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SA Journal of Human Resource Management

http://www.sajhrm.co.za SA Tydskrif vir Menslikehulpbronbestuur

Original Research

Article #298

(page number not for citation purposes)

Teleworking in SouTh AfricA: employee

benefiTS And chAllengeS

Authors:

Nicholas Baard¹

Adèle Thomas¹

Affiliations:

¹Department of Business

Management, University

of Johannesburg, Gauteng,

South Africa

Correspondence to:

Adèle Thomas

email:

adelet@uj.ac.za

Postal address:

Department of Business

Management, University of

Johannesburg, PO Box 524,

Auckland Park 2006,

South Africa

Keywords:

human resources practices;

management practices;

survey; telecommuting;

virtual working

arrangements

Dates:

Received: 03 May 2010

Accepted: 24 Aug. 2010

Published: 28 Oct. 2010

How to cite this article:

Baard, N., & Thomas, A.

(2010). Teleworking in

South Africa: Employee

benefits and challenges. SA

Journal of Human Resource

Management/ SA Tydskrif

vir Menslikehulpbronbestuur,

8(1), Art. #298, 10 pages.

DOI: 10.4102/sajhrm.

v8i1.298

This article is available

at:

http://www.sajhrm.co.za

Licensee: OpenJournals

Publishing. This work

is licensed under the

Creative Commons

Attribution License.

ABSTRACT

Orientation: Virtual working arrangements present possible benefits to organisations and their

employees. However, in South Africa, few organisations have implemented teleworking as a

specific form of virtual work. The benefits and challenges to teleworkers are therefore largely

unknown.

Research purpose: The present study aimed to identify employee perceptions of personal

benefits and challenges of teleworking.

Motivation for the study: The study sought to contribute insights for South African business

practice in this under-researched field.

Research design, approach and method: This exploratory study collected primary data

through the distribution of an electronic questionnaire to 94 employees at three South African

organisations, with a 67% response rate. The survey included both closed and open-ended

questions that were analysed using a combination of quantitative and qualitative techniques.

Main findings: Most of the internationally identified benefits of teleworking were supported

by participants, such as improved productivity, increased job satisfaction and organisational

loyalty, decreased stress and improved work-life balance. Challenges identified included an

increase in working hours and the lack of availability of training opportunities.

Practical/managerial implications: The possible employee benefits and challenges of

teleworking may assist organisations in devising teleworking practices and procedures that

leverage benefits and address challenges inherent in this form of work practice.

Contribution/value add: The study aims to supplement the dearth of knowledge about

teleworking, specifically in the South African context, to assist organisations practically in their

development of this form of virtual work arrangement for the benefit of organisations and their

employees.

1Vol. 8 No. 1 Page 1 of 10

INTRODUCTION

Key focus of the study

Internationally, virtual working arrangements are increasingly becoming part of the traditional

organisational structure (Ingham, 2006). However, the globally documented benefits of teleworking

for employees and organisations, as a particular aspect of virtual working, have largely not been

studied in South Africa. The present study aims to explore the perceived benefits to and challenges

of teleworking for employees in three selected companies in South Africa.

Background to the study

In response to competitive imperatives, a visible artefact of the changing work environment is the

global expansion of organisational boundaries (Watson-Manheim, Chudoba & Crowston, 2002).

In this regard, Helms and Raiszadeh (2002) and Thorne (2005) state that the creation of virtual

organisations is the only response to the current chaos of global competition; Jackson, Gharavi

and Klobas (2006) note how IT-enabled organisations are making greater use of virtual teams as an

integral part of their operations. Kowalski and Swanson (2005) indicate that IBM®, Boeing®, AT&T®,

Merrill Lynch® and Hewlett-Packard® are a few of the multinational organisations that are making

a success of virtual working arrangements in their global operations, indicating the size and type

of organisation that can adopt such a structure. According to Morgan (2004), Microsoft founder, Bill

Gates claims that by 2050, 50% of all workers globally will be virtual workers.

Trends from the research literature

In terms of international markets, the benefits of teleworking to employees have been noted to

include increased job satisfaction and work life balance (Heneman & Greenberger, 2002), increased

productivity (Siha & Monroe, 2006) and a reduction in stress related to the home environment,

particularly for women (Martinez-Sanchez, Perez-Perez, Vela-Jimenez & de-Luis Carnicer, 2008).

Ahmadi, Helms and Ross (2000), however, note that disadvantages of teleworking can include

isolation from colleagues and the organisation, lack of support from the organisation and reduced

career opportunities. Studies have also noted an increase in stress related to teleworking employees’

working environments wherein work and home life become inseparable (cf. Kowalski & Swanson,

2005). Management experiences challenges in terms of developing policies and rewards that

ensure that teleworking arrangements function optimally for the benefit of employees (including

teleworkers) and the organisation as a whole (Macky, Gardner & Forsyth, 2008).

