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Governor Perdue makes his position on telework very clear:   “As a rural Georgian and a “techie,” I made a commitment to working to bring high-speed Internet to rural Georgia. I also committed to working on teleworking and other technological advances that will inevitably promote Georgia as a desirable, advanced state in which to relocate business.” The State of the State’s Technology by Governor Sonny Perdue, TechLINKS Magazine May/June 2003 

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ARC Survey Shows Traffic, Air Quality Top Citizen Concerns: The Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) recently surveyed regional citizens to identify what they consider to be top strengths, challenges and goals of our region. The ARC easy the effort, called Platforms for Progress, "will provide regional decision-makers with a clear idea of future priorities and a way to measure progress toward them." Early results show the following: 

When asked what the biggest problem facing the region today, respondents ranked as followed: 

1. Traffic
2. Sprawl and explosive growth
3. Crime
4. Water and environmental issues
Air quality ranked as the most important factor in good quality of life. Next were: 
• Reduced traffic congestion
• Community appearance
• Quality of elected leadership
• Effective public transportation system
ARC Action Newsletter, Vol #, 1 2003
Platforms for Progress Report
 

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"Georgia's technology work force grew faster last year than that of any other large "cyberstate" a nationwide study reported Tuesday. Georgia added 3,507 tech employees, an increase of 2.05 percent, raising its total to 174,216, according to the Cyberstates 2002 study released by AeA, the trade group formerly known as the American Electronics Association. Overall, Georgia is ranked 11th in technology employment.” 
Atlanta Journal & Constitution 
June 26, 2002
 

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"Imagine working two extra weeks a year—without pay.  That's essentially what metro Atlantan’s did in 2000, according to a national transportation report released Thursday. The average driver wasted 70 hours a year stuck in traffic, up eight hours from the previous year. That's on top of normal commuting time. The gridlock cost Atlanta commuters a combined $1.9 billion in time and fuel or $1,350 per motorist, the report from Texas A&M University found.”  
Atlanta Journal & Constitution 
June 21, 2002 

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"New U.S. Census data show the number of Georgians working at home grew between 1990 and 2000 by almost 44,000. Nearly 80 percent of the new homeworkers live in metro Atlanta, where the average commute lengthened by more than five minutes a day in the last year alone."  Knowledge workers employed by large and small employers "...helped fuel a 67 percent jump over the past decade in the number of Georgians who work at home - the third-highest increase in the nation. Only Nevada and Arizona grew by a greater percentage." 
A Look at Telecommuting in Georgia by Kyle Wingfield
The Associated Press, June 16, 2002 
 

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"Every weekday, nearly 2 million Atlanta adults send e-mail.  
That's seven out of every 10 grown-ups. And they like to send a lot of e-mail. About 53 percent of e-mail users send more than five a day. Nineteen percent send more than 20 a day. A lot of e-mail users say the Internet has brought them closer. Nearly half say they have a closer relationship with family members because they're able to stay in touch through e-mail. About 57 percent say the same about friendships."  
AJC METRO POLL, Atlanta Journal & Constitution 
 


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  "It's really about making intelligent choices,   and how you prefer to spend your time."
Michael Dziak, InteleWorks, Inc. 

Almost 32 million people telecommuted full time or part time in 2002: An increase of 2 million from 2000, according to the research firm Cahners In-Stat/MicroDesign Resources.  
Any Workplace Will Do
 By RACHEL KONRAD, Associated Press 
May 26, 2003 

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Companies are being forced to support the bottom-up, grassroots, work-from-anywhere way of life without benefiting from any top-down cost savings from shedding office space. Read this compelling article pointing out the ironies involving corporate spending on technology, but avoidance of teleworking for its employees. One market segment, however, is catching on in a big way. 

Telework set to transform call centers
By Toni Kistner  Network World, 02/03/03
  

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Technology-Based Telework Enablers Continue to Grow:  "Technology consultants at Stamford, Conn.-based Gartner predict that by 2005, instant messaging will eclipse e-mail as the primary online communication tool and be integrated into half of the applications used by businesses to interact with customers."  Instant messages go to work No longer a teen craze: Providers like AOL now peddling their products to businesses.  

