Title: Work/Life Balance in Technology Industry

The seed of change - of a flexible workstyle, starts here with those, like you, comfortable with technology.

The advantage that technology-saavy people, like you and me have today so exceeds the current standards and cultures and traditional perceptions of WORK that we need to collectively define the new "way" in which people work and help the world evolve.

My credentials? In 1991, I wrote a paper titled: "Telecommuting: Practical for Business?" and I am among the first to try "TeleWork" at Microsoft Corporation where I have worked for 10 years. I am grateful to be established in a company willing to tacke new paradigms like this and commend the company for braving this out with me.

I'm also fairly new to Wiki and Blogging but see massive potential, so I'm going to experiment a bit here and hopefully you will be tolerant.

I am a mother of 3 (but don't let that stop you from reading my blog. What I have to share pertains to moms, sex-in-the-city career women, geeky young men, college grads, jocks (okay, maybe not some jocks), but it can work for anyone who has a life outside of work AND are responsible and bright enough to realize that your company needs you to deliver results in order to justify paying you.

Results.

It's the pivotal key to success if you plan to do this with me. I have committed to it and I hope to share my insights and failures with you here. To date, here is what I've learned:

• Results (not hours) are the new currency in the world of work. Without clearly articulated goals, measurements and outcomes as a foundation, the flexibility factor can fail before it even begins.
• Managers fear teleworkers (understandably). They envision being the only one in he office when the Director or VP comes down the hall and needs resources for their presentation tomorrow. The best advice I've heard to-date: Work together with your peers on a schedule of "in office coverage" so that there is not a mass exodus every day in the office.
• Equity must be addressed. Everyone in the organization must feel the freedom to define their version of "work/life balance" and the effort must be coordinated by the team.
• Management of Telework is for the individual to own, not for the manager to give. The
• Telework is not a right, it is a privelege and must be approved by the management staff and peers

Join me, will you? --KrisWA