Virginia Telework Day was a huge success

As an experiment, the state of Virginia held a one-day Telework Day on August 3.  That day, 4,267 employees teleworked.  This was the first teleworking experience for 22% of the participants.

According to a report by Telework Exchange, the following benefits were realized by teleworking one day:

• Participants realized $124,000 in savings across the U.S., and$113,000 in savings in Virginia.
• Teleworking one day per weeks saves the participant $2000 annually.
• Participants would gain 46 hours per year.
• In one day participants avoided driving more than 155,782 miles and removed 82.77 pollutants from the air.
• 69% of participants said they accomplished more at home than a typical day at the office, with 30% of these participants stating they accomplished significantly more.

I continue to beat the telecommute/telework drum in hopes the trend spreads further in Tucson.  Here are links to my past related posts:

Advice to Rio Nuevo:  Wake up and smell the telecommuters

Adirondack region luring telecommuters.  Should Tucson copy?

Tucson’s birthday month has come to an end, and I am so glad I took the time to be an official Tucson’s Birthday ambassador.

It was quite fitting that I could do most of my duties from home – posting, editing videos, setting up a social network and participating in existing ones.  This telecommuting volunteer experience was very fulfilling and meaningful to me personally since I happen to love Tucson so much.

It offered a great opportunity to see things that us Tucson natives don’t often get out to see.  I regret to admit I hadn’t walked around the El Presidio Historic District before or been to the DeGrazia Gallery of the Sun.

Last night I participated in the Flashlight Parade which started at the foot of A Mountain.  We walked down a luminaria-lined path to the multi-use trail along the Santa Cruz river.  The view of downtown was spectacular! It gave better perspective to the relationship between A mountain (aka Sentinel Peak), the Santa Cruz river, Native American settlements and the Spanish/Mexican El Presidio fort.  Back in the day sentinels would stand atop the peak and warn the residents and soldiers of El Presdio of incoming attacks.  The fort’s location was chosen not only because of A mountain but because of the proximity of the Santa Cruz, which was much wider, more shallow, and ran very close to the courthouse back then.

It can be hard to imagine this from downtown since the mountain is hard to see due to the tall structures and the downtown area has changed so much.

This video is very helpful to visualize where the fort was and the historic timeline.

We walked back on the De Anza trail which had educational attractions along the way.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve driven past this area and didn’t even realize what sights were to be seen.  I’ll have to go back and check it out more thoroughly.

Here are links to some of my Tucson’s Birthday posts along with videos and pictures of my experiences.

Flashlight Parade

DeGrazia Gallery of the Sun

Hug An Octotillo Day at Hermosa Montesorri School

El Presidio Historic District Walking Tour with Ken Scoville of Old Pueblo Walking Tours

Tucson Birthday Kickoff at Presidio San Augustin del Tucson

Did any of you attend a Tucson’s Birthday event?  If you would be interested in participating next year or have some ideas for making next year’s celebration bigger and better, let them know at the official Tucson’s Birthday page:  TucsonsBirthday.org

Let me know your ideas here too!

Best Work Places is a program that recognizes qualified employers who volunteer to participate and provide their employees outstanding commuter benefits.

The employer must meet the National Standard of Excellence, a standard set by the Center for Urban Transportation Research (CUTR) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

To get on the Best Workplaces for Commuters list, the employer must provide certain benefits to their employees.  First they need to offer employer-paid tax-free transit or vanpool passes, a strong teleworking program, or parking cash-out.  Most companies need to offer three secondary benefits such as shuttles, ridesharing, carpool matching, preferred or reduced-cost parking for carpools and vanpools, compressed work schedules and more.  They also need to provide access to an emergency ride home at little or no cost if emergency transportation home is needed.

According to the Pima Assocation of Governments , who joined forces with CUTR to help carry out the program , the list might not be totally representative of all great Tucson workplaces that offer commuter benefits, as some participants have been put off by new annual dues to be included on the list.

Best Workplaces for Commuters, June 8, 2009

Abrams Airborne Manufacturing, Inc.
American Airlines
Bombardier Aerospace
City of Tucson
Defense Contract Management Agency Raytheon
Devon Gables Health Care Center
Downtown Tucson Partnership
Federal Building
Federal Correctional Institution
Hilton Tucson El Conquistador Golf & Tennis Resort
Holmes Tuttle Ford
Honeywell Engines, Systems & Services
IBM
Indian Health Services
Intuit
Jim Click Automotive-22nd Street
Jim Click Automotive-Auto Mall
JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort & Spa
Loews Ventana Canyon Resort
Marshall Foundation
Northern Trust Bank, N.A.
Pima Association of Governments
Pima County
Quarles & Brady Streich Lang, L.L.P.
R&R Products, Inc.
Raytheon Missile Systems
Sargent Controls & Aerospace
SCF of Arizona, Southern Account Services
Securaplane Technologies, Inc.
Southern Arizona Veterans Affairs Health Care System
Sun Tran
Town of Marana
Tucson Airport Authority
Tucson Electric Power Company
U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
University Medical Center
University of Arizona
Ventana Medical Systems,
Viscount Suite Hotel
Westin La Paloma Resort & Spa

Does your company or workplace have an outstanding commuter or telework plan?

