Anybody work out of your home office or have a job that is not location specific?

[Gaffney10]

I am still pretty young (27) and I am looking at opportunities with a few "bigger" companies that may have opportunities that are not "location specific". Does anybody on this forum work with companies that allow you to work from home while making a pretty good salary $50k+? I have an engineering background and some sales/account management experience as well as engineering related experience in the Biotech field, etc.

The position does not have to be SALES related as I would like something that is a combo between engineering/tech and customer relations/account manangement. Some people have recommended being a Systems Engineer or Analyst/Project Manager.
I also understand that travel would be required and I would be fine with travel (nothing more than 50% hopefully).

I am in the process of moving to Bozeman and I have found it hard to find decent paying employment there so I want to look into this option. Can you guys list names of companies that allow this or give me any other advice? Thanks so much!!

[telepariah]

DO IT!

I work from home 2-3 days a week. When I was hired 7 years ago, it was all virtual office all the time. That was a little isolating for me and I lobbied to get an office. But when I got outsourced to another company and the office moved to a location that is 46 miles from my house, the commuting and long days got to be too much after a while. Now I have a nice balance.

It really helps to have a comfortable place to do your work so pay attention to how you set up your home office. I have now got to the point where I can work completely paperless. So anyplace i can sit comfortably with my laptop and a phone is great. I can look out at my back yard and the mountains when my attention span wanes. But when I was starting out in this role and had a lot of printed material sent to me, I had a messy desk and a tiny room with no view.

[Fuzz]

I work for a large (US$16B revenue, 75,000 employees, 30 countries) IT consulting/outsourcing company and work 100% out of my home. Probably travel about once a month on average (usually it comes in waves -- I may not travel at all for 4 months, and then be on the road for 4 weeks straight).

When I started out, I did go into the office. But as I got more familiar with the people and the work, being face-to-face wasn't as important -- my colleagues know and trust that even though I'm not physically there, I am doing my job. Plus, we had hoteling at our company -- so no one had individual cubes or offices -- you just signed up for whatever was available. That made it easier to not go into the office.

The advantage of working from home is that you're not on the clock -- so if things are light, you can take care of other things. I've gone skiing many working days. Can go running, biking or run errands during the day.

The downside is that you're not on the clock -- since you work from home, you're technically always "at work". It is often hard to get away like you can when you physically leave the office.

I love the work-at-home arrangement. I can live wherever I want (just moved to Summit County). As long as I have a phone and internet access, I'm good -- I've "worked" from a beach house, from a ski area cafeteria, and much more. I can just roll out of bed and be "at work". Just be aware of living on the west coast -- those 7am Eastern conference calls can be a bitch (on the upside, nobody will call you after 2pm!).

It's more of a goal-oriented job -- as long as I get my job done within the alloted time, nobody cares -- whether I goof off for 4 days and then cram it all in overnight, or work half days for 4 days, it doesn't matter. Nobody's checking on me.

You mentioned account management. Not sure what exactly you have in mind, but the account managment folks at our company spend a LOT of time on the road, interfacing with clients and customers. Account managers usually have to live/relocate in the city where their primary client is. My guess is that it may be hard to work from home right off the bat -- you may have to put in your time in an office for a couple of years before building the trust required to telecommute.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

I am still pretty young (26) and I am looking at opportunities with a few "bigger" companies that may have opportunities that are not "location specific". Does anybody on this forum work with companies that allow you to work from home while making a pretty good salary $50k+? I have an engineering background and some sales experience and I am looking into a few "account management" type of positions where you have 2/3 short 1-day or 2-day trips a month and you spend the rest of your time working out of your "home office".

I would really be interested in hearing from people who may have these type of jobs of know of companies where this is common. I live in the south right now and I am looking at the best opportunity to move out west to perhaps a smaller "mountain town" or something similar.....THANKS!

Dood you are in the exact same position I was when I was 24 - 25. I was living on the East Coast. Was searching for a way to move out west, but keep the same job as I really dug it, and basically convinced my small company at the time (<$10 million in sales) to move me out west to cover the west coast for the them in a business development/liason type role for them to give us a presence closer to our clients out here.

Been doing it ever since for small companies and large (>$1 billion in sales) and loving it. i've been working out of my home office for the past 6 years here in Northern California for companies that are based on the East Coast.

S work out of a home office 100&#37; with about 25 - 30% travel to clients, conferences, and the home office depending on time of year.

It rules.

One key thing to keep in mind of when you go remote is that you will absolutely NEED a great relationship with your colleagues in the home office. When you're traveling and hell just remote, you won't have access to the same resources that they do, and you'll depend on them to help you get shit done. Managing that relationship can be an art form at times.

