet capabilities allow for 'interaction' amongst user; however, personal contact on a face to face basis can not be downplayed. This being said I think there is a healthy median between virtual offices and time spent in an actual office. The benefits of a virtual office setting are certainly compelling and should be implemented on a regulated basis. These virtual offices are also sometimes necessary (such as the aforementioned Crispin Porter + Bougsky example). Effectively merging virtual office technology with existing personal interaction, created through face to face contact, could produce wonderful results and benefits to a company.
ReplyDeleteI think as we said in the presentation, virtual offices will not work for every business. Only certain businesses will find using a virtual office to be beneficial and effective. And even more, not all parts of a company can use the virtual office. Many large companies will adopt the virtual office for part of the company, and even that will save them lots of money.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the virtual office/ telecommunication can create problems. The process of going to the office increases productivity. It gives a person more of a routine to physically go to the office. If you are in your pajamas, it can make it hard to focus and decrease productivity. How productive can you really be when you are surrounded by distractions in your home. It could also make people lazier. Personally, I would be less productive if I worked from home all the time. I definitely think that your point about the lack of personalization involved with working away from an office could create problems for a company as well. I do not think that working from home on occasion would generate as many of the risks involved with staying at home everyday. It is beneficial, for example, for a new mother. In an office atmosphere or in the library, I am much more productive. Part of this is because when others around you are being productive, it can make a person want to do the same. Finally, I think that it is an important point to think about the fact that computers do have problems and this could negatively affect a company as was mentioned during this groups presentation. Virtual office technology is increasing, yet it will never be the same as face to face contact.
ReplyDeleteMy initial reaction to this is unease. I don't think I'd feel comfortable with a fake "office" ... and wouldn't that be a high-cost technology? To have every person's home set up with large screens, just so they could feel like they're at an office when they could just actually go to the office?
ReplyDeleteThis also touches on the simulacrum issue - panoramic image displays, tiled display systems, image-based modeling, immersive environments - this is like a comp sci nerd's version of Main Street, USA at Disneyland.
I do think there are benefits to virtual offices, but I also don't think there's a huge issue with people actually going to an office to work. It's a time to socialize, have a life outside their home and family, etc.