Pound the internet and the pavement to search for a job

I came across this press release today:  http://www.businesswire.com/news/google/20090817005014/en

It suggests these creative ways to find work:

• Volunteer
• Telecommute
• Sell yourself – online and off
• Start a new career
• Don’t just apply for advertised jobs

Here are some additional creative ways to find jobs, both telecommute and traditional, as well as some local links:

Volunteering

I already have written about the benefits of volunteering in this past post.

Telecommute

Here is a direct link to a page on the widely respected site Rat Race Rebellion that lists some work-at-home positions that also offer benefits:  http://ratracerebellion.com/benefits.html

Here is another link to that site that offers a very handy comparison chart for work-at-home call center and customer service companies:  http://ratracerebellion.com/CS_Comparison.html

Selling yourself

In addition to what the press release suggested, I suggest you get your resume out on the internet.  Put it on a website.  Post it on various respected job sites.  Look for sites that are specific to your career and get involved in the community and network.  If you make a blog as recommended by the release, make sure there is a link to it.  There are many sites like eLance.com that let you make a profile and showcase your skills and even put up a portfolio.  There are many sites that look for content writers.  You likely won’t get rich writing content, but if you write about your field, you can advertise yourself in your byline or profile and gain some authority on the subject.

A new career

There are a couple ways to do this.  Have a hobby?  Start a niche website or blog as a hobby and try to find ways to network, learn more, and advertise yourself.

Do you have little or no skills?  Have you ever heard of the Pima Community College Center for Training and Development?  They have open entry classes where you can earn certificates or more.  It is very low cost and they offer a lot of support such as learning resources and childcare.  I earned a medical office II certificate there in the 90’s.  At that time I qualified not only for free classes, but I got a weekly stipend.  At the end of my studies, they arranged an internship for me at a local hospital which opened up a lot of opportunities.  Here is their website:  http://www.pima.edu/business/training-dev/center/

Of course there is a plethora of college and job training programs here in Tucson.  Here is a really handy program list arranged by program name that compares cost per program:  http://www.ade.az.gov/arizonaheat/Courses/Program_list_filtered.asp?returnP=2&County=Pima&category=&city=Tucson&Ptype=Training%20Program

Regularly check employer and job sites

Of course this is not comprehensive, but good sites to check out regularly:

• Rat Race Rebellion (telecommute jobs)
• University of Arizona
• USA Jobs
• City of Tucson
• State of Arizona
• Pima County
• Monster.com
• Indeed.com
• Simply Hired.com

There are many types of teleworkers from entry to executive level in many different fields.  Today I’m focusing on two non-medical transcription jobs.

FOCUS FORWARD – Transcriptionists

The first job I am focusing on is a freelance online telecommute job for transcribers at a company called Focus Forward.

Their site says they recommend a minimum typing speed of 50 wpm – so I’m assuming they are not requiring a lot of experience as this is a pretty low speed for an experienced transcriber.

This job does not have set hours, but you have to transcribe at least four recorded audio hours per week.  On average, it takes an hour to transcribe 15 minutes of recording or roughly about four times the recorded audio time.  So it should take about 16 hours to do the minimum.

I have transcribed in the past, and in order to meet production demands for the places I’ve worked, I had to be able to type at least 75 wpm.  Their site mentions if you type slow, you may get frustrated with how long it takes you to get the job done, but with practice your speed should increase eventually.  So if you type less than this, expect it to take longer to do the job.  Don’t know your speed?  There are many sites online where you can test your speed for free, like this one: http://www.typingtest.com/

Focus Forward has information on their site about how to do the  jobs with a sample completed job.  They provide a link to a free transcription program as well as the test audio.  You can try it out and see how long it takes for you to complete.  You do not need a foot pedal to use the program, you can set up keyboard hot keys – but it is usually always faster with a foot pedal.

It pays $10 per 15 minutes of sound, so four recorded hours (about 16 hours of transcribing) would translate to $160 if you are able to transcribe at the average rate.

