When Should You Ask About Telecommuting During Interview Process?

[Anonymous]

Maybe some can, but very few would actually be productive. This is ripping off the company and ultimately your co-workers.

[Anonymous]

But that's not at all the issue here; yes, there are some people who abuse a telework situation, but there are others (I liek to consider myself one) who are more productive because I telework. Colleagues aren't stopping by, my meeting schedule is reorganzied to be efficient on the days i'm in the office, and I can really focus on work for signficant chunks of time.

But that's a tangent - the question is whether OP shoud ask early in the intevreiw process.

I am 33, GS-14, telework 2 days a week, and think it's perfectly ok to ask in the initial interview. I can see the PP's poitn that perhaps this is a generational issue....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How old are the people here saying they'd be turned off by a question about telecommuting?

How old are those who wouldn't be?

I don't see telecommuting as a benefit the same way that leave is, but as another PP stated, it is a working condition. I think it is perfectly reasonable to ask about it at the first interview IF there is no way you'd be interested in the job if telecommuting weren't an option.

THIS

I totally think that this is a generational issue and maybe the person put off by the question just hires lower-level admin workers who may not even be able to telecommute because the type of work they do is not conducive to telecommuting, but it does not mean that it is not possible for other people.

I work from home, but I have to admit that I cannot work when my child is at home. It is too distracting. I have a home office that is set up just like my business office and I work quite efficiently, but you have to be disciplines and set a schedule for yourself. I think, it works out quite well. Most of the people in my office telecommute. I expect that in the future telecommuting will become a lot more popular especially with rising gas prices and increased traffic on the roads.

[Anonymous]

I'm one of (it seems like) the few who would not be put off by a question about telecommuting. I am 38, and work in an office environment where the jobs that I would be interviewing candidates for are, in a lot of cases, conducive to working at home.

But our company does require anyone working at home to have child care. Obviously, I can dash off an e-mail or two, or check over a memo, or something like that while the kids are around, but I don't think it's appropriate to claim to be working at home while one is also the sole care provider to young kids.

[Anonymous]

+1, you got it right.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How old are the people here saying they'd be turned off by a question about telecommuting?

How old are those who wouldn't be?

I don't see telecommuting as a benefit the same way that leave is, but as another PP stated, it is a working condition. I think it is perfectly reasonable to ask about it at the first interview IF there is no way you'd be interested in the job if telecommuting weren't an option.

THIS

I totally think that this is a generational issue and maybe the person put off by the question just hires lower-level admin workers who may not even be able to telecommute because the type of work they do is not conducive to telecommuting, but it does not mean that it is not possible for other people.

I work from home, but I have to admit that I cannot work when my child is at home. It is too distracting. I have a home office that is set up just like my business office and I work quite efficiently, but you have to be disciplines and set a schedule for yourself. I think, it works out quite well. Most of the people in my office telecommute. I expect that in the future telecommuting will become a lot more popular especially with rising gas prices and increased traffic on the roads.

It may be somewhat of a generation issue but I am 35 and I think it's a bad idea to bring it up in the interview phase, so it's not just generational.

I telework mostly, I'm a lawyer, am involved in hiring other professionals. I don't think your points hold up.

If a person is so incredibly in demand she can go into an interview openly treating telework not like a benefit but part of the job, more power to her. This must apply to so very few people, though. There seems to be an incredible sense of entitlement and self-interest to the point where it harms people. Just look at all the threads recently created by people who say they are scoring interviews but not getting jobs. How many are making mistakes like these? And they don't even realize it, they think their behavior is normal and OK. In a hot economy they may get by, but in a selective hiring phase like this, they remain unemployed. If you have job offers left and right for jobs you want, by all means act entitled in an interview. If you actually want or need the job you're applying for, how about you hold back a little and just wait until you have a bloody offer before you go off defending your interests in the interview.

[Anonymous]

I agree with many that I would hold off on questions about telecommuting until a later interview phase or offer, while perhaps subtly asking about office culture and the like.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:But that's not at all the issue here; yes, there are some people who abuse a telework situation, but there are others (I liek to consider myself one) who are more productive because I telework. Colleagues aren't stopping by, my meeting schedule is reorganzied to be efficient on the days i'm in the office, and I can really focus on work for signficant chunks of time.

But that's a tangent - the question is whether OP shoud ask early in the intevreiw process.

I am 33, GS-14, telework 2 days a week, and think it's perfectly ok to ask in the initial interview. I can see the PP's poitn that perhaps this is a generational issue....

This is a generational issue. I am 45. I would not be happy to hear an applicant for a position in my group ask about telecommuting prior to an offer being extended.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You just have to know that even if telecommuting is an option, people like me would resent you asking during the interview process. If you're willing to blow the job, ask away and don't waste your time. As a general comment, if you are interested enough in the job to apply and consider interviewing, it is foolish to risk it by asking about commuting just to save time. You can learn a lot about the market, what employers are like, and even about yourself and your market value by going through the interview process.

THIS is the issue. For OP, it's not just to save time, it's whether or not the job is realistic for her. That's the point one PP was making I think, telecommuting can be seen as a benefit (like leave, gym memberships) OR for some people it's a major feature of the job (like the nature of the work, amount of travel).

If the salary is high enough, telecommuting wouldn't be an issue, right? I can't telecommute but I make good bank. If I were being paid more poorly, I would more aggressively seek to telecommute.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just had an interview yesterday, am considering leaving my flexible hours, telecommuting, family-friendly government agency for a more demanding private company (opposite of OP it sounds). One of my main concerns is the work-life balance, and if the company doesn't have certain features in place for employes (including telecommuting) it would be a non-starter, and I wouldnt want to waste anyone's time continuing the interview process.

So we got through the interview and they ended wiht the standard "do you have any other questions?" I explained that I was excited by the position, bs bs bs, but one of my concerns was that my current position has great work-life balance, and could they talk about the enviornment at the company. They let the woman on the panel take that (probably why she was there), but she didnt mention telecommuting. So i asked explicitly about it.

I think you ask it early in the process. If you're not willing to take the job without it, then you need to know.

Your work life balance would be worse in the demanding private company. That's why they'd be paying you more.

[Anonymous]

okay, I hadn't thought of it that way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I conduct 2-3 interviews/month and can't stand it when people ask about this during the interview process -- it really puts me off. We do offer some flexibility, but it's just presumptuous and puts potential employers on the defensive. I agree with the advice about asking after you receive the offer. You can always turn down the position if they can't accommodate you.

But how do you feel when they go through a long and time intensive interview process only to turn down the job because the company doesn't have a feature they deem necessary?

Why wouldn't the candidate seek out some current employees, rather than management, to ask?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not OP but I am looking for a telecommute position. If that is my #1 requirement, is it ok to ask during the interview?

I wouldn't even wait for the interview, I'd ask when you speak to someone to set up the interview if you couldn't figure it out before.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm learning a lot too, and I wonder what field folks are in that asking about telecommuting is such a no-no. I conduct a lot of interviews (I'm not in HR), and when we open up the interview for questions, I would not bat an eye if someone asked what our policy was on telecommuting. I would be put off if someone insisted that they must telecommute, but just asking about the policy seems like a smart question. Everyone knows traffic in this area sucks, public transportation is terrible, and telecommuting can be not just a benefit for the employee but also the employer.

Government contractor. No one telecommutes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:okay, I hadn't thought of it that way.

OF COURSE. Why do you think demanding companies pay more than family friendly ones?????