NETWORK WORLD TONI KISTNER'S TELEWORK BEAT 10/12/04 Today's focus: Georgia telework takes hold
Dear [EMAIL PROTECTED], In this issue: * A year in, two programs are seeing good results * Links related to Telework Beat * Featured reader resource _______________________________________________________________ This newsletter is sponsored by Veritas Meta Group Whitepaper Database Infrastructure Performance Challenges: Approaches to Better Manage Application Database and Storage Subsystem Performance Corporate relational databases now manage the majority of business-critical data within the enterprise. IT organizations face continuing challenges in managing increasingly complex, data-driven application environments. Read this white paper to discover several factors which will converge to challenge the IT organization's ability to manage its database software infrastructure. http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=84709 _______________________________________________________________ WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE NEW DATA CENTER? Sign up for Network World's Data Center Newsletter in which Johna Till Johnson and the team at Nemertes Research will provide an ongoing assessment of current data center business drivers and future trends; concrete advice and guidance for IT executives seeking to consolidate data centers, improve disaster recovery, and deploy virtualization techniques. Click here to subscribe: http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=84820 _______________________________________________________________ Today's focus: Georgia telework takes hold By Toni Kistner Editor's Note: Please forgive us for inflicting you with a case of deja vu. Yesterday we incorrectly sent you last week's edition of Telework Beat instead of the new version, below. Our apologies for the inconvenience. It's been a year since we've checked in on Georgia. The state's on our radar for two reasons: Metro Atlanta suffers some of the worst traffic congestion in the country, and Gov. Sonny Perdue got elected in 2002 in part by promising that one quarter of the state's 100,000 employees would be teleworking by 2005. The Governor's Work Away program hit a bump or two since then, but is generally a success. Only 1,500 state employees are teleworking, but 20,000 (20%) are participating in either telework, or flexible or condensed work schedules, says Derrick Dickie, the state's deputy director of communications. "This is a priority of the Governor's; he's committed to getting state employees off the roads during peak hours. He wants to see state employees spending more time with their families and less time in their cars," Dickie says. Since the governor made so much telework noise during the election, some complain that he's performed a bit of a bait-and-switch by passing flextime off as telework (see editorial link below). But that's silly. Success in Atlanta is getting employees off the roads during peak congestion, not counting telework heads. And now that the state's fixed the glitch that was keeping its telework numbers low, they'll begin climbing. In implementing telework, Work Away ran up against what's called a gratuities clause, which requires agencies to set parameters for paying for telework equipment and services. The process took several months, but was completed in July. Like in Austin, Texas, Georgia state employees use their personal PCs and broadband connections to telework (see editorial link below). The state supplies remote access software (in this case Citrix) and help desk support. The other Georgia program marking a one-year anniversary is the Clean Air Campaign's Telework Leadership Initiative (TLI). The program set out to establish telework pilots in private sector companies, providing $10,000 in free training and staff time reimbursements for each. "Oh, Atlanta is happening big time," telework consultant Elham Shirazi says. "We expected to get six or eight applicants, but ended up with 20, from the public, private and non-profit sectors. In the end, we were able to able to meet the needs of 17." GE and the Georgia Technical Authority are among them. "These programs are just shining," Shirazi says. "Many started out with 40 or 50 teleworkers, and have since doubled that. And they aren't just working one or two days a week. Many are working three and four." Why is it going so well? "The remote access infrastructure in these organizations was already there, and it was so well built. Once we added telework, it just flew," Shirazi says. RELATED EDITORIAL LINKS City of Austin bounces back Network World, 10/04/04 http://www.nwfusion.com/nlnetwork735 Work Away Program http://www.gms.state.ga.us/employee/telework.asp The Clean Air Campaign http://www.cleanaircampaign.com/home.asp Budget woes slow state teleworking program The Atlanta Journal-Constitution http://www.nwfusion.com/nlnetwork736 Georgia governor makes good Network World, 09/15/03 http://www.nwfusion.com/nlnetwork737 Georgia plans work-at-home push Network World, 12/30/02 http://www.nwfusion.com/nlnetwork738 _______________________________________________________________ To contact: Toni Kistner Toni Kistner is managing editor of Net.Worker. Contact her at mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] _______________________________________________________________ This newsletter is sponsored by Veritas Meta Group Whitepaper Database Infrastructure Performance Challenges: Approaches to Better Manage Application Database and Storage Subsystem Performance Corporate relational databases now manage the majority of business-critical data within the enterprise. IT organizations face continuing challenges in managing increasingly complex, data-driven application environments. Read this white paper to discover several factors which will converge to challenge the IT organization's ability to manage its database software infrastructure. http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=84709 _______________________________________________________________ ARCHIVE LINKS Archive of the Telework Beat (formerly Net.Worker) newsletter: http://www.nwfusion.com/net.worker/columnists/ Breaking telework and SMB news: http://www.nwfusion.com/net.worker/ _______________________________________________________________ FEATURED READER RESOURCE THE NEW DATA CENTER Today's top companies are accelerating toward Web-based computing. That means building the new data center -- where grids, virtualization, autonomic computing and other big changes shatter the traditional boundaries on applications and information, and bring the extended enterprise to life. Learn about The New Data Center on NW Fusion's Research Center at: http://www.nwfusion.com/topics/datacenter.html _______________________________________________________________ May We Send You a Free Print Subscription? You've got the technology snapshot of your choice delivered at your fingertips each day. Now, extend your knowledge by receiving 51 FREE issues to our print publication. Apply today at http://www.subscribenw.com/nl2 International subscribers click here: http://nww1.com/go/circ_promo.html _______________________________________________________________ SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES To subscribe or unsubscribe to any Network World e-mail newsletters, go to: http://www.nwwsubscribe.com/Changes.aspx To unsubscribe from promotional e-mail go to: http://www.nwwsubscribe.com/Preferences.aspx To change your e-mail address, go to: http://www.nwwsubscribe.com/ChangeMail.aspx Subscription questions? Contact Customer Service by replying to this message. 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