Making the Telework Grade

Today marks the first major deadline for federal agencies to comply with the requirements of the 2010 Telework Enhancement Act. So how prepared were agencies to meet the deadline? According to a new survey by Telework Exchange and Juniper Networks, 86 percent of agency telework managing officers said they will meet the deadline to establish a telework policy.

The survey results, released Tuesday, also found that 84 percent of TMOs will meet the June 7 deadline to determine the eligibility of all employees of the agency to participate in telework, while 74 percent are prepared to notify all agency employees of their eligibility to telework.

In addition, 78 percent of agencies have established a telework training program, while 86 percent have incorporated telework into their continuity of operations plans. Seventy-eight percent also have established a system to collect and track telework data, the survey found.

TMOs also report that the new telework requirements already are having a great impact on the workforce, with 86 percent saying that telework participation has increased over the past six months. The survey found 72 percent of federal employees are eligible to telework and 32 percent are currently doing so. Increase in telework is having significant impacts on job satisfaction (67 percent) and emergency readiness (57 percent), respondents noted.

Still, some challenges with telework remain, with 49 percent of respondents reporting difficulty in capturing and managing data to track program success. Other challenges included management support (46 percent) and technology support (38 percent), the survey found.

Despite those challenges, however, two-thirds of TMOs report confidence in telework information security. For example, 86 percent of agencies have provided information security training to all teleworkers, while 76 percent have established a policy to ensure all IT devices for telework comply with federal security and privacy requirements. Only 54 percent have developed a written telework information security policy.

Meanwhile, On April 29, 2011, the Office of Management and Budget issued a memorandum that required agencies to update policies on telework technology purchases by July 28. Thus far, 30 percent of agencies have updated their policies on purchasing technology to enable and promote telework, the survey found.

Have you been notified of your eligibility to telework? How have the new telework requirements changed the culture at your agency, if at all?