From: Michael Saunby <mike@chook.demon.co.uk>
Subject: What should I join?
How do other employed teleworkers handle career progression?
My annual review will be coming up soon and I will have been a teleworker for 9 months. My agreement with my employer gives them the right to end my teleworking agreement after 12 months and although the teleworking has gone well and I would like to continue I can see a few possible problems.
1. If I get promoted then I'll be expected to supervise staff. I have experience of staff supervision but in my present role it isn't necessary, which is one reason why I was allowed to switch to teleworking. The organisation I work for has no experience of managers teleworking full-time.
2. I'd be happy to turn down a promotion, or I may not get one this time around but what happens then? I doubt I could carry on doing what I do now for another 20+ years.
I suppose what I want to know is whether it is possible to be a teleworking employee long term, and if it is then what arguments would normally persuade an employer to support this?
Michael Saunby
From: "Janet Leatham" <janet@btinternet.com>
Subject: Re: What should I join?
> How do other employed teleworkers handle career progression?
We have a saying: Teleworking's a lifestyle decision - not a career move. I'm looking forward to reading what others have to say on this one.
Janet Leatham
From: "Leslie Peck" <lespeck@email.msn.com>
Subject: Re: What should I join?
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 10:16:20 -0000
Michael - in general, the argument revolves around money. If you are cost-effective, they'll let you continue - if not, they won't.
One of the great advantages of contract teleworking is I don't have to worry about promotion and the only one I supervise is me.
Les Peck
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 04:57:00 -0500
From: Horace Mitchell <horace_mitchell@compuserve.com>
Subject: Telework and career progression
Hello Michael Saunby.
Hope you don't mind but I changed the <label> for your very interesting question about:
>I suppose what I want to know is whether it is possible to be a teleworking employee long term, and if it is then what arguments would normally persuade an employer to support this?<
I think like most telework questions, part of the answer is <it all depends> . . .
There are quite a lot of companies where telework has become part of the way the company operates, and the only question then is, <to what extent can this particular job be done at or from home?> If lots of people are teleworking, including managers, then the whole ethos of the enterprise has taken it on board and you would telework or not dependent on how you and your immediate manager see the effectiveness of this. For an employee and a company the main question should be <what's the best way to get the job done> and the most common answer is <partly at home, partly in the office, partly on the road>.
But your question sounds like your company hasn't got to that stage yet. If telework is unusual in a company and (for example) some staff may telework but supervisors and managers are expected to be in the office, you would be taking a risk if you are the first person to challenge this. So you either take the risk internally, or get a job with a company that is further down the track, or bite the bullet and put the job and the career first, and only telework as much as the company thinks is appropriate.
Hope this makes sense! And I hope your interesting question brings some other answers . . .
Best wishes, Horace Mitchell.
From: Michael Saunby <mike@chook.demon.co.uk>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 11:08:15 +0000 (GMT)
> Hello Michael Saunby.
> Hope you don't mind but I changed the <label> for your very interesting question about:
Thanks for changing the subject. When I started the original note it was my intention to ask if joining the TCA or some other body would be useful for non self-employed teleworkers. Then I started editing...
> There are quite a lot of companies where telework has become part of the way the company operates.
This certainly isn't true for mine. Teleworking has been used mostly for women returners after maternity leave, and for a few other who are often on the road. Technically it isn't a problem but culturally it seems to be a barrier at present. I started teleworking after I told my management I was planing to leave in order to move closer to my wife's family (her mother is quite ill). I suppose in truth neither side saw it as a long term solution but we both got something we wanted at the time.
What are the realistic chances of finding telework with another company if things did go wrong? My present contingency plan is to find work locally and suggest teleworking when the time seems right. But hopefully it won't come to that.
> Best wishes, Horace Mitchell.
Michael Saunby
From: "Janet Leatham" <janet@btinternet.com>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 12:26:17 -0000
My first comment on this thread was a bit glib.
In truth (relatively) we don't come across too many employed teleworkers - and the reasons for this would provide an excellent study for a thesis I think. It's to do with organisational structures and philosophy as well as individual self-interest.
