Telecommuters are wired in, for better or worse

Kristen Havens, who markets books online from her Los Angeles apartment, e-mails frequently with her employer, but said that “socially, it is more isolating” than being in an office. Havens, an aspiring screenwriter, also writes a blog, and concedes this may be her way to make up for the lack of watercooler chatter in her life.

But these challenges are offset by perks, said Havens, who doesn’t miss loud co-workers and loves being able to go to the gym at less busy hours.

More than a dozen people who telecommute or work from home said in interviews that they feel ever more connected to the workplace thanks to high-speed Internet connections that facilitate a steady flow of e-mail, teleconferences and instant messaging — the modern day equivalent of a tap on the shoulder. Moreover, the growing reliance on such non-face-to-face communication inside the traditional workplace, suggests to them that the distinction between these two worlds is beginning to break down.

“People do get isolated in the cube,” said Kevin Remlinger, an information technology project manager for San Jose, Calif.-based Cadence Design Systems Inc. who works remotely from his home in Timonium, Md.

By contrast, Remlinger said being a telecommuter forces him to be more proactive about developing solid relationships with co-workers. Remlinger said he spends about four hours a day on teleconferences — with co-workers in India, China, Germany and France and California — and that as a result “we know each other pretty well.”

Jack Nilles, a Los Angeles-based workplace consultant who is widely credited with coining the term “telecommuting” more than three decades ago, said technology has never been the main barrier to a more flexible work schedule. Instead, it has been “the idea fixed in everybody’s head that in order to do useful work you had to be someplace where the boss could keep an eye on you.”

Fortunately that way of thinking is slowly becoming outdated, Nilles said.

Managers like Frudakis are leading the way.

“When you get away from the office environment,” Frudakis said, “you can be more creative in your thought process.”

That said, Frudakis visits PetAg’s Illinois headquarters once a month and jams in as many face-to-face meetings with senior managers as she can. “I really enjoy being around co-workers,” she said.

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