The purpose of this case study is to explore the benefits of and problems with telecommuting. It also provides an understanding of the importance of technological support in making telecommuting successful. Technological advances have made it feasible to redefine where work is done. The traditional notion of an office as the place where someone goes to work seems to be going the way of the buggy whip, the eight-track tape, and the stenographer.
             Companies such as Procter & Gamble, Compaq, Hewlett-Packard, AT&T, and IBM have partially or fully eliminated traditional offices for field sales and customer service. Other companies have eliminated offices for workers including researchers, real estate managers, and accountants. For these businesses, work is becoming something you do, not a place where you go. They are successfully replacing offices with technology; portable computers, cellular phones, and fax machines all enable remote or mobile work. This paper will elaborate on how IBM – Indiana implemented telecommuting, perspectives of the employees, perspectives of IBM, advantages to society, the effectiveness of Wiley's leadership, the mobility concept, and tips for managing in the new environment.
             Why did IBM-Indiana decide to adopt telecommuting?
             In 1993 IBM-Indiana was contemplating further head-count reductions on top of earlier drastic decrease in staff. The goal was to reduce worldwide employment to 225,000 by the end of 1994. IBM real estate manager John Frank proposed an alternative option to lying off additional staff. His proposal could possibly save the required overhead expense by reducing the required amount of office space by allowing employees telecommute from offices in their home. This proposal was accepted and implemented for some 300 people in three months' time. The technology was available to enable IBM to redefine the concept of the traditional office; portable computers, cellular phones, and fax machine...