That aside I have seen many examples of employed teleworking coming to an end which had nothing whatsoever to do with the success/failure of the teleworking experiment. eg:
 | A new manager who can't/won't handle it |
| Redundancy/lack of work (the money aspect which Les mentioned) |
| Restructuring for whatever reason |
| etc |
I won't go on. When you are an employed teleworker (and I was one once) you tend to think all decisions regarding whether you continue teleworking are dependent on the fact that you are teleworking. But on-site there is a whole lot more going on which you don't know about - because you are not on-site and don't 'get a sniff of the wind'.
Janet Leatham
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 12:39:10 +0000
From: "terry.deering" <terry.deering@virgin.net>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
I think we have to realise that, as in all aspects of telecommunication, we are considerably behind the USA in it's use. I have just returned from 2 years working in Connecticut where I managed a team of 14 PICK software engineers 3 of whom lived some distance away (Florida, Georgia and Colorado) and several of whom (including myself) telecommuted from home regularly. This company is still using me as a developer from the UK and there is talk of 500 Data Entry staff being employed in Ireland.
The major problem here seems to be cultural rather than technical - I can't even get employers to agree to a telephone interview when wanting to work as a simple freelance programmer.
All we can do is keep knocking at the door and hope that employers will see the light!!
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 05:00:07 -0800
From: Charlie Tabbut <ctabbut@discover.net>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
At 12:39 PM 1/25/98 +0000, you wrote:
>The major problem here seems to be cultural rather than technical - I can't even get employers to agree to a telephone interview when wanting to work as a simple freelance programmer.
>All we can do is keep knocking at the door and hope that employers will see the light!!
I can attest to your experience (as I have encountered it many times myself), but there is a light at the end of a tunnel (hopefully not a train!)... over the last 2-3 years, at least now I usually get a response to my replies (they don't laugh and hang up as much and we actually get to discuss rates and logistics more), and persistence does pay off...
Regards,
Charlie Tabbut
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 15:27:19 -0500
From: Amanda Harrington <AmandaHarrington@compuserve.com>
Subject: Telework and career progression
I am very interested in this topic - partly relates to my interest in how to use email as a support for coaching and mentoring which seems to me to be key in career development.
Whether salaried or self-employed, we all want to develop our lives in some way - here I think we get into what is the definition of career. From some of the contributions to this discussion, it seems people may be mostly concerned with promotion within their current company. But if we define career as the work areas of our lives and that careers may well involve moving upwards, sideways and even in some people's definitions, downwards - in terms of social status, amount/level of work, money etc, - then I guess we would all be interested....
So, as a self-employed person who mostly works on clients' sites but is building up other stuff - my interest in my own career progression means being constantly on the look out for new opportunities - new contacts to learn with/from - and in that vein I have found it very valuable to email with like-minded people to develop ideas, which may turn into work (paid or unpaid) but certainly helps inform any work I do...
now this may be taking the discussion too far away from where it started ...
has anyone managed to establish helpful contact with formal or informal mentors??? or had helpful career development contact via email???
Amanda Harrington
From: Chris Rams <ChrisRams@aol.com>
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 03:53:09 EST
Subject: Re: What should I join?
In a message dated 24/01/98 17:54:36 GMT, you write:
<< We have a saying: Teleworking's a lifestyle decision - not a career move. I'm looking forward to reading what others have to say on this one.
Well, yes, but I found it to be both, when I went into IT training. I do the teaching on site and the prep at home, along with the other projects in which I am involved.
Chris Rams
From: "OSCAR CUENCA ROCA" <ocu@arrakis.es>
Subject: RE: What should I join?
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 10:21:07 +0100
Dear Friedns
In response to the question if it is possible to be a teleworking employee long term, I think "yes", just give more responsabilities, let more decision margin to each teleworker, and they will feel as their own managers with their own company, by this way they will have a long term compromise, it is also a good idea to fix long term goals, not only short term goals.
