Eleanor- Informal Report Writing Assignment-Recommendation Report PDF

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Date:

November 19, 2019

To:

Jane Smith, Director, Risk Solutions

From:

Eleanore Sayo, Supervisor, InsurQuote Vancouver

Subject: Team Challenges with Telecommuting

In response to your request, I asked of our Human Resources a report of the number of employees who are currently working in our offices across Canada and in the United States. I have learned that 20 percent of these employees are in Vancouver and the remainder are in our various offices in Canada and the United States. Most of these employees are telecommuting regardless of their location. I also interviewed members from different locations regarding the complaints that they have raised about telecommuting. This report communicates the importance of the problem, three possible solutions and a recommendation based on what I have learned. Predicament of Telecommuting: Communication and Feeling of Belonging Telecommuting has been on the rise since workers has been able to connect to work from home. More and more workers have found it convenient and they have found that they like the flexibility that this has provided. It has been found that telecommuting improves productivity, has improved self-confidence, quality of work, continuity of work, and has increased work time (according to eztalks.com). It has enabled team members from different cities and countries to collaborate on projects which in turn has contributed to the growth of our company. Although telecommuting has been a boon, our employees have also been experiencing a disconnect from personal interaction and there is the problem of different time zones. Those affected have been voicing their concerns. Here are some of the concerns they have raised: • • • • •

Responses to inquiries are not answered in a timely manner Social interaction with team members is non-existent The different time zones affect the timeliness of decision making Team members are not aware of what other team members are working on Messages are sometimes misinterpreted

The concerns raised have merit and have a significant impact on the overall performance of the company. If decisions are not received in a timely manner, this would affect the quality of the work and would delay the completion of projects. After

Jane Smith

November 19, 2019

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doing some research and getting opinions by doing a survey from the affected team members, here are some recommendations that can alleviate the problems the team members are facing. Recommendation 1: Continued Use of Email Emails changed the way we communicate. The familiarity of use for email makes it easy for team members to use. It is cost effective. Several people can be included in one email. Reports and images can be attached and sent through one email. Emails are easy to track since it leaves a digital trail. Team members can reach each other at any time of the day, anywhere in the world. The ease that email has brought in communication can also create problems. Emails are being sent any time of the day which can be a problem if a team member is in a different time zone and is unable to open the email right away. An important email may be overlooked when a team member receives multiple emails. Creating an email also takes away productivity time. There were also instances when a team member was left off the list of recipients or was sent to the wrong person. Email does not fulfill the need for social interaction of team members. Recommendation 2: Creating a Team Webpage in the Intranet The intranet has grown to be a complex and robust system. Aided by the lower cost of memory disks, we can now have our teams create their own webpage. In this webpage, they can upload their reports thereby keeping all members updated on the project they are working on. Other software the team uses can also be added to the page. The webpage can also be used as a reference page. Due to its availability, anybody can check the team’s progress at anytime and anywhere . The webpage can be used as a digital social bulletin board where the team members can connect socially. The main problem with having a webpage is the technical skills of the team members. Not all members are well versed in creating a webpage or how to upload a report or update the page. This will take training and would take away productivity time. Maintaining and updating a page also takes time. Some team members might be reluctant to take on the responsibility of updating a report on a webpage. Recommendation 3: Aligning Work Schedule and Team Building The biggest difficulty faced by our teams is different time zones. Team members are distributed among the different time zones from the east to the west. This has created a dilemma on how to communicate at a time where everybody is available. Team members need to compromise so they can coordinate their work time. Those who work in the east can start work later and those in the west can start at an earlier time (Davis,

Jane Smith

November 19, 2019

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2017). This would promote a closer relationship among them. Decisions can be made during the time that they meet. Response time will be shortened. Team members are updated on what other team members are doing. This will foster team togetherness. Another way to improve team cohesiveness would be to bring all team members together once a year in one city and conduct an annual team building activity (Seiter, 2015). This will promote a feeling of belonging among the employees. This will also be the time that they can meet and get to know each other. There might be some reluctance from team members in changing their work schedule. Another would be the cost associated with gathering employees in one place. Conclusion and Recommendation: Telecommuting has helped our company grow into what we are now. It has enabled our employees the freedom and flexibility to be creative. Distance has also caused communication problems that affect overall productivity and social interaction between team members. Aligning the work schedules of team members can alleviate the communication problem since members are able to reach out to each other immediately. Decisions are made and responses are received in a timely manner. Doing an annual team activity might be costly but the benefits are greater than the costs. Members get to know each other better and would foster better teamwork.

I recommend that we get the team members to align their work schedules to a time that is all agreeable to them and have an annual team building activity to foster better teamwork and camaraderie.

Jane Smith

November 19, 2019

Page 4 of 4

References

10 Benefits of Telecommuting for Employers And Companies(n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.eztalks.com/telecommuting/benefits-of-telecommuting.html Davis, J. 2017. How to Schedule Meetings that Cross Time Zones. Retrieved from https://www.bridging-the-gap.com/working-around-the-clock-the-abcs-ofscheduling-meetings-that-cross-time-zones/ Seiter, C. 2015. Working Across Multiple Time Zones: Tools and Strategies That HelpConnect. Retrieved from https://open.buffer.com/working-across-multipletime-zones-tools-strategies-help-us-connect/...