Shelley Emling 
 Atlanta Journal & Constitution, Cox New York Correspondent 
Saturday, April 19, 2003

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Survey: Design flexible work arrangements and/or  telecommuting to address absenteeism. Findings in a recent Productive Workforce survey indicate that the annual cost of absenteeism to employers in the united States is from $30 to $50 billion. Survey participants reported that the top three causes of absenteeism were personal responsibilities, health problems and inappropriate use of personal leave. Among the ten best practices for addressing absenteeism listed by Productive Workforce was to “Design flexible work arrangements and/or arrangements for telecommuting.”  
Workforce Magazine, September, 2002 (P58)
 

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About 62 percent of large U.S. corporations plan to deploy mobile wireless data solutions within the next two years. Of those, 79 percent cited e-mail as the driving force behind that intent.    
Yankee Group's 2002 Corporate Survey 
techupdate.zdnet.com/ Nov. 12, 2002

46% of all workers are employed by companies that allow flexible work schedules "As of 2002, some 46% of all workers are employed by companies that allow flexible work schedules, and some 63% of those workers work a flexible schedule at least once a week, notes research firm Yankelovich." 
New Book Announcement by Jeff Zbar 
"Teleworking & Telecommuting: Strategies for Remote Workers and Their Managers" August 20, 2002 

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US DOT Quantifies Secondary Costs of  Traffic Accidents  
It appears as if there are yet more reasons to telework. "US Motor vehicle crashes cost $230.6 billion a year in lost productivity, property damage and disruptions, a Transportation Department study found. Expenses include $81.3 billion in lost household and market productivity, $59 million in property damage, $32.6 billion in medical treatment, $25.6 billion in travel delays, $15.1 billion for insurance administration, $11.1 billion in legal services, $4.5 billion in work disruptions and $1.4 billion in emergency services, according to the report based on 2000 data."  
Atlanta Journal & Constitution, May 10, 2002  

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Study Projects Over Half USA Workers to be Mobile by 2006: New York, NY, March 18, 2002: A study by Access Markets International (AMI) Partners, Inc., an industry-leading market intelligence consulting firm focused on global IT, Internet and Communications, projects over half of the entire U.S domestic workforce to be mobile by 2006 totaling 67 million mobile workers. The company says that these mobile workers will stay connected with their companies via wireless data/Internet (WDI) technology. AMI predicts the WDI commercial user base would nearly double every two years - from 3.7 million users in 2001 to over 26.4 million in 2006. Click here for more details on this study. 

 


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In their zeal to sell their products to an ever growing audience, some vendors are sending incorrect messages. We ask that as you develop your marketing and communications message for telework applications that you NOT include the following images: 

• Pets
• Children
• Video Games
• Swimming Pools
• Laundry Baskets
• Big Cushy Chairs
• Bunny Slippers

"Our hypothesis is that (wireless) devices and services will have an even greater impact in the next five years than the Internet did in the past five years." 
Technology Trends of Tomorrow: The PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP's Tech Forecast
Presentation before the June 2001 Business & Technology Alliance (B&TA) Meeting
Terry Retter of the PwC Tech Center
Reported by TechLINKS

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Too often, ''the wrong people are sent home,'' said Harvey Levitt, a manager for DecisionOne Corp., a computer-maintenance company in Frazer, Pa. ''You need to be able to function alone. There's no one to talk to, and you have to like that.''  
Telecommuting not for all. But millions of workers staying at home doing it 
Knight-Ridder Newspapers 
Thursday, June 21, 2001

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Cause and effect: The man moved to Alpharetta from Cincinnati in August to become an executive for a local company. It appears as if he unwittingly may have discovered a clear cause and effect of metro Atlanta traffic challenges:  "I love the fact that gas is so much cheaper here," he said. "I have no complaints. The only thing I don't like about Atlanta is traffic."  
Metro Atlanta: Explosive growth comes at steep price 
Atlanta Journal & Constitution, June 30, 2002 

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It's all in what you believe: "Remember in the 1950s they said we'd all drive flying cars and work from home? Well, we're not there yet," says Steven MacLaughlin, chief knowledge officer at Indianapolis-based Expidant, an interactive services firm that has chosen not to use telecommuting. "You can't replace the need to solve a problem by working together, face to face. When you don't have that, it causes problems, and people are just starting to realize that." 

Telecommuting gets stuck in the slow lane
USA Today
June 25, 2001

Parenting and working are both full-time jobs: "Sara Jane Whitman, 24, just started working at home several days a week. She spends her time on the computer, as well as caring for her newborn, Isabella. I enjoy it, but phone calls can be a challenge," says Whitman, a senior account executive at PepperCom. "I can be on the phone with a client. You never know when she could start screaming."" 
Telecommuting gets stuck in the slow lane
USA Today
June 25, 2001

Each month we'll feature a photo that shows precisely what NOT to do in a mobile office situation.  
 

Does this photo from a national cellular  service provider promote unsafe driving habits?

Send us your absurd telework photo, and if we use it,   we'll send you a free copy of the new book Telecommuting Success