Oscar Cuenca
25th.jan.1998(Sapin-Barcelona)
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 10:56:50 +0100
From: jerome terrier <terrier@normandnet.fr>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Concerning the career evolution (career being taken in the Amanda's general sense), being self-employed or being an employee working at home amounts to the same : you sell your work instead of selling your time. If you manage to get your work done more efficiently, through better time management or learning new skills or moving to do things that you feel are more suited to yourself or whatever, then you will have a positive evolution of your career, even if it concretisize by being laid off by your present employer.
However, concerning the evolution of one's career (career being taken in the corporate sense, which, I believe, was the sense of the original Michael Saunby post), and provided the teleworking culture isn't developped, then I suppose we cannot be optimistic in the same way. Some of the reasons have already been given.
If one feels that the "success" of one's corporate career is important, then the only way to go would be to stop teleworking until the company teleworking policy changes (I suppose that could be a long time in some places) or until the local conditions change (new hierarchy, or new "rapport de forces" or whatever) and you will never be sure as to when it will be.
Else, the solution would be to switch to a self-employed activity. Doing the same job for the same company, why not, and for other companies as well. Or some other jobs as well. Which means a change in the lifestyle more important than just switching from site employee to teleworking employee (or back). But I am sure that more and more teleworking employees will adopt that solution (wether of their own will, or constrained by their entreprise, which sees here a benefit in flexibility)
And once you are a self-employed teleworker, I am following Amanda on that ground, you need to find some kind of relationships that will substitute to the sort of feedbacks you get from your enterprise when you are an employee (the annual review being an example, chatting around a cup of tea another, etc..),
>has anyone managed to establish helpful contact with formal or informal mentors??? or had helpful career development contact via email???
Not really yet, and it's a pity, but I am just starting to try to move from a position where I perform plenty of services to a few enterprises in my physical neighbourhood (Normandy) to a position where I will do more specialized tasks for a lot more companies wherever they are (legal, contracting and billing aspects being an important issue here)
jirtme terrier
inginieur&infographiste multimidia
From: Michael Saunby <mike@chook.demon.co.uk>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 11:01:25 +0000 (GMT)
Thanks to everyone for their thoughts on this matter. I'll quote a few (small) pieces from Ammanda Harrington.
> I am very interested in this topic - partly relates to my interest in how to use email as a support for coaching and mentoring which seems to me to be key in career development.
Key to skill/competence development perhaps, but career development can be extremely political too.
> From some of the contributions to this discussion, it seems people may be mostly concerned with promotion within their current company.
I've changed jobs before, and no doubt will in the future, but I expect for most people it makes sense to consider your career from where you are now.
> has anyone managed to establish helpful contact with formal or informal mentors??? or had helpful career development contact via email???
I started an Open University MBA last year. The OU Business School makes a lot of use of the OU's "First Class" conferencing and email system to enable discussions and email between students and tutors. There do seem to be advantages to a closed system like this, discussions stay on topic and the participants already have something in common. I have noticed though that there are many students who do not contribute by this means (it isn't compulsory).
Michael Saunby
From: "Trevor Locke" <telework@foobar.co.uk>
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 15:26:02 +0000
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Amanda Harrington wrote
> has anyone managed to establish helpful contact with formal or informal mentors??? or had helpful career development contact via email???
Perry Smit of Holland and I have been working on the development of a European Small Business mentoring project, which will be run by e-mail. By small business we also mean teleworkers and other self-employed persons.
The backbone of the project is the list server which has now been established. This will enable all those involved in the project to share e-mail with each other. Once persons seeking advice and support have been linked to a suitable mentor, their communication will continue by 1-1 e-mail (largely).
Included within the ambit of this project is the ability of the mentor to give advice to the teleworker or business person, on how to export goods or services to his or her country. Whilst mentors could be located in the same country as the person they are mentoring, we foresee a lot of the dialogue taking place between persons in different countries.
E-mail is an ideal medium for this because it is fast and cheap.
I will let this list have further details of this project as soon as I have set up a web site to support it.
