Che New York Eimes eneraTiOns: Boomers in a Post-Boom Economy ope ne ht th infermton we poten Mo's We ie — an ti ey came Tost in yah hand hve repre me nt s,s ‘annie ay bale apc eae eg enh “s tc te sommes cc ocean pr. piteeat Dass ar 20 yer that rey wet Sa at "mer ght be on he pharmacutal for 29 es efor eng al of een “Ti al nw or and yay Tice pp on | ren comping abn ising 0 1 wat ang.“ ie ning ark iw was wh Cap 0 yea ove ng id i Speer" ‘hoy are hte me in een th lack and wie perm he 08 ‘re: dcthe Boston Globe Purrspay J On the job ‘Think there aren’t acy jobs in Bos- ton? Think again, “Good Morning America” correspondent Tory Johnson ‘broadcast live from a job fair she organ- ized at the Sheraton hotel downtown yesterday, with the express purpose of proving economic doomsayers wrong, “To those who want to believe the head- lines, jobs do exist,” said the reporter ‘and career coach. “You just have to work realy ard to find them Johnson who ‘was joined by GMA economic reporter Bianna Golodryga, recruited 73 em- ployers to set up shop in the hotel. “To fl that baloom, I got undreds and ‘hundreds of no's” she admitted. But the ‘employers who showed. from the fiekis of goverament, healthcare, retail ech- nology, insurance, and even financial services, had real jobs to fill, she said. “I ‘grilled them myself” The several thow- sand job seekers who attended the fair ‘also received resume critiques and career coaching, OSH REYSOLESTORTHE BOSTON GLOChe New York Times a4 ~~ Shifting Careers ‘Smart Thinking at Work. Talking About Working From Home ‘Tory Johnson the chief exeative ofthe New Yorkrecritng services firm Women or ire isa co-author of “Will Work rom “Hom,” anew, comprehensive guide to home-based obs. Ms Johnson did research onanaray of home-based workers ~ from those working for $8anhour as virtual customer service representatives to those who run businesses from home, to professional and excetive-levl fre agents andemployees. ‘Tens ofmilions of Americans do some bind of work frombom, according to federal ata, And because of nereases in fel and other energy costs, more employers and individuals wll undoubtedly be exploring their workfromhome options. Tery desc (Pt ys ao) Ms, Johnson ana I recently discussed the variety of way that people make 3 living fom home, ips for persuading an employer to approvea worklrom- ‘home arrangement, and the ingredients fora succesful at-home work ‘experience. Here ia condensed and edited version of our conversation: @. Youcovera broad swath ofthe workplace inthis Book: Does it really ‘make sense o lump entrepreneurs and hourly wage workers together, based solely onthe fact they workfromhome? 1@. What ore some misconceptions people have about wanting to start a business fromhore? ‘A.Often twat bear people especially women, say that theyove to start a ‘basiness bat haven yet come wp witha great idea. They are stuck on thiahing ‘hey have to find something that's never beea dane before. Whea fasktem ‘bow many banks or dothing boutiques exist intheir neighborhood, they star toace that they dont need to reinvent the wheel and they also doa ced the snilion-dollar ten. ‘Oftentimes that leads to an aba! moment. that you can do something along ‘as you are really passionate about it andwiling vo heal. Starting abesias ‘rombome really doesn have tobe allthat complicated. 0. you'd tke do your curentjob out of yourhome, how ean you best {ay out your proposal? A. First, do some research. Are there any preedents within your own ‘organiation within your industry and within your gcoprapt area? Once youtvedone that,you want to fgure out allthe reasons the boss cans 90 ‘den come up with responses to each of those. Is always easier say 0 tosomeone looking forachange tha to say yes A. Anyone who works from home — whether fora Fortune 100 company, ata ‘stomer serve representative or running your own shop ~ has to possess ‘tain qualities. You have tobe disciplined enough to wake wp everyday and report to work without a time clock to punch, a manager hovering over your shoulder o colleagues keeping tabs on whether you are producing anything. {takes someone who is motivated and focused You have to wear multiple hate and have an entreprencuril streak, 20 even fyou have job," when your computer docent work, you have to make the fst attempt to ‘troubleshoot. You are often your own mailroom, receptionist and tech suppor. which is avery similar spirit to starting business. (Q. Where do you se the greatest opportunities for at-home workers and for companies wanting to hie them? ‘A. For the sled knowledge worker the free-agent marke is alive and well on sites like afisk Hance ad even Craiglist and Guru.con In these contents, hirers are looking or great value without the overhead and they get to connect wth someone who wants to work roms horse. nis wry effet. ‘With alot of pople competing for an opportunity, the best person atthe best price wins. For the individual, it's really about marketing yourself to someone ‘who has already made the determination and decison to find someone to ‘work from home. And that still easier than going oa traditional employer and trying to plead your case. Inthe typical retail or eustomer servie sector, workhiatoricaly had to be “done in perzon within prety standard hours. Now there ian emerging world of virtual customer service agents, which ha evolved fr two reasons. First, technology makes it possible. Second, certain big brands are recognising the importance of maintaining brand equity by paying particular attention tothe typeof people who handle calls Companies ke Crew, AAO 1-800-Flowers decided that they wanted to oop their customer calls answered in the United States and wanted a higher caliber candidate than what you typically find ina briks-and-mortareall center where you often get a seasonal and transient worker. Inthe home- ‘based model the level of educations higher, ass the retention, and the ‘mployer can really train someone on their rand and gt someone who wll deliver superior customer service ‘Ove ofthe most common reasonsto reject proposal isthe fear that ifthe employer say esto you, evenone will want todo it. But the realty that ‘ot everyone wantsto work rombome. There ae alot of people who would tear thee har out if they bad to work from bom. {would suggest trial period and include benchmarks for sucoess.Hscaser forsomeone to say yes to athree-month trialthana permanent change ‘There'salways that dea that managers say I Lean see you, Lea beep Us ‘en you Ye fate tie ent an accurte sure of prodectvity. We all now People who show upevery day but dn do al that much, a wel as people he can get done in one hour what others would require a hole dayto 0. (@. Yyour proposals approved, orf youstart at anew organisation working virtually, what ere some best proctces to ensure that if ill work? ‘A. Communiation is critea, andthe onus is onyou to ensure that out of ‘mals and picking up the pone to touch base perhaps more often han you einary would. ‘ftenitis the informal chitchat that heeps people inthe loop. So youhaveto gure out ow to replicate thatif you are not having tithe office.