Original Research Baard & Thomas

SA Tydskrif vir Menslikehulpbronbestuur

SA Journal of Human Resource Management

http://www.sajhrm.co.za

Article #298

(page number not for citation purposes)

2Vol. 8 No. 1 Page 2 of 10

Research objective

The objective of the present study was to explore perceptions of

the benefits and challenges posed by teleworking for employees

in three selected South African companies.

Potential value-add of the study

A search conducted by the authors between 2000 and 2010

within the SABINET, Gale, Ebscohost and Emerald academic

publication data bases for specific articles on teleworking

in South Africa identified only four articles, (1) Odendaal

and Roodt (2002) compare Australian and South African

perspectives on implementing exible work practices, (2)

Horwitz, Bravington and Silvis (2006) identify key factors in the

effectiveness and failure of virtual teams, (3) Nortje, van Brakel

and Rensleigh (2004) discuss the context of the information

environment within which teleworkers work and (4) Langa

and Conradie (2003) explore the perceptions and attitudes of

teleworking among public sector officials. The present study,

accordingly, aims to contribute to this small existing body of

theory on teleworking, specifically in the South African context,

to assist organisations practically in their understanding and

development of this form of virtual working arrangement for

the benefit of organisations and their employees.

Literature review

The virtual organisation

The current global business environment is characterised by

(1) an increasing scarcity of human and material resources as

well as by (2) an increase in competition from existing and new

global and local players (Akkirman & Harris, 2005; Johnson,

2004; Siha & Monroe, 2006). Demands such as these require that

organisations are exible to address competition effectively

(Gibson, 2003). Conner (2003) highlights how, through virtual

working arrangements, organisations can locate many business

activities in low-wage countries, creating economies of scale for

global operations and reducing input costs.

Panteli and Duncan (2004) and Shekhar (2006) note that there

is not one universally accepted definition of virtual working

arrangements. Helms and Raiszadeh (2002) describe four types

of virtual working arrangements:

• A working environment which is 100% virtual, for example,

internet organisations where all non-core business

functions are outsourced.

• Hollow firms that, through workforce reduction and

reengineered business processes, are ‘doing more with less’

(Helms & Raiszadeh, 2002, p. 240).

• Those that outsource some of the non-core business

functions.

• Virtual offices or teams that form part of the greater

organisation but which operate virtually to a greater extent

than the rest of the organisation.

Similarly, Conner (2003, p. 133) notes three degrees of

‘virtualness’:

• The teleworking or telecommuting arrangement where

technology allows employees to work away from the office

and each other.

• The front-line arrangement where front office activities are

taken closer to the customer.

• The cyber link arrangement where many different

organisations work together through technology to achieve

set goals.

Shekhar (2006) describes the degree of ‘virtuality’ of

organisations as the proportion of the activities of the

organisation that are completed through non face-to-face

interactions facilitated by information and communication

technologies.

Akkirman and Harris (2005) describe the virtual workplace

as one that is not bound by the traditional limitations of

organisational structures, reporting relationships and job

descriptions. Beasty (2005) notes that the difference between

an office on site and an employee’s spare bedroom is becoming

increasingly insignificant with less of an effect on business

activities. Tietze and Musson (2003, p. 439) suggest that changes

to the duration of the working period, that is, to the timing

of work and to the utilisation of work time, constitute ‘the

fundamental temporal structure that defines the experience of

work’.

Within the virtual office, Helms and Raiszadeh (2002) indicate

the possibility of four alternatives, each with their own

distinctive benefits and challenges:

• Teleworking or telecommuting, the most common type

of virtual employment, is an arrangement whereby an

employee has a desk or office at the organisation but is able

to work from home on an agreed basis a few days a week.

• ‘Hotelling’, common with consultancy firms, is where

employees have no fixed offices or desks, but reserve spaces

for the times when they will be present on the premises.

• Home workers are employees who work from home on a

daily basis and never commute into the office.

• Fully mobile workers are those who do not have an office

at all, but spend time on the road visiting customers and

working from customers’ premises on a full time basis, a

common approach with sales people and auditors.

Johnson (2005) includes in his definition of the virtual

organisation, managers based at their organisations’ offices

but who manage widely dispersed employees, as another

alternative within the virtual office environment. Similarly,

Siha and Monroe (2006, p. 456) include the group, ‘occasional

home worker’, as part of the virtual working community,

referring to those employees who extend working hours while

at home utilising cellular telecommunications technology.

Benefits of virtual working arrangements

As with any business decision, ideally, prior to choosing a

virtual working arrangement, the purpose and benefits

sought for all stakeholders need to be clearly understood.

