Checklist for supervising telecommuters

The following checklist addresses specific management steps to better supervise telecommuters.

• Establish patterns and means of communication that make sense with the workforce including telecommuters. Plan meetings and conferences (including teleconferencing) mindful of telecommuters schedules. Increase the number of communications to telecommuters initially to replace former office contacts. Solicit input from all participants.

• Devote more time to monitoring and managing change processes when the assignment starts and ends.

• Carefully redesign jobs and office activities to accommodate telecommuters days in and out of the office. For example, if the work unit celebrates all the birthdays in a month by having lunch together on the last working Friday of the month, double check that practice with the telecommuters schedules.

• Implement objective methods of performance management and decrease the dependence of input from physical observations.

• Counsel telecommuters on effective work organization. Stress the importance of communication and deadlines.

• Encourage contact and dialogue between telecommuting and nontelecommuting peers.

• Use technology. For example, have telecommuters attend routine meetings via speaker phone.