2b working practices

How organisations use ICT2b – Working Practices

Introduction

In this presentation, we shall be looking at how ICT influences the way in which both organisations and individuals work. TeleworkingTeleworking Remote WorkingRemote Working Office-based WorkingOffice-based Working Video ConferencingVideo Conferencing Phone ConferencingPhone Conferencing Instant MessagingInstant Messaging Faxing (already covered)Faxing (already covered)

A typical day in the office!

Teleworking

Teleworking - introduction The introduction of ICT has led to a big

change in the way some people work. Because of the Internet and the ability to communicate with the company network from anywhere in the world, many workers now work part time or full time from home.

Telework is not a specific job in itself, it is a type of remote working, which is usually taken to mean doing your job from home.

There is no legal definition of teleworking, but the essential feature is the use of information technology to enable people to work away from the office.

Teleworking - introduction This could apply to people working full

time or part-time at home, those dividing their time between home and the office, and mainly mobile workers who use their home as an administrative base.

Telework is growing. Over 7 million people in the UK now use IT to help them work away from the traditional office environment, either full time or part time.

It is estimated that the average person spends around 4 hours travelling to work each week. That is a lot of time sat in a car!

Teleworking - equipment PC with office software, E-mail and

broadband Internet connection Printer & Fax Telephone line

VOIP workstation, including suitable

desk and chair filing cabinet, drawers and shelving stationery and office supplies Employers are sometimes responsible

for the provision, installation and maintainance

Teleworking – Advantages for teleworkers You can work the hours you want, so if you like to get

up at 6am and finish by lunchtime, you can do that. Likewise, if you are a sleepyhead, you can stay in bed until noon and work until late in the evening.

It makes possible to work around family commitments, for example young children or elderly parents. Marginalised members of society

You can take a break when you want one. You can stop to chat to a friend if the phone rings or watch something on the TV.

It saves a huge amount of time that would normally be spent travelling to work. There is no need to spend an hour each morning and evening stuck in traffic jams. You can spend that time working instead.

You save the cost of petrol that you would normally need to travel to work and also the cost of car parking tickets. Carbon footprint

Some governments offer finanical incentives to individuals who telework and organisations who promote teleworking

Teleworking – Advantages for employers They can employ people who don't live near

to the office. This means they can choose people who might be willing to work for lower wages. They can even employ people from other countries.

If there is a shortage of skilled labour in the local area then they can get the skilled staff that they need from elsewhere in the country

They might be able to keep hold of valuable members of staff who might otherwise leave, for example, women who have just had a baby.

They can have smaller premises so they save money on rent, car parking space, heat etc.

They get workers who might be more satisfied with their jobs and thus be more committed or work harder.

Teleworking – advantages for the environment – US example 1996 US clean air act Companies >100 employees to

encourage teleworking 2004 Congress passes bill to encourage

teleworking in Federal agencies $$ withheld from agencies that did not do

this Traffic congestion – single car

commuting Urban air polluion Reduced petrol use Expected future increase in number of

employees teleworking

Teleworking – Disdvantages for teleworkers It is hard to feel like you can ever get away from

work. You might end up working longer hours than you

would in an office. You think, 'I'll just do a bit more, I'll just check my email'.

You might always be 'on call'. Because you are at home, the office might think that you are always available to do just a bit more work

Sometimes it can be hard to motivate yourself. There can be a lot of distractions and you might be tempted to do other things rather than work

You can miss out on the social side of work. There is no team spirit, no one to talk to and you can feel lonely

It might affect your career prospects. If a promotion comes up in the office, you might not be thought about for the role.

Teleworking – Disdvantages for employers They are not always sure that people

are putting in the right amount of hours

Work might not be delivered on time Workers might not be at home to

receive an email or urgent telephone call

Work might be of a lower standard than when produced in the office

Hard to motivate staff and have a feeling of a good company spirit.

Teleworking – Jobs & Skills telesales and marketing customer service consultancy and professional

services, such as accountancy or HR administration

writing, editing, research and translation

some types of administrative work

Teleworking – Jobs & Skills time management and self-

discipline motivation self-sufficiency communication technology

Remote Working

Remote Working Staff working away from main office

E.g. On-site Make use of a remote / satellite office

that provides relevant facilities Permanent / Temporary

Remote Access software RAS (Remote Access Services) Wide Area Networks (WAN) VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) "Thin Client" access: Citrix/Microsoft

Terminal Services Internet/Intranet Access

Remote Working Sun Microsystems, for example, has

converted 17,000 employees to its 'iWork' scheme for remote working and more than half its workforce now have no assigned office. Instead, they can reserve shared work places or work from home. Through iWork, Sun is cutting 30 per cent of its office space.

Productivity gains associated with flexible working schemes can also be substantial. A recent study showed that two-thirds of remote workers in Europe had achieved higher productivity, and that absenteeism had been significantly reduced in some countries.

Office-based Working

Office-based working

Virtually all workers with clerical or management responsibilities are involved at some point in being based in an office environment. They will usually be working at a desktop machine which is connected to a LAN and possibly a WAN. Office workers will need to have access to the same sort of equipment that remote workers do.

Video Conferencing

Video Conferencing A videoconference (also known as a

videoteleconference) is a set of interactive telecommunication technologies which allow two or more locations to interact via two-way video and audio transmissions simultaneously. It has also been called visual collaboration and is a type of groupware. It differs from videophone in that it is designed to serve a conference rather than individuals.

http://www.wmnet.org.uk/vc/

Phone Conferencing

Phone Conferencing

Three or more people dial a number with a special code and are then able to hear the others speak and discussions can take place.

Conferencing issues

When do I use a web-conference?

When do I use a phone-conference?

When do I use a reservationless conference?

When do I use a video-conference?

Instant Messaging

Instant Messaging

Instant messaging (IM) is a form of real-time communication between two or more people based on typed text. The text is conveyed via computers connected over a network such as the Internet.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instant_messaging

Faxing

Why bother with fax machines when almost everything put on paper has been produced in digital format? http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/3320515.stm

Homework

1. Search the BBC news website (www.bbc.co.uk/news) for an article relating to any of the issues covered in this presentation.

2. Come prepared to give a summary of your article in the next lesson.

3. Study notes for test.