The description of virtual organisations being revolutionary

in nature and unconstrained by the material aspects of

organisational structures, a view noted by Thorne (2005), needs

to be tempered by considering the benefits and challenges

posed by virtual working arrangements. Virtual working

arrangements are not suitable for all employment types and

need to be assessed by organisations in terms of appropriateness

prior to embarking on any such arrangement (Baruch & Yuen,

2000; Morgan, 2004; Watad & Will, 2003).

Baruch (2003), Heneman and Greenberger (2002) and

Ingham (2006) note that when considering virtual working

arrangements, the main benefits sought by organisations

relate to reducing the costs of physical accommodation, the

streamlining of operations, increasing productivity and

attracting and retaining employees through greater employee

exibility and loyalty. O’Brien and Hayden (2007) add two

further reasons for the promotion and development of virtual

working arrangements, (1) allowing organisations to manage

variable workloads to deal with peak periods of demand and

(2) creating additional and suitable coverage over the weekends

or holidays for specific business areas. Kowalski and Swanson

(2005), Morgan (2004) and Shekhar (2006) suggest that such

practices also lead to greater customer service over extended

hours, improved speed with which organisations can respond

to and resolve customer issues as well as enable the sourcing of

specialised staff who may be spread across the globe.

Virtual working arrangements are sometimes used as reward

mechanisms, allowing dedicated and hardworking employees

to work from home, thereby building trust and loyalty between

employees and management (Kurland & Egan, 1999). In this

regard, Heneman and Greenberger (2002) and Johnson (2004)

SA Journal of Human Resource Management

Original Research

Article #298

Teleworking in South Africa: Employee benefits and challenges

note how virtual workers often remain at the organisation for

longer periods, positively affecting employee retention and

reducing hiring costs. In this vein, Wilsker (2008) found that

64% of employees would turn down a 20% pay rise if they could

continue working according to a virtual arrangement. Non-

wage benefits can also be as effective in retaining employees

as paying higher than market related salaries (Kowalski &

Swanson, 2005) and can improve employees’ morale, job

satisfaction and work-life balance (Hamilton, Gordon &

Whelan-Berry, 2006; Martinez-Sanchez et al., 2008). Wilsker

(2008) states that the average full-time teleworker within a

virtual working arrangement in the USA, regardless of salary

scale, receives an annual salary increase of $8400 due to

the reduced expenses that result from teleworking (vehicle,

clothing, parking, food and insurance costs). Wilsker (2008)

further notes that organisations can annually add $20 000

per full-time teleworking employee to their bottom lines if all

potential savings to the organisation are calculated. Meadows

(2007) indicates a reduction in sick leave as another financial

benefit to organisations utilising teleworking arrangements.

Martinez-Sanchez et al. (2008) add that women may derive the

most benefit from virtual working arrangements, specifically

teleworking arrangements, because of family commitments and

Ahmadi et al. (2000) note that virtual working arrangements

can assist employees in reducing home stress and can afford

dual-career couples a balance between work and home life.

Johnson (2004) states that such family-friendly employment

policies are increasingly being used as tools to attract and

retain employees and to encourage women to return to the

workforce. Kepczyk (1999) and Patrickson (2002) observe that

organisations are able, through virtual working arrangements,

to include people who were previously excluded from the

employee pool due to parental responsibilities, being physically

disabled or being unable to travel the distance required from

home to office. This is an important benefit in times of global

scarcity of talented human capital (Heneman & Greenberger,

2002). Virtual working arrangements may also encourage older

Challenges of virtual working arrangements

In seeming contrast to the growing awareness of virtual

working arrangements internationally, O’Brien and Hayden

(2007) state that the actual adoption of virtual working

arrangements is still a passive strategy within the business

world and is not taken seriously enough to be implemented

as part of corporate-wide strategy. Kowalski and Swanson

(2005) advance that the reasons for this lack of implementation

include the perception that teamwork suffers, the potential

negative impact on employees who have less time to socialise

with co-workers, organisational information security concerns

and the lack of global reach of broadband technologies. To these

perceived constraints, Johnson (2004) and Martinez-Sanchez et

al. (2008) add that (1) exible working arrangements are not

always viewed as priority in business, (2) the perception exists

that those who work exible hours are not really working and

(3) a belief exists that it is difficult to manage staff who work

exible hours.

Some of the challenges to organisations considering the

establishment of virtual working arrangements (Kepczyk,

1999) include:

• Insurance of the home office environment and the

equipment contained therein.

• Security requirements relating to equipment and data

movement.

• Local laws governing activities at private residences.

• The provision of remote technical support.

Legal issues surrounding virtual working arrangements and

insurance, compensation and other such issues differ between

countries and have not yet been established (Tidd, 1999).

O’Brien and Hayden (2007) note that the abuse of information

technology and communication tools, such as using equipment

for personal use or allowing family members access to such

resources, is a potential downside of virtual working if

employees are not properly managed throughout the process.

Johnson (2004) suggests that virtual working arrangements