MINNEAPOLIS, Minn.- The alarm clock goes off, the coffee is brewed and you are out the door ready for work, only to find yourself sitting in traffic.
With what seems to be never-ending road construction combining with increasing congestion to make matters even worse, telecommuting is becoming a popular option.
"It's growing exponentially over the past three years and will continue to grow," said Kathy Kacher a consultant with eWorkplace MN. "We have had so much road construction, so we thought how can we enable organizations on those corridors take advantage of telecommuting?"
eWorkplace Minnesota is a program that helps Twin Cities employers introduce telecommuting in an effort to reduce traffic and Kacher says... it's working.
"There is research from the past three years, how many cars we've taken off the road, what the carbon footprint impact has been, how individuals have saved money," said Kacher.
Kacher says well over 5,000 people have joined the telecommuting movement, people like Roger Cornett, who is the Senior Vice President of a insurance and bonding business in downtown Minneapolis. Of his 85 employees, he says nearly half of them work from home.
"We're on the fringe of the perimeter around the U.S. Bank Stadium, so as the Super Bowl is here, we will allow people to work from home and not have to fight through traffic," said Cornett.
Although technology is important in telecommuting, Kathy says people are key.
"The leaders have to understand how to lead and the employees have to understand how to stay visible and connected, so you don't go home and become out of sight out of mind, but you go home and become productive and connected no matter where you are," said Kacher.