Shoot me a PM if you have any specific questions.

[The AD]

I think this is becoming more and more common. I only work from home about 10-20&#37; of my time, but there are plenty of people at my company that work from home most of the time. All the locations at my company now have "hoteling centers" where people who don't have a permanent on-site desk can come in and work when they need to. I'm guessing if that's the situation here other companies are doing the same thing.

[schwerty]

I work from my home office, mostly. Sometimes I fucking hate it and other times....it's unbeatable. I'm in the finacial biz and do some real estate and publish a magazine on the side. For that stuff, it works. I don't have to pay over-the-top prices for office space. It's nice to have the freedom as well. Nobody tells me I can't look at the TGR site etc... However, I go a little stir crazy being at home all the time. It's also TOO easy to not work and watch a ball game in the middle of the day. Naps can become common too.

[Fuzz]

It's also TOO easy to not work and watch a ball game in the middle of the day.

I always try to make sure I'm "working" from home (and not traveling) when the UEFA Champions League games are on! Didn't miss any of the World Cup games either -- after all, I was "working" from home.

[Steven S. Dallas]

I work from home once in a while, at the desk in my bedroom or sometimes at the dining room table. That works fine, but if I did it all the time I'd want some dedicated work space so that I could close the door and walk away at the end of the day. It's too easy to get distracted in your living space, and it would be nice to create a little separation between work and home.

[schwerty]

It's too easy to get distracted in your living space, and it would be nice to create a little separation between work and home.

Good point. I have no seperation between work and home. Always working.....always not working...

[Raps]

I made the choice last year to leave the corporate world early (at 23) and start my own company. Best choice i have ever made because it is allowing me to move out west in the fall. I'm not saying you have to start your own company to have this freedom but like others have said there are companies you can work for that allow for this type of work.

I started to work out of my apartment but yeah, too many hours watching day games or sleeping more so i rented some small space, only a cubicle in a big office so i can actually feel like i am going to work. I pretend i have a boss and a schedule etc so that i motivate. It took some time to get used to but its great. If you can find a place like i have, that rents individuals space in a big office, then you have the best of both worlds. Your own space that is not your apt and people around you in an office setting so you don't go stir crazy. My building has been a networking dream as a young entrepreneur.

Good luck and go for it if you have the opportunity.

[Gaffney10]

thanks so much for all of your help! I have PM'ed a few of you for additional help/advice. I am just looking for something that I will enjoy doing and enable me to move West. Thanks again!!

[SkiCougar]

One key thing to keep in mind of when you go remote is that you will absolutely NEED a great relationship with your colleagues in the home office. When you're traveling and hell just remote, you won't have access to the same resources that they do, and you'll depend on them to help you get shit done. Managing that relationship can be an art form at times.

i work from home mostly too. its good, but as mentioned above; if you have to rely on others; that's where it can suck when you've got deadlines. lot harder to keep others accountable when youre not face to face with them.

[Gaffney10]

.............

[montanaskier]

I work from home. I have a sales rep gig with a large(1B) company on the east coast. I cover a 4 state territory. Traveling is a huge part of my job, but when I am not on the road, I am at home. At times it is the greatest, at times it sucks. Because I don't go to an office everyday, my wife and friends all think I don't do any work at all. I say, do it! The autonomy is unbeatable.

[warthog]

Ditto what everybody said.

I am a manufacturers rep in the construction/MRO/OEM field. I do cover a territory, but I have no overnights. My company is also a very large old Connecticut company, but I live in St Petersburg,FL. I don't know anybody doing this type of job out West (besides California) that doesn't cover multiple states. There is too much space between clients out there. If you have to see clients a lot in Denver, but live in Durango, that might not work. Keep that in mind. What is your enginerding degree in?

Working out of the house is all relative. I call on customers a lot, but sometimes get "trapped" in the office for days. I try to avoid it, because after a while it feels like you never leave the house. I prefer to be out talking to customers or getting some quality windshield time with Howard Stern. The only true "work out of the house full time" gigs I know of are IT related. Well, that and some get rich quick scams that I have heard about. So, I guess go for an IT type gig.

Also, it is true. Working from the house is great and sux all the same. You never are away from it. It is always staring you in the face. If you can close the door Friday and open it Monday morning, you will be better off.

Good luck.

Edit-

I too never missed a World Cup game. It was the greatest month of slackertopia, EVER. When I did go see customers, I would park my butt at the Cuban cafe 2 blocks from one of my distributors. It took a lot of work to recover from, but it was great.

