Time in a bottle, an ideal product many people would invest in. Working smart involves original thinking by all types of professionals and corporations alike. Statistical averages, according to the OECD, of the annual number of hours worked for all employed people in the USA for 2005 was 1804. As per The World Factbook, the total labor force in 2005 for the USA, including the unemployed was 149.3 million. The productive use of time is always a key factor in a company's bottom line.

A survey completed by America Online and Salary.com, outlines admitted time wasted by the average worker as being just over 2 hours in an 8 hour work day. Most companies factor in an approximate assumption of 1 hour of wasted time by their employees. However, the higher figure of 2 hours per day, calculates to over $750 billion per year in salaries paid for work not completed.

Interesting time wasting activities were outlined in Salary.com's study as well: Out of 10,000 people surveyed, 44.7% indicated that surfing the Internet was the biggest distraction. Socializing with Co-workers came in second with a time wasting factor of 23.4%. Arriving late and leaving early represented 1.0% of working time loss.

Many corporations are moving towards the mobile office concept by setting up PC access from anywhere for their employees. From home, PC office work completed is considerably more effective than a 2 hour loss in an unexpected traffic jam, or wasted due to bad weather. A simple example of employer and employee working smart, would be establishing a system for the employee to access his work desktop from home, for those days when teleworking is the productive solution. Reducing wasted time through the use of technology is a viable and very real answer for employers.

The same survey also revealed  fascinating time wasting excuses: "Co-workers distract me" rated in at 14.7%, and 12% stated "there was not enough after work time". These particular issues are prime reasons for companies to implement a flexible smart working plan. Combining the use of tools such as web conferencing, faxing by email and remote desktop, can increase productivity and yes, of course, increase the bottom line. Most importantly, a happy worker is a productive worker.

By Barbara Cipak, My-Telework-Tools.com