Regards
Trevor Locke
Event & Project Services -
Conferencing and Project Development
http://members.aol.com/eventserv/
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 17:12:17 -0500
From: Horace Mitchell <horace_mitchell@compuserve.com>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Janet said:
>In truth (relatively) we don't come across too many employed teleworkers<
I think that in open online forums focused on <telework> we can expect to encounter more self-employed and less employed teleworkers.
Employed teleworkers' communications focus is either internally (contacts within the company) or externally to customers/suppliers on behalf of the company, or social - but not to <other teleworkers generally>.
Self employed and entrepreneurs have much more reason to network in a general sense unless there is a good online network focuse on their particular work interests.
I suspect the same is true of <offline> networking - unless the job requires it, employees are less likely to join general work-oriented networks than self-employed people.
As the differences and boundaries between employment and self employment erode, this may well change. Increasingly employees need to re-sell and even reinvent themselves to stay in employment so they need some of the skills and know how that self employed need!
Best to all, Horace.
From: "Trevor Locke" <telework@foobar.co.uk>
Date: Tue, 27 Jan 1998 16:39:31 +0000
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Amanda Harrington wrote
> has anyone managed to establish helpful contact with formal or informal mentors??? or had helpful career development contact via email???
Perry Smit of Holland and I have been working on the development of a European Small Business mentoring project, which will be run by e-mail. By small business we also mean teleworkers and other self-employed persons.
The backbone of the project is the list server which has now been established. This will enable all those involved in the project to share e-mail with each other. Once persons seeking advice and support have been linked to a suitable mentor, their communication will continue by 1-1 e-mail (largely).
Included within the ambit of this project is the ability of the mentor to give advice to the teleworker or business person, on how to export goods or services to his or her country. Whilst mentors could be located in the same country as the person they are mentoring, we foresee a lot of the dialogue taking place between persons in different countries.
E-mail is an ideal medium for this because it is fast and cheap.
I will let this list have further details of this project as soon as I have set up a web site to support it.
Regards
Trevor Locke
Event & Project Services -
Conferencing and Project Development
http://members.aol.com/eventserv/
From: Michael Saunby <mike@chook.demon.co.uk>
Subject: What should I join?
How do other employed teleworkers handle career progression?
My annual review will be coming up soon and I will have been a teleworker for 9 months. My agreement with my employer gives them the right to end my teleworking agreement after 12 months and although the teleworking has gone well and I would like to continue I can see a few possible problems.
1. If I get promoted then I'll be expected to supervise staff. I have experience of staff supervision but in my present role it isn't necessary, which is one reason why I was allowed to switch to teleworking. The organisation I work for has no experience of managers teleworking full-time.
2. I'd be happy to turn down a promotion, or I may not get one this time around but what happens then? I doubt I could carry on doing what I do now for another 20+ years.
I suppose what I want to know is whether it is possible to be a teleworking employee long term, and if it is then what arguments would normally persuade an employer to support this?
Michael Saunby
From: "Janet Leatham" <janet@btinternet.com>
Subject: Re: What should I join?
> How do other employed teleworkers handle career progression?
We have a saying: Teleworking's a lifestyle decision - not a career move. I'm looking forward to reading what others have to say on this one.
Janet Leatham
From: "Leslie Peck" <lespeck@email.msn.com>
Subject: Re: What should I join?
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 10:16:20 -0000
Michael - in general, the argument revolves around money. If you are cost-effective, they'll let you continue - if not, they won't.
One of the great advantages of contract teleworking is I don't have to worry about promotion and the only one I supervise is me.
Les Peck
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 04:57:00 -0500
From: Horace Mitchell <horace_mitchell@compuserve.com>
Subject: Telework and career progression
Hello Michael Saunby.
Hope you don't mind but I changed the <label> for your very interesting question about:
>I suppose what I want to know is whether it is possible to be a teleworking employee long term, and if it is then what arguments would normally persuade an employer to support this?<
I think like most telework questions, part of the answer is <it all depends> . . .