[SkiCougar]

Also, it is true. Working from the house is great and sux all the same. You never are away from it. It is always staring you in the face. If you can close the door Friday and open it Monday morning, you will be better off.

thats another one, seperate yourself. hell, put all your work stuff on 1 desk and put a timer there. if youre a responsible person, you'll always be wondering if youre doing enoughunless you can seperate it and really keep some time tracking/mgt. if youre a slacker, it wont bother you. i still struggle with this.

[Gaffney10]

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[Prophet10]

I work for a HUGE ($110B US) company. I work from home 100&#37; of the time and love it. Couldn't imagine any other lifestyle. I am in a sales position but it is a "technical" sales position which would likely be similar if you are an engineer looking to get into sales. If it is your first sales position, it can be an adjustment learning to put a significant portion of your comp "at risk.". My opinion:

Pros:
Autonomy - work anytime, anywhere. My position requires travel. I cover two accounts that have offices anywhere from NYC to Anchorage. The travel is good and bad. Travel is mostly boring alone but the frequent flyer miles and hotel points pay off. Also easier to get a boondoggle in now and again.

Autonomy Part 2 - if you are home officed it is VERY easy to catch a few laps when it is slow. No need to call in "sick."

Financial - high speed internet, long distance, and cell phone are paid for by my company. You can take a tax deduction for the space you use to work. Your company will probably also pay you mileage, a car allowance, or if you are REALLY lucky, you could score a company car. Most field sales positions will do one or the other.

Travel - I have been traveling 2-4 nights a week for 4 years. It gets old but the benefits do outweigh the evening boredom. I would HIGHLY recommend signing up with one airline and one hotel chain (most do Hilton or Marriott) and STICK to them if at all possible. The miles and points allow me to take at least one really cool vacation a year (7 FREE days in AK last year) and usually allow me to take 2-3 additional roundtrips free per year. Plus, if you do it right, you will likely get upgraded rooms and seats most of the time.

Cons:
Hours worked - you will work more. As previously said, it is always there, always on, and never goes away. If you don't watch it, you will work MUCH more than before.

Work Friends - they are distant and there can be a lack of cool people to hang out with. You can't just lean back in your chair or go to cubicle next door and chat for a bit. No one to go grab a quick lunch with, etc. My nearest coworker is LA and next to that would be Ohio (I live in CO). You can overcome it by creating friendships at the face to face meetings and making it a point to reach out regularly. Otherwise the "autonomy" will get lonely.

Travel - I know I listed as a pro but it is both. If you are single, I imagine it would be easier but travel can suck too. Airline delays, nights away from home, evenings in boring towns with nothing to do, the same hotels (they are ALL the same regardless of what city you are in), bad food, rookie travelers, etc. It gets old.

I am sure there are more for both categories but that's my initial .02. Home office is awesome. There are a few cons but they are FAR outweighed by the pros.

Go for it...

[Gaffney10]

check your PM prophet...

[snoboy]

One of my buddies (and a frequent midweek touring partner, note) works from "home."

He actually has rented office space so that he has the seperation of work and home.

[jibij]

I was on my own for 10 years, working out of my house. I loved it. However, the rollercoaster and stress of self-employment started getting to me so when I was offered an office job with a lot of security, I took it. I managed to make it through a year before I was ready to lose my mind. I couldn't deal with the daily drive downtown to cubeland.

This past year I was offered another job with a large SoCal-based company ($8B, 35K employees). All the members of the team I'm on work from home offices, 100&#37;. We're spread all over the country. I travel an average of once a month. I feel like I've got the best of both worlds now. Security, plus I feel like I'm on my own again.

As others have said, the only down side is you never feel like you get to punch out. You're always at work. I've been doing it for a long time and I still can't kick that feeling. There's still no comparison to driving to cubeland every day though.

[alpineskiman]

Im an outside sales rep for a fortune 500 company. I run it like its my own business, i get to make my own schedule, work when I want to and luckily sneak away and hit some laps when I want to. The company moved me from St. Paul, MN to North Bend, WA (east of Seattle, close to alpental) for free. Ive got a company car/gas card, cell phone, laptop (no porn though, company watches), they pay for my home phone and internet. I make a good salary, im not rich but i work hard and get compensated for it. There are a lot of perks to being an outside rep. I was in a 5 state territory which was a little rough with the travel but now I willl be moving into a local teritory with no overnight travel, basically perfect. I couldnt imagine working in an office from 8-5 everyday, i would go bonkers. I get to be out and about everyday and have i mentioned that i can ski just about any day that i want to? The only thing you have to be careful of is that you really need to be a self starter, theres a good chance your boss wont be in the same city or state as you. good luck, if you need more help feel free to PMme.

[Gaffney10]

see below

[Gaffney10]

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[Gaffney10]

Last try....anyone with jobs that are NOT location specific? Companies that allow this work, etc? THANKS!!!!