Here is the job description from their site:

Transcriber, experienced, to work from home. We would prefer someone familiar with ftp sound file downloads and Express Scribe. You must also have an excellent grasp of grammar and punctuation rules. This is a virtual position. Must be able to complete at least 4 hours of sound a week. Sound files are 60 minutes or longer. Compensation is $10 per 15 minutes of sound.

Requirements:

• Excellent grammar and punctuation
• Transcription experience
• Familiarity with accessing an FTP site
• Broadband internet access
• Available to transcribe at least 4 hours of sound per week

Their site:  http://www.focusfwd.com/joinourteam.php

PIMA COMMUNITY COLLEGE – Transcriptionist

This is a local job at Pima Community College for a temporary part-time transcriptionist.  This is more a mobile position than work-at-home.  The job entails transcribing classes for hearing-impaired students.  You’ll have to hurry if you are interested in this one, the closing date is Wednesday, 08/12/09 at 11:59 p.m.

This is from their site:

Job Requirements:

• Two years experience using word processing software
• Type 60 wpm net – a typing test will be given
• Excellent listening and concentration skills to accurately transcribe discussions
• Excellent writing skills
• Preferred: Two years of coursework at the post-secondary level

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Excellent listening skills and demonstrated ability to identify essential components of orally presented information
• Excellent knowledge of English grammar, spelling and academic vocabulary
• Ability to operate a PC/laptop computer
• Comfortable working in an academic setting with diverse populations

You can find more information on their site here.

NOTE:

Unfortunately, I will not be able to guarantee that the jobs I focus on are legitimate.  I’ll try to get them from reputable sites and find testimonials from people who claim to work for them.  So please be careful and beware of scams.  Do not pay for anything and be careful giving personal information.

Questions for you, dear readers:

• Is there a specific area or job type  you would like me to focus on in the future?
• Do you know of telework openings?

If you could live and work anywhere, where would you choose?

Earlier this week I wrote a post called Advice to Rio Nuevo:  Wake up and smell the telecommuters.  So when I read about plans for the Adirondack Park region in northeastern New York state to reach out to telecommuters, I knew I had to mention it here.

The mountainous Adirondack region is described by their official travel information website (visitadirondacks.com) as:

Wild and civilized…and close-by!

The Adirondacks are an immense blue and green (white in winter) space in which to relax, play, and plot an adventure. This region in northern New York State contains over 3,000 lakes and ponds, 2,000 miles of hiking trails, more four-diamond resorts than any other destination in the state, nearly 100 campgrounds, and of course, the Adirondack mountains.

Sounds like a wonderful wild pristine paradise doesn’t it?

Question: How can you have economic growth and development without bulldozing, massive business construction, and hurting the environment? How do you do this amid challenging regulatory practices, increased job losses, and recession?

Answer:  Why you aggressively lure telecommuters, entrepreneurs and mobile professionals to come live in the Adirondacks silly.  You do what you can to help them work at home.

In May 2009, a study was published called the Adirondack Park Regional Assessment Project.  It described the area as, “diverse communities amid abundant state-owned lands constitutionally protected as ‘forever wild.’”  It also stated “Adirondack communities share in the challenge of providing services for their residents and visitors, while simultaneously serving as gateways to the park’s public lands.” It stated the median age of residents made it one of the oldest population regions in the country with an out-migration of young families and in-migration of semi-retired and retired persons.

To establish and maintain a healthy, economically viable community, young professional residents would be needed.  In response to this, Clarkson University in Potsdam, New York started The Adirondack Initiative for Wired Work .  It includes  regional leaders and working professionals who encourage  economic growth with emphasis on sustainability and green tech commerce.  The goal is to add 2019 of these types of workers by the year 2019.

They are accomplishing this by conducting surveys to evaluate the needs of these young professionals and they started a business center to provide people with Internet access,  phones, fax , and meeting room.

Kelly O. Chezum, Clarkson’s vice president for external relations at the university has said, “The opportunities to tap into the knowledge economy are going to be huge, probably more so than the technology sector going forward. The Internet now is almost like a roadway as infrastructure.”

Yes the Adirondack region is green, sometimes snowy, and surrounded by water.  We are a dry valley town surrounded by desert with sparse rainfall and rare snow.  In spite of these differences, this writer cannot help but see the similarities in the situation and how something like this could be beneficial to Tucson as well.

Read more about the Adirondack Initiative for Wired Work:

http://www.clarkson.edu/adk

Read a personal opinion I found interesting:

http://www.townsandtrails.com/adirondack-telecommuting/

Author's interpretation of downtown Tucson

We hear so much about downtown redevelopment, Rio Nuevo, blah, blah, blah.  To tell you the truth…the politics are a major turnoff and make me want to ignore downtown.

Hard to do since I love Tucson.

