Okanogan County Teleworkers

Many Okanogan County people are working from their homes. The types of work vary but the common thread in all cases is the use of internet access as a means to connect work being done from home to an office or some other sort of place of employment. In some situations the connection may be a dial-up 56k modem and in others a high-speed wireless or DSL type connection. These work situations fall into several general categories:

1. Local Telework. In this situation an employee or owner of a business uses their internet access as a means to connect to the workplace which is located in Okanogan County. In this case both the worker and place of work are located in Okanogan County.
2. Interoffice. In this case internet connectivity is used to connect two office. This situation may not fit the definition of "telework" but does provide some useful examples of available technology. Perhaps more important, these applications can provide examples of the efficiencies necessary to conduct business successfully in a rural or remote setting.
3. Long Distance Telework. These are the situations where a person living in Okanogan County uses telecommunications technology to a place of work, which is located outside of Okanogan County.

Within NCI's customer base there are many examples of each type listed above. For purposes of WSU's Telework project comments here are focused on Long Distance Telework. The information provided is based on NCI's business experience and is not intended to be exhaustive. NCI Data.com is a Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC), which provides internet access via DSL, Wireless and dial-up. NCI also provides other types of high capacity connectivity to retail and wholesale customers. Several other telecommunications providers also operate in Okanogan County. Within the NCI system there are more than 25 examples of long distance telework.

Companies using Telework in Okanogan County.

Microsoft
Agilent
Life Bridge
Adobe Systems
Chevron Oil
Commercial Collection Agency

Work Examples:

Software Engineer
Employee Trainer
Customer Service Specialist
Human Resources Application Specialist
Contract Training Services
Network security specialist

Case Study - Chevron Oil
The teleworker in this case is a man named Jay Carter. Jay's family is fairly well known in Okanogan County. His father is Homer Carter. Homer served on the Omak Stampede Board for many years and received national recognition for his volunteer work there. Jay's brother Stan Carter is a General Contractor living in Okanogan. Jay graduated from Omak High School and later from WSU. He serves on the recruitment committee for WSU where he has been called the "poster child for telecommuting."

After graduating from WSU, Jay was recruited by Chevron Oil. He now works for Chevron Oil as a Human Resources Application Specialist. In this capacity Jay provides support for software applications used by the human resources department. Given the size of Chevron Oil and number of employees this software handles large quantities of data.

Initially Jay accessed his company's secure server via 56k modem and later changed to a high-speed wireless connection. He says the high-speed broadband connection has made his telework situation work much better. Because of the location of Jay's home and other factors, the wireless connection is a very good fit for Jay's situation. He travels to Chevron headquarters in California one week out of five and works the rest of the time from his home.

Jay lives on Pogue Flat above Omak with his wife and two young children. They have purchased property and plan to begin construction of their new home very soon. The children attend Omak Schools. This situation provides a great example of someone who grew up in Okanogan County, found a good job and was able move back home to raise a family.

Other Cases
In many of the examples, telework has enabled people to hold down a good job that is not reliant on Okanogan County's traditional industries. Gainful employment is maintained, with the convenience of working from home and characteristics of rural living.

Here are some thumbnail profiles:

• Single mother with a young child works from home and provides high quality leadership for contract customer support team.
• Man and wife move into the area to pursue his business opportunities. She brings her training job with her and works from their home.
• Man and wife with 3 children build a home in the Oroville area to enjoy the rural setting and its outdoor opportunities. He brings a contract job with Microsoft with him.
• Visually impaired woman earns income from her home translating written test to Braille.
• A woman works from her home in Okanogan performing commercial collection work for a Spokane based company.
• A Seattle area family moves to the Methow Valley operates a ranch and Seattle based business interests via high-speed internet.

For additional information contact John Andrist.