For over 25 years, I have been running Fentress Inc. as a virtual company. We employ policy consultants, analysts, architects, and information technology professionals. Every single employee in the company works from their home.
You will find plenty of people who work out of their homes, including telecommuters, part-time employees, and independent consultants. However, it is still rare to find an entire company where the employees work full-time from home offices. In the past, teleworking has led to questions of credibility and a perceived lack of professionalism. Appearing to be a “normal” company with dedicated employees, corporate benefits, and a solid management structure when everyone works from home has become a much easier task than it used to be.
Times are Changing
Many years ago, I had a young man interview for a job opening in the company. I discussed the company structure and the specific position over the phone before the interview, including our status as a virtual company and everything it entails. However, we never even made it to the interview when he arrived at my home. Before promptly leaving, he said, “I thought you were kidding me over the phone. This is not a real company!”
Thankfully, times are rapidly changing. Technology and progressive thinking toward businesses have come a long way in the past couple of years. Not only are we now allowed the freedom to work from home as professionals, but many corporations and government agencies are implementing strategies to move more and more of their numbers to work out of their homes.
What used to be a challenge is now a fantastic opportunity for employees and businesses. Working from home has many benefits, including a better balance between work and home life, a happy, productive workforce, no commute, lower company overhead, the freedom to choose a place to live that is not tied closely to a job, and being environmentally responsible.
As I add to this blog, I hope to provide some insight into what it is like to work from home and run a virtual company successfully.
