Destined4Change.com

The early 1990’s witnesses the sudden increase, at least theoretically and academically, in the flexible working proposition. The thought being that due to the developments in technology everybody could Work From Home. Over the last 10 or 15 years the technology and the commercial reality of Internet Business has improved to the degree it is now, not only achievable to Work From Home but in some industries almost compulsory catagorised their business persona’s as nomadic (usually sales) or semi-nomadic (normally management, sales and team leader positions). These job descriptions found it achievable to exist between the ability to Work From Home and flexible areas in the office or offices in which they still had a base. Further up the management chain higher-ranking managers and executives found the ability to be effective anywhere, specially in the case of those working with National and International teams and time changes.

The mid 1990’s on the other hand, saw another category of flexible worker beginning to immerge. The surge in Internet Business created a different class. These staff are not part of a corporate machine running their roles within the structure of touchdown and virtual meetings but instead what would have been a small organization outlet on the high street. They are small service providers and sellers now making money because they can work from home without the high operating cost of premises.

On the back of this second wave comes another type, those involved in online jobs. These employees and entrepreneurs actually make their living by offering services to help the growing virtual market place. In doing so their contact with clients is largely via the electronic work media. This new business model changes the idea of flexible working since not only can these organisations be run by people who work from home they can also be staffed by employees with the same working patterns.

Is this a principally new trend? Or a return to the pre – industrial revolution patterns of work. Are what we now see as new age Online Jobs just a paradigm shift from the requirement to be co-located, brought about by the mechanisation of work and the process essential for high output, to the skilfulhighly skilled, craft based model of the cottage industries.