Measuring Teleworkers' Productivity

Enhanced productivity is one of the chief benefits of a properly designed and deployed telework program. The question remains, though: How do you define and measure productivity, as it applies to employees who telework? Net.Worker columnist, Jeff Zbar interviewed Patricia N. Smith -- an experienced manager of teleworkers for a major multinational company -- on this very subject. As it happens, Ms. Smith is also pursuing a Master's degree at Fairleigh Dickinson University and is writing her thesis on measuring teleworker productivity.

Here are some recommendations based on what Ms. Smith's research has discovered so far:

• Think of Productivity as a Combination of ingredients
  Output, time on a project, feedback (positive or negative) from customers and co-workers, availability during work hours are all part of the equation for defining teleworker productivity.
  
• Establish Written Guidelines
  Smith says that measuring delivery should first be based on written guidelines, leaving nothing to the imagination or interpretation about what is expected and when it's due.
  
• Establish a Firm Timetable
  Set up firm dates when all the work on a project is due and make sure all team members know these dates.
  
• Solicit Feedback
  Ask peers, co-workers and clients how the teleworker in question has performed.

Ms. Smith's thesis is still a work in progress -- as is a true definition of "teleworker productivity". However, when that work is done and a definition is arrived at, you will find out about it at this web site.

To find out more