There are quite a lot of companies where telework has become part of the way the company operates, and the only question then is, <to what extent can this particular job be done at or from home?> If lots of people are teleworking, including managers, then the whole ethos of the enterprise has taken it on board and you would telework or not dependent on how you and your immediate manager see the effectiveness of this. For an employee and a company the main question should be <what's the best way to get the job done> and the most common answer is <partly at home, partly in the office, partly on the road>.
But your question sounds like your company hasn't got to that stage yet. If telework is unusual in a company and (for example) some staff may telework but supervisors and managers are expected to be in the office, you would be taking a risk if you are the first person to challenge this. So you either take the risk internally, or get a job with a company that is further down the track, or bite the bullet and put the job and the career first, and only telework as much as the company thinks is appropriate.
Hope this makes sense! And I hope your interesting question brings some other answers . . .
Best wishes, Horace Mitchell.
From: Michael Saunby <mike@chook.demon.co.uk>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 11:08:15 +0000 (GMT)
> Hello Michael Saunby.
> Hope you don't mind but I changed the <label> for your very interesting question about:
Thanks for changing the subject. When I started the original note it was my intention to ask if joining the TCA or some other body would be useful for non self-employed teleworkers. Then I started editing...
> There are quite a lot of companies where telework has become part of the way the company operates.
This certainly isn't true for mine. Teleworking has been used mostly for women returners after maternity leave, and for a few other who are often on the road. Technically it isn't a problem but culturally it seems to be a barrier at present. I started teleworking after I told my management I was planing to leave in order to move closer to my wife's family (her mother is quite ill). I suppose in truth neither side saw it as a long term solution but we both got something we wanted at the time.
What are the realistic chances of finding telework with another company if things did go wrong? My present contingency plan is to find work locally and suggest teleworking when the time seems right. But hopefully it won't come to that.
> Best wishes, Horace Mitchell.
Michael Saunby
From: "Janet Leatham" <janet@btinternet.com>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 12:26:17 -0000
My first comment on this thread was a bit glib.
In truth (relatively) we don't come across too many employed teleworkers - and the reasons for this would provide an excellent study for a thesis I think. It's to do with organisational structures and philosophy as well as individual self-interest.
That aside I have seen many examples of employed teleworking coming to an end which had nothing whatsoever to do with the success/failure of the teleworking experiment. eg:
| A new manager who can't/won't handle it |
| Redundancy/lack of work (the money aspect which Les mentioned) |
| Restructuring for whatever reason |
| etc |
I won't go on. When you are an employed teleworker (and I was one once) you tend to think all decisions regarding whether you continue teleworking are dependent on the fact that you are teleworking. But on-site there is a whole lot more going on which you don't know about - because you are not on-site and don't 'get a sniff of the wind'.
Janet Leatham
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 12:39:10 +0000
From: "terry.deering" <terry.deering@virgin.net>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
I think we have to realise that, as in all aspects of telecommunication, we are considerably behind the USA in it's use. I have just returned from 2 years working in Connecticut where I managed a team of 14 PICK software engineers 3 of whom lived some distance away (Florida, Georgia and Colorado) and several of whom (including myself) telecommuted from home regularly. This company is still using me as a developer from the UK and there is talk of 500 Data Entry staff being employed in Ireland.
The major problem here seems to be cultural rather than technical - I can't even get employers to agree to a telephone interview when wanting to work as a simple freelance programmer.
All we can do is keep knocking at the door and hope that employers will see the light!!
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 05:00:07 -0800
From: Charlie Tabbut <ctabbut@discover.net>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
At 12:39 PM 1/25/98 +0000, you wrote:
>The major problem here seems to be cultural rather than technical - I can't even get employers to agree to a telephone interview when wanting to work as a simple freelance programmer.
>All we can do is keep knocking at the door and hope that employers will see the light!!
I can attest to your experience (as I have encountered it many times myself), but there is a light at the end of a tunnel (hopefully not a train!)... over the last 2-3 years, at least now I usually get a response to my replies (they don't laugh and hang up as much and we actually get to discuss rates and logistics more), and persistence does pay off...
