Estimates vary, as do definitions, but today there are reckoned to be over 2 million people in the UK who are either full- or part-time home workers. This may not be the much-heralded teleworking revolution forecast from the late 1970s onwards but it is a very significant minority. As such it is one that needs to be managed and supported effectively if the benefits of remote working are to be realized.

This book is aimed at all those who manage remote workers, those who are implementing remote working and, finally, remote workers themselves. The emphasis is on remote workers who are employees, but the areas relating to the skills needed to manage or work from home apply equally well to the self-employed and freelance. The goal is to enable remote workers and their managers to work effectively together to realize the benefits of home working.

The organizations targeted here will range from small to large and from those that may have a handful of remote workers through to those that will have thousands. Similarly, these organizations will vary from those that are almost completely office-based through to those that are virtual companies with minimal physical presence in the form of office space. Whilst dealing with these extremes it is the authors'...