In May 2009 the Downtown Tucson Partnership put out a draft report called “Revitalizing Downtown Tucson: Building the New Pueblo.”

Yes!  A New Pueblo of new ideas and technologies based on our Old Pueblo. I liked it!

I totally agreed with their goal “to attract young, in-demand, skilled workers who enjoy urban living, active entertainment options and are known to select the community in which they want to live even before they select a job.”

Then when I read the rest of the report, I was disappointed.  It was well-researched and had a good traditional long-range plan.  However, I didn’t see any real meat (or veggies since it’s a good chance they are vegetarian) to lure these in-demand, skilled workers anytime soon.

The report stated an important goal was to get more people living downtown.  This would create more activity and, in turn, encourage more retail establishments to flower in order to cater to them.

Downtown Tucson doesn’t have a lot of office space with the majority used by government offices.  So at the moment there is not a lot of room for businesses that that have the type of workers they are hoping to attract.  Or is there?

What if the small amount of housing space counted as working space as well?  What if office space could be shared?  What if businesses could increase the number of employees based out of the office?

The report listed the following as target markets for downtown living:

• Employees who work downtown and at the U of A
• Young professionals
• Empty Nesters
• Senior citizens
• University students

They should have included telecommuters or teleworkers who might enjoy having an urban social life, coffee shops, and office services right outside their door.  Especially high-tech workers who work at places that are expensive to live (like San Francisco) and would find the cost of living much better here.

They should also target employers that allow employees to telecommute and share desk space, getting more use out of square footage.  How about the government offices hiring more telecommuters that would enjoy that life as well, or would need to occasionally check into the office.

After a March 2009 survey by Microsoft, Michael Park, corporate vice president of the U.S. Small and Midmarket Solutions & Partners Group at Microsoft  said, “Strategic use of a remote work force and supporting technologies can be a competitive game-changer in this down economy, especially for small and midsize businesses (SMBs) that have historically trailed large enterprise companies in adopting remote working practices,” He added, “After surveying those areas where SMBs employ a large percentage of the local work force, our findings suggest that businesses that currently leverage remote workers are enjoying an advantage over their competitors.”

This is interesting information considering some of the Rio Nuevo plans may be stalled due to the recession.

Rich Karlgaard of Forbes.com wrote an article about the best places to telecommute.  This was his idea of telecommuting heaven:

“I would want reliable high-band Internet connections, nice weather of the western sunny and dry type, infinite hiking trails, a small airport close by with a mechanic named Ace or Wolfgang who knew every inch and hum of my airplane, spicy Mexican food and ice-cold beer with lime wedges…”

Hmmmm, wow.  I swear I know a place like that.

With the advent of the computer, volunteering is so much easier.  You no longer have to go work somewhere else.  You can do it, or the majority of the job, from the comfort of your own home.   The options are endless from just clicking on a link that benefits an organization in some way (like FreeRice or FreeKibble) to helping with a large project.

True, you don’t get paid money, but you do get paid for larger projects in these ways:

• Networking – If it’s an area you work in or have a passion for, you have a chance to make some very useful connections.  Maybe even find a better paid opportunity.
• Experience – Volunteer experience looks very good on a resume, and the experience can be a source of more references.
• Practicing Skills – Have some skills that need work (like social skills, talking in public, writing)?  Volunteering can give you a chance to work on them in a fun setting.
• Learning – You may get to try or learn something new without the pressure of a boss.  You might even create something you can put into a portfolio.
• Having Fun – No doubt, volunteering can be very fun if you have a passion for what you are working on.

High-demand telecommuting skills include programming, PC/software troubleshooting, writing, call center work, computer skills, and more.  Depending on the volunteer tasks, you might get to learn a little more about these things.

I am currently volunteering for Tucson’s Birthday celebration as a birthday ambassador, and I do the majority of the work from home or even from my phone.  I am getting to meet new people and having a blast because I get to learn more about Tucson.

The volunteer job entails attending a couple events, letting attendees know about the website and other events, and then blogging about it.  I have the blogging part down, but I’m not the best at talking with my mouth.  You can’t reread and edit that way!  I joke the cable never got connected to it.  So this gives me a chance to get out there and talk to strangers. Here is a video I made where I introduce myself as a birthday ambassador.  It is quite obvious I have problems talking.

On the other hand, some of my fellow ambassadors are great talkers but have never blogged or even done a lot with the computer.  Now they are blogging and posting pictures like pro’s.  If you go to the main site, the blog posts appear in the right column.  Check out their handiwork.

It’s not too late to be a birthday ambassador this month if you would like to try it.

If that’s not up your alley, you can find local opportunities at Volunteer Match.