Telecommuting is becoming an increasingly popular trend in the modern workforce. Among the growing number of teleworkers are engineers, a profession where communication is a necessity. This study employs a phenomenological research approach to understand and describe the ways in which information communication technology (ICT) affects teleworking engineers’ interpersonal communication in the workplace and perceptions of isolation in social and organizational contexts. Uses and gratifications theory and media richness theory were used to better understand teleworkers’ selection and use of ICT. The findings revealed six themes: emotional impact, workplace relationships, information communication technology in the workplace, the nature of telework, telework and connectivity, and the organizational role in telework. This study contributes to communication research by adding to the growing body of knowledge about the influence of telework on workplace communication and relationships from the perspective of a niche population, engineers.

The problem is that traditional jobs have been office-based, with close supervision. In the Virtual Office (VO) situation managers have a resistance towards the managing of the workforce because they do not know how to manage virtual workers off-site, workers that they cannot see. They feel that managing virtual workers off-site places a huge burden on them. The biggest difference is the shift in management style from direct control to management of results. The biggest challenge for most organisations is to manage the workforce of the VO. The objectives of this research project are to determine how managers can manage a virtual workforce, improve communication and control the workforce. Comprehensive research has been done on the topic VO that includes articles from magazines, newspapers, Internet and textbooks. As sufficient reference resources are not available in South Africa the research was especially based on USA reference resources, due to the reported successful implementation of Virtual Offices in that country. Managers can effective management a virtual workforce by making use of MBO and not by monitoring activities. They can improve communication with the workforce by staying connected and they can control the workforce through feedback and support. This research has proved that the paradigm shift in the corporate world of work, any time, anywhere, in real space or in cyberspace is here to stay. Virtual workers and managers working away from the office is now a reality, and will become more common in the future. Companies who wait for the future to allow the VO to effectively take shape may find themselves at a competitive disadvantage. Now is the time for companies to create the conditions for the VO to emerge. / Business Management / M. Tech. (Business Administration)

The problem is that traditional jobs have been office-based, with close supervision. In the Virtual Office (VO) situation managers have a resistance towards the managing of the workforce because they do not know how to manage virtual workers off-site, workers that they cannot see. They feel that managing virtual workers off-site places a huge burden on them. The biggest difference is the shift in management style from direct control to management of results. The biggest challenge for most organisations is to manage the workforce of the VO. The objectives of this research project are to determine how managers can manage a virtual workforce, improve communication and control the workforce. Comprehensive research has been done on the topic VO that includes articles from magazines, newspapers, Internet and textbooks. As sufficient reference resources are not available in South Africa the research was especially based on USA reference resources, due to the reported successful implementation of Virtual Offices in that country. Managers can effective management a virtual workforce by making use of MBO and not by monitoring activities. They can improve communication with the workforce by staying connected and they can control the workforce through feedback and support. This research has proved that the paradigm shift in the corporate world of work, any time, anywhere, in real space or in cyberspace is here to stay. Virtual workers and managers working away from the office is now a reality, and will become more common in the future. Companies who wait for the future to allow the VO to effectively take shape may find themselves at a competitive disadvantage. Now is the time for companies to create the conditions for the VO to emerge. / Business Management / M. Tech. (Business Administration)

Globalisation, technological advancements and changing social needs result in virtual work arrangements becoming more prominent. Virtual work is conducted away from the traditional office setting and usually occurs in employees’ personal home environments. Virtual work has been called virtualling in this study, and virtual employees are referred to as virtuallers. A phenomenological orientation was adopted in studying completely virtual workers in a completely virtual context; sourcing of participants and data collection were also conducted completely virtually. This study presented new ways of conducting research in the modern, virtual world of work. An autoethnography was included, as the researcher is also a virtualler and insider of virtualling. Four key case studies are presented to provide a holistic picture of virtualling and virtuallers. Thematic results indicate key influencing factors that originate from virtualling, as well as factors and mindset requirements that pertain to the virtualler personally. It was further found and proposed that the resulting virtual environment changes virtuallers’ ways of doing things and viewing the world, hence results in changes in their lifestyle and career identity. The abstract psychological structure as it resulted from the thread of meanings was presented as virtualness. Authentic psychological identification with virtualling and adopting a boundarylessness employability mindset oriented towards psychological success are highlighted as key requirements in order to experience virtualness. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / MCOM (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)

Globalisation, technological advancements and changing social needs result in virtual work arrangements becoming more prominent. Virtual work is conducted away from the traditional office setting and usually occurs in employees’ personal home environments. Virtual work has been called virtualling in this study, and virtual employees are referred to as virtuallers. A phenomenological orientation was adopted in studying completely virtual workers in a completely virtual context; sourcing of participants and data collection were also conducted completely virtually. This study presented new ways of conducting research in the modern, virtual world of work. An autoethnography was included, as the researcher is also a virtualler and insider of virtualling. Four key case studies are presented to provide a holistic picture of virtualling and virtuallers. Thematic results indicate key influencing factors that originate from virtualling, as well as factors and mindset requirements that pertain to the virtualler personally. It was further found and proposed that the resulting virtual environment changes virtuallers’ ways of doing things and viewing the world, hence results in changes in their lifestyle and career identity. The abstract psychological structure as it resulted from the thread of meanings was presented as virtualness. Authentic psychological identification with virtualling and adopting a boundarylessness employability mindset oriented towards psychological success are highlighted as key requirements in order to experience virtualness. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / M.Comm. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)

Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / This thesis analyzes the potential impact of incorporating wireless technologies, specifically an 802.11 mesh layer architecture and 802.16 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing, in order to effectively and more efficiently transmit data and create a symbiotic operational picture between Coast Guard Cutters, their boarding teams, Coast Guard Operation Centers, and various external agencies. Two distinct collaborative software programs, Groove Virtual Office and the Naval Postgraduate School's Situational Awareness Agent, are utilized over the Tactical Mesh and OFDM network configurations to improve the Common Operating Picture of involved units within a marine environment to evaluate their potential impact for the Coast Guard. This is being done to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of Coast Guard units while they carry out their Law Enforcement and Homeland Security Missions. Through multiple field experiments, including Tactical Network Topology and nuclear component sensing with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, we utilize commercial off the shelf (COTS) equipment and software to evaluate their impact on these missions. / Lieutenant Commander, United States Coast Guard / Lieutenant, United States Coast Guard