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Computer industry

The Dark Side of Virtual Offices: People Problems Rise as Tech Revolution Gains Momentum

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

As the trend of moving employees into virtual offices, also known as "mobile offices" or "home offices," continues to gain momentum in the US, people problems are surfacing. Many companies, including those like General Electric, Xerox, and Compaq Computer, are forcing hundreds of thousands of workers into mobile offices, causing morale problems, burnout, and even provoking valued employees to quit. While short-term savings are significant, the long-term effects on productivity and employee satisfaction remain unclear.

Key Takeaways:

  • Employers are finding that forcing employees into mobile offices can cause morale problems, and even provoke valued employees to quit.
  • Many workers burn out, surrounded day and night by high-tech tools of their trade, and short-term savings may mask new, harder-to-measure cost increases.
  • Highly paid mobile employees might have to spend too much time doing low-end chores, like mailing or filing, which used to be handled more cheaply by clerks.
  • Some companies, such as AT&T, are approaching mobile offices in new ways, stopping making the virtual office mandatory and bringing employees into the decision-making process.
  • Employee dissatisfaction and burnout are common issues in mobile work arrangements.
  • The long-term impact of mobile offices on productivity still isn't clear, and new concerns are emerging about the effects on employee well-being.

Statistics:

  • Compaq Computer's sales and administrative costs have dropped to 12 per cent of revenue from 22 per cent after moving to home office operations.
  • Perkin-Elmer Corp closed 35 branch offices by basing 300 sales and customer service people in their homes.
  • AT&T says mobile offices have increased by 15 to 20 per cent the time its salespeople spend with customers.
  • IBM has seen shorter meetings among mobile workers, with the 15-minute introductory chat before getting to the agenda eliminated.
  • Hundreds of thousands of workers have been forced into mobile offices by companies like General Electric, Xerox, and Compaq Computer.

Sources:

  • Wall Street Journal, article by Sue Shellenbarger, February 10, 1994 (no date mentioned for the article itself, only the publication date of the paper)

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