Regards,
Charlie Tabbut
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 15:27:19 -0500
From: Amanda Harrington <AmandaHarrington@compuserve.com>
Subject: Telework and career progression
I am very interested in this topic - partly relates to my interest in how to use email as a support for coaching and mentoring which seems to me to be key in career development.
Whether salaried or self-employed, we all want to develop our lives in some way - here I think we get into what is the definition of career. From some of the contributions to this discussion, it seems people may be mostly concerned with promotion within their current company. But if we define career as the work areas of our lives and that careers may well involve moving upwards, sideways and even in some people's definitions, downwards - in terms of social status, amount/level of work, money etc, - then I guess we would all be interested....
So, as a self-employed person who mostly works on clients' sites but is building up other stuff - my interest in my own career progression means being constantly on the look out for new opportunities - new contacts to learn with/from - and in that vein I have found it very valuable to email with like-minded people to develop ideas, which may turn into work (paid or unpaid) but certainly helps inform any work I do...
now this may be taking the discussion too far away from where it started ...
has anyone managed to establish helpful contact with formal or informal mentors??? or had helpful career development contact via email???
Amanda Harrington
From: Chris Rams <ChrisRams@aol.com>
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 03:53:09 EST
Subject: Re: What should I join?
In a message dated 24/01/98 17:54:36 GMT, you write:
<< We have a saying: Teleworking's a lifestyle decision - not a career move. I'm looking forward to reading what others have to say on this one.
Well, yes, but I found it to be both, when I went into IT training. I do the teaching on site and the prep at home, along with the other projects in which I am involved.
Chris Rams
From: "OSCAR CUENCA ROCA" <ocu@arrakis.es>
Subject: RE: What should I join?
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 10:21:07 +0100
Dear Friedns
In response to the question if it is possible to be a teleworking employee long term, I think "yes", just give more responsabilities, let more decision margin to each teleworker, and they will feel as their own managers with their own company, by this way they will have a long term compromise, it is also a good idea to fix long term goals, not only short term goals.
Oscar Cuenca
25th.jan.1998(Sapin-Barcelona)
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 10:56:50 +0100
From: jerome terrier <terrier@normandnet.fr>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Concerning the career evolution (career being taken in the Amanda's general sense), being self-employed or being an employee working at home amounts to the same : you sell your work instead of selling your time. If you manage to get your work done more efficiently, through better time management or learning new skills or moving to do things that you feel are more suited to yourself or whatever, then you will have a positive evolution of your career, even if it concretisize by being laid off by your present employer.
However, concerning the evolution of one's career (career being taken in the corporate sense, which, I believe, was the sense of the original Michael Saunby post), and provided the teleworking culture isn't developped, then I suppose we cannot be optimistic in the same way. Some of the reasons have already been given.
If one feels that the "success" of one's corporate career is important, then the only way to go would be to stop teleworking until the company teleworking policy changes (I suppose that could be a long time in some places) or until the local conditions change (new hierarchy, or new "rapport de forces" or whatever) and you will never be sure as to when it will be.
Else, the solution would be to switch to a self-employed activity. Doing the same job for the same company, why not, and for other companies as well. Or some other jobs as well. Which means a change in the lifestyle more important than just switching from site employee to teleworking employee (or back). But I am sure that more and more teleworking employees will adopt that solution (wether of their own will, or constrained by their entreprise, which sees here a benefit in flexibility)
And once you are a self-employed teleworker, I am following Amanda on that ground, you need to find some kind of relationships that will substitute to the sort of feedbacks you get from your enterprise when you are an employee (the annual review being an example, chatting around a cup of tea another, etc..),
>has anyone managed to establish helpful contact with formal or informal mentors??? or had helpful career development contact via email???
Not really yet, and it's a pity, but I am just starting to try to move from a position where I perform plenty of services to a few enterprises in my physical neighbourhood (Normandy) to a position where I will do more specialized tasks for a lot more companies wherever they are (legal, contracting and billing aspects being an important issue here)
jirtme terrier
inginieur&infographiste multimidia
From: Michael Saunby <mike@chook.demon.co.uk>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 11:01:25 +0000 (GMT)
Thanks to everyone for their thoughts on this matter. I'll quote a few (small) pieces from Ammanda Harrington.
