PERFORMANCE FACTORS IN TELEWORKING: A CASE STUDY

Abstract

The virtualization of organizational life and the digital transformation of work relations are progressing alongside rapid technological advancements, enabling processes to be conducted on personal devices (such as computers, laptops, and mobile devices) connected to increasingly high-speed Internet networks. This environment has fueled the expansion of telework, allowing work activities to transcend traditional organizational boundaries. As a result, work dynamics are being redefined, fostering greater flexibility and accessibility while simultaneously requiring new approaches to performance management and information security. The central objective of this research was to identify factors that may influence the performance of work activities conducted in a telework setting. To achieve this, a case study was conducted in a multinational company in Brazil’s engineering and maintenance services sector. Findings revealed a convergence in the evaluation of performance factors between interviewees and experts consulted via the Delphi method, identifying 24 factors, or 75% of the total analyzed, as influential to performance outcomes. Of these, 16 factors were organizational in nature, and 8 were individual, while the remaining 8 factors were deemed to have low or no influence by participants from Company Alfa. Theoretical and practical contributions of this research lie in identifying factors that may guide the formulation of norms and policies for implementing telework in both public and private organizations. Additionally, this work modality has seen widespread adoption due to the impacts of COVID-19 and its potential for sustained application in the post-pandemic period. As a further contribution, this research provides elements that may inform hypotheses for future studies and practical applications in the organizational telework context.