E-commerce is already old hat. The new kid on the technology block is e-engineering. Like many IT terms, this one's been around a while but its definition has broadened to encompass new jobs and ways of working. Initially, e-engineering referred to electronic engineers working collaboratively from different locations, according to Win Phillips, vice president for research and dean of the graduate school at the University of Florida at Gainesville.

Now, however, software developers, computer engineers and other techies are being labeled e-engineers too. E-engineering can drastically cut technology costs by taking advantage of bargain-basement programming talent from another continent. PeopleSupport, a Los Angeles, Calif., company that provides outsourced customer care, has been following this model for years. PeopleSupport CEO Abby Hossein uses trendy technospeak to describe his company's CRM (Customer Relationship Management) "proprietary technology" and the benefits of having a "knowledge management teams" in the Philippines and India. He adds that programmers in Manila, for example, are paid three times less than their counterparts in the United States.

E-engineering is a competitive tool for boosting profits and increasing productivity. It supports 24-hour-a-day operations while avoiding the burnout that is common among American techies who work grueling hours, according to Hossein. More than just a source of cheap labor, e-engineering makes it "a lot easier finding technical talent because we're working with an international labor pool," he adds.

But, scheduling adjustments have to be made when working with colleagues in another time zone. Offsetting the advantages of running an around-the-clock business, communication among programmers can be tricky when there is a 10-hour time difference. Ion Badulescu, a software engineer at HydraWEB Technologies Inc., a New York City company that makes load balancers for Web servers, has encountered problems when working with developers in other parts of the world. Today, Badulescu works from his home in Irvine, Calif., but prior to that he worked for HydraWEB from his home country of Romania. "Conference calls with three or four people are difficult," he says. "Phone contact with a foreign country is chancy at best. The best way to communicate is via email."

Another drawback to virtual working relationships is adjusting to cultural differences. Don't assume American work styles are universal. "In the US, managers tell you what to do and the best way to accomplish a task," says Hossein. That arrangement doesn't fly in the Philippines. Techies in Manila resent being told how to do something. "They'd rather figure it out themselves," Hossein adds.

Or, take the issue of deadlines. Workers in the United States regard them as sacred and believe they have to be met any cost even it means working around the clock. South Americans don't take deadlines so seriously. The attitude is, "So what if a project is completed three weeks late as long as it's completed properly?"

For Badulescu, the hardest thing to adjust to in a virtual work world is the absence of human contact. "It's great working through the night if you want to, but eventually you miss feedback and conversation with other human beings," he says.

Badulescu questions whether there is a big difference between e-engineering and telecommuting. "Both terms mean you're working from a remote location," he says. University of Florida's Phillips, however, insists e-engineering is very different from telecommuting because the technical projects are so complex. "It's no simple feat pooling the efforts of engineering talent in three or more locations," says Phillips. "E-engineering is not new, but high-speed communication has taken it to a new plateau."

Whether you call it e-engineering or a variation on telecommuting, it can be a great experience that requires discipline and the confidence to make difficult decisions by yourself. "Feedback is a lot slower when your manager is in another time zone," adds Badulescu.

As exciting as it can be, I wouldn't recommend working in a virtual team for long periods of time. Shorter periods, say 6 to 18 months, offer a manageable opportunity to master working under unconventional circumstances. "Not everyone can do it," says Badulescu. I agree.

ITworld.com

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