> I am very interested in this topic - partly relates to my interest in how to use email as a support for coaching and mentoring which seems to me to be key in career development.
Key to skill/competence development perhaps, but career development can be extremely political too.
> From some of the contributions to this discussion, it seems people may be mostly concerned with promotion within their current company.
I've changed jobs before, and no doubt will in the future, but I expect for most people it makes sense to consider your career from where you are now.
> has anyone managed to establish helpful contact with formal or informal mentors??? or had helpful career development contact via email???
I started an Open University MBA last year. The OU Business School makes a lot of use of the OU's "First Class" conferencing and email system to enable discussions and email between students and tutors. There do seem to be advantages to a closed system like this, discussions stay on topic and the participants already have something in common. I have noticed though that there are many students who do not contribute by this means (it isn't compulsory).
Michael Saunby
From: "Trevor Locke" <telework@foobar.co.uk>
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 15:26:02 +0000
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Amanda Harrington wrote
> has anyone managed to establish helpful contact with formal or informal mentors??? or had helpful career development contact via email???
Perry Smit of Holland and I have been working on the development of a European Small Business mentoring project, which will be run by e-mail. By small business we also mean teleworkers and other self-employed persons.
The backbone of the project is the list server which has now been established. This will enable all those involved in the project to share e-mail with each other. Once persons seeking advice and support have been linked to a suitable mentor, their communication will continue by 1-1 e-mail (largely).
Included within the ambit of this project is the ability of the mentor to give advice to the teleworker or business person, on how to export goods or services to his or her country. Whilst mentors could be located in the same country as the person they are mentoring, we foresee a lot of the dialogue taking place between persons in different countries.
E-mail is an ideal medium for this because it is fast and cheap.
I will let this list have further details of this project as soon as I have set up a web site to support it.
Regards
Trevor Locke
Event & Project Services -
Conferencing and Project Development
http://members.aol.com/eventserv/
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 17:12:17 -0500
From: Horace Mitchell <horace_mitchell@compuserve.com>
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Janet said:
>In truth (relatively) we don't come across too many employed teleworkers<
I think that in open online forums focused on <telework> we can expect to encounter more self-employed and less employed teleworkers.
Employed teleworkers' communications focus is either internally (contacts within the company) or externally to customers/suppliers on behalf of the company, or social - but not to <other teleworkers generally>.
Self employed and entrepreneurs have much more reason to network in a general sense unless there is a good online network focuse on their particular work interests.
I suspect the same is true of <offline> networking - unless the job requires it, employees are less likely to join general work-oriented networks than self-employed people.
As the differences and boundaries between employment and self employment erode, this may well change. Increasingly employees need to re-sell and even reinvent themselves to stay in employment so they need some of the skills and know how that self employed need!
Best to all, Horace.
From: "Trevor Locke" <telework@foobar.co.uk>
Date: Tue, 27 Jan 1998 16:39:31 +0000
Subject: Re: Telework and career progression
Amanda Harrington wrote
> has anyone managed to establish helpful contact with formal or informal mentors??? or had helpful career development contact via email???
Perry Smit of Holland and I have been working on the development of a European Small Business mentoring project, which will be run by e-mail. By small business we also mean teleworkers and other self-employed persons.
The backbone of the project is the list server which has now been established. This will enable all those involved in the project to share e-mail with each other. Once persons seeking advice and support have been linked to a suitable mentor, their communication will continue by 1-1 e-mail (largely).
Included within the ambit of this project is the ability of the mentor to give advice to the teleworker or business person, on how to export goods or services to his or her country. Whilst mentors could be located in the same country as the person they are mentoring, we foresee a lot of the dialogue taking place between persons in different countries.
E-mail is an ideal medium for this because it is fast and cheap.
I will let this list have further details of this project as soon as I have set up a web site to support it.
Regards
Trevor Locke
Event & Project Services -
Conferencing and Project Development
http://members.aol.com/eventserv/
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