Workplace
July, 2
SANTA CLARA, CA—For the last few days, we’ve been exploring the findings of the Wakefield Research Study commissioned by Citrix. It offers insights on the top frustrations of modern work life, which include annoying coworkers and bad bosses. Today, we’ll look at what it’s worth to employees to tap into flexible work arrangements, like virtual office space.
A majority of workers who have never worked remotely (64 percent) identify at least one extremely popular perk or pleasure they’d be willing to give up in order to work from home (essentially working from a virtual office) just one day a week:
32% would give up lunch breaks
25% would give up alcohol
20% would give up coffee
How about the home office fashion front? If you work from a virtual office, you can work in your pajamas all day. But, according to the Citrix study, most people don’t. They just dress down. Read more...
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June, 29
SANTA CLARA, CA—Yesterday, we looked at how virtual offices could help you avoid bad bosses. Now, we’ll dive deeper into that topic and also explore the most common excuses worker offer for not going to work.
A new Wakefield Research Study commissioned by Citrix offers up insights on the top frustrations of modern work life, which include annoying coworkers and bad bosses. The survey also shows just how creative workers are getting to avoid both. Could virtual offices set you free from the dishonesty and creativity?
Many people are getting more creative at avoiding their bosses. Thirty percent of office workers say they’ve scheduled time off around their bosses’ vacation in order to maximize the time they won’t have to spend together. This isn’t just a junior-level ploy: 39 percent of executive and manager-level workers admit to this move compared to 27 percent of mid- and junior-level workers. Read more...
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June, 28
SANTA CLARA, CA—Yesterday, we looked at how virtual offices could help you avoid annoying workplace bonding events that sap your productivity.
A new Wakefield Research Study commissioned by Citrix offers up insights on the top frustrations of modern work life, and that was one of them. But there are other office stressors that a virtual office can help you avoid, or at least minimize.
While some find best friends at the office, for example, we also have to work with difficult colleagues:
49% of respondents work with a “know-it-all”
44% work with a “whiner”
51% believe that a “constant complainer” would be the most annoying type of person to sit next to every day
Then there are bad bosses. The Citrix survey shines a light on bad bosses, too. Although a virtual office can’t help you totally avoid the bad boss syndrome, telecommuting from a virtual office can at least help you minimize contact—or groan in frustration without anyone but your dog Fido hear you. Read more...
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June, 27
SANTA CLARA, CA—Office life can be downright annoying, stressful and even counter-productive. (That’s why I like working from a virtual office instead—you skirt most of those unpleasant realities.)
A new Wakefield Research Study commissioned by Citrix offers up insights on the top frustrations of modern work life, like working with a “know-it-all,” going to company events when we’d rather stay at home and rest, or dealing with a supervisor who consistently takes credit for all your great ideas.
The Citrix study also reveals some of the creative—and downright wacky—measures people are taking to avoid going into the office. (Again, some of this could be avoided in a virtual office setting.) Finally, the study highlights what these frustrated employees are willing to sacrifice to tap flexible work opportunities, like working from a virtual office, even one day a week.
Today, let’s take a look at what Citrix calls “workplace bonding bombs.” According to the study: Read more...
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June, 26
TOKYO, JAPAN—Global businesses and modern technology are fueling an increase in telecommuting and remote working across Japan—and that is leading to greater employee satisfaction and lower operating costs. So says Hays Specialist Recruitment Japan KK. Virtual offices fit right into Japan’s telecommuting mix.
According to the latest Hays Journal, more organizations than ever are encouraging employees to work remotely. Why? It’s all about increasing productivity, cutting costs and improving employee motivation by helping workers achieve better work-life balance. And that’s part and parcel of the benefits of virtual offices.
“Rapid advances in technology such as video and teleconferencing, smartphones and tablets are taking people out of the office and allowing them to work almost anywhere, anytime,” says Christine Wright, Japan-based Hays Operations Director. Read more...
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June, 25
CHICAGO—On Friday, we looked at how many Americans are giving up their vacations for financial reasons—and how allowing employees to telecommute from a virtual office a few days over the summer might help reduce burnout.
The article was based on a CareerBuilder survey, which found that 19 percent of workers said they can’t afford to go on vacation, which is down from 24 percent in 2011. The CareerBuilder survey also offered other vacation trend insights.
1. The duration of vacations is shrinking post-recession. This year, 17 percent of workers took or planned to take a vacation for 10 days or more. That’s down from 24 percent in 2007. Read more...
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June, 22
CHICAGO—Many Americans are giving up their vacations in the wake of a recession that left them without much savings on which to splurge. But it seems bosses are finding more time for getaways than employees. So says a new survey from CareerBuilder.
Specifically, the survey reveals that 81 percent of managers have taken or plan to take vacation this year. That compares to 65 percent of full-time employees. Where do virtual offices fit into this dilemma? We’ll get to that in a minute. First, let’s look at the trend lines.
The number of American workers who have already taken or plan to take a vacation is up from 61 percent in 2011. But the number of vacationers falls well below pre-financial crisis levels. In 2007, 80 percent of full-time workers went on vacation or expected to take a vacation that year. Read more...
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June, 19
PHILADELPHIA—Stress. New research from Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is taking another look at the issue. So listen up and learn how a virtual office can help you reduce your stress levels.
CMU’s Sheldon Cohen and Denise Janicki-Deverts worked to determine if psychological stress is associated with gender, age, education, income, employment status and/or race and ethnicity—and if the distributions of stress across demographics were constant over the 26-year period.
The results: women, individuals with lower income and those with less education reported more stress. They also show that as Americans age, they experience less stress and that retirees consistently report low levels of stress.
“We know that stress contributes to poorer health practices, increased risk for disease, accelerated disease progression and increased mortality,” says Cohen, the Robert E. Doherty Professor of Psychology within CMU’s Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences who is a leading expert on the relationship between stress and disease. Read more...
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June, 18
BOULDER, CO—I’ve been saying for a while that FlexJobs is one of the best places online to find virtual office jobs. Well, now it just got a little better.
That’s because FlexJobs just acquired Tjobs. That means there’s more telecommuting, virtual office, part-time and otherwise flexible job listings from which to choose.
“This is an exciting time for work-life balance positions as we continue to see the listings grow,” shared Sara Sutton Fell, CEO of FlexJobs. “By purchasing Tjobs, we are providing a one-stop destination for job seekers who would like to find a professional, home based job.”
If you’ve never heard of Tjobs, you can take a hint at its telecommuting nature from its moniker. Tjobs has been dedicated to advancing telecommuting as a viable work option for both job-seekers and employers for more than 16 years. Virtual offices also go back that far, and even farther, but only in recent years have virtual office jobs become high-profile in the media. Read more...
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June, 15
LOS ANGELES—Yesterday we looked at CareerBuilder’s annual Father’s Day survey, which revealed that new dads aren’t maximizing paternity leave—and we looked at how virtual offices can help.
Let’s dive into some additional study findings as well as some helpful tips for fathers on paternity leave. (This tips could also apply to dads who work from a home all year round in a virtual office.)
The CareerBuilder survey reveals that 22 percent of fathers say their work has negatively affected relationships with their children and 26 percent said work negatively affected relationships with significant others. How can dad get a better work-life balance going?
Alex Green, general counsel for CareerBuilder and father of three offers some tips. (My comments are in parentheses.) Read more...
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