June 21, 2004
MEMORANDUM FOR CHIEF HUMAN CAPITAL OFFICERS |
FROM: |
KAY COLES JAMES
DIRECTOR
|
Subject: |
Telework Events
|
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is hosting two events to share information
on implementing effective telework programs within the Federal Government. The
first is a special meeting designed for those sixteen agencies that reported
less than two percent employee participation in telework in the OPM 2002 Report
to Congress. The meeting at OPM on June 22, 2004, from 9:00 to 11:30, in room
7310, will be a roundtable discussion at which participants can share lessons
learned from their efforts to increase telework participation. Telework coordinators
from those agencies have been contacted by email and follow-up phone calls.
The second event is a webinar on June 24, 2004, from 11:00 to 12:00, open to
all agency managers and Telework coordinators. To date, 200 agency managers
and coordinators have signed up to participate.
During the webinar, participants will hear from nationally-recognized telework
consultant Gil Gordon, who will draw on more than twenty years of practical
experience implementing telework, as well as a panel of managers who will share
their "from-the-trenches" experiences using telework as a human capital
management tool. It's easy for busy managers to attend a "Webinar"
- all that's needed is a phone line for audio and an Internet connection for
browser access to the Power Point presentation. It can be done from anywhere.
While agencies have made some efforts to develop effective telework programs,
more work needs to be done and our team is ready to provide whatever assistance
is necessary. Our survey data show that by the end of 2003 only 14 percent of
the eligible Federal workforce was teleworking. The goal set by Congress was
75 percent of eligible employees' teleworking by the end of 2003. As you can
see, agencies are far short of meeting the goal. While the benefits of telework
to employees and the community have been apparent for some time, we now recognize
that telework is a key component of emergency planning and preparation, as well
as efforts to increase productivity though reductions in traffic congestion.
There is a real incentive for agencies to develop telework programs they can
integrate into continuity of operations planning.
My staff is available to assist you in achieving your telework goals. We can
offer additional assistance to any agency that is not currently meeting the
targets set by Congress. Members of the Work/Life Group may be reached at (202)
606-1313. OPM's 2003 Telework Report to Congress is available at www.telework.gov.
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