bodyType

customContents

entityId

printArticlePageQuery

filter

article

body

urlAlias

articleSectionsContent

articleSeoArticle

articleSourceHeaderArticle

contentSchemaRenderContent

contentSubHeadlineContent

contentHeadlineContent

mainImagePrintArticleArticle

authorBlockPrintArticleArticle

contentSponsorTagContent

articlePianoPaywallContent

scmpYoutubeContent

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

query printArticlePageQuery(
  $entityId: String!
  $customContents: [CustomContentInput]
  $bodyType: BodyFormatTypeEnum
) {
  article(filter: {entityId: $entityId}) {
    entityId
    body(customContents: $customContents, type: $bodyType) {
      json
    }
    urlAlias
    ...articleSectionsContent
    ...articleSeoArticle_3o8td4
    ...articleSourceHeaderArticle
    ...contentSchemaRenderContent
    ...contentSubHeadlineContent
    ...contentHeadlineContent
    ...mainImagePrintArticleArticle
    ...authorBlockPrintArticleArticle
    ...contentSponsorTagContent
    ...articlePianoPaywallContent
    ...scmpYoutubeContent
    ...hooksTrackPageViewArticle
    id
  }
}

fragment articlePianoPaywallContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksPaywallPromiseContent
}

fragment articleSectionsContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  sections {
    value {
      ...helpersCheckIfNewsSectionInFirstIndexSection
      ...entityLink
      name
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment articleSeoArticle_3o8td4 on Article {
  ...hooksArticleSeoArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersGetArticleTypeArticle
  entityId
  publishedDate
  updatedDate
  summary {
    text
  }
  subHeadline {
    text
  }
  body(customContents: $customContents, type: $bodyType) {
    text
  }
  keywords
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  topics {
    name
    entityId
    id
  }
  urlAlias
  authors {
    name
    id
  }
  images {
    style(filter: {style: "768x768"}) {
      url
    }
  }
  readingTime
}

fragment articleSourceHeaderArticle on Article {
  urlAlias
  ...entityLink
}

fragment authorBlockPrintArticleArticle on Article {
  ...defaultArticleDateContent
  ...authorNamesArticle
}

fragment authorNameAuthor on Author {
  ...entityLink
  name
  entityUuid
}

fragment authorNamesArticle on Article {
  authorLocations
  authors {
    entityId
    location
    ...authorNameAuthor
    id
  }
}

fragment blockquoteQuoteContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...contentShareWidgetContent
}

fragment checkersCheckContentContainsStarlingImageContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment contentHeadlineContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  headline
  socialHeadline
  ...contentHeadlineTagContent
  ...helpersUseContentSponsorContent
}

fragment contentHeadlineTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksContentHeadlineTagContent
}

fragment contentNewsletterWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    relatedNewsletters {
      ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
      id
    }
    id
  }
  sections {
    value {
      relatedNewsletters {
        ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
        id
      }
      id
    }
  }
  ... on Article {
    relatedNewsletters {
      ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment contentSchemaRenderContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...blockquoteQuoteContent
  ...hooksInlinePlusWidgetContent
  ...imageContent
  ...inlineWidgetContent
  ...photoGalleryWidgetContent
  ...scmpYoutubeContent
}

fragment contentShareWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  urlAlias
  shortUrl
  socialHeadline
  headline
}

fragment contentSponsorTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...helpersUseContentSponsorContent
}

fragment contentSubHeadlineContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  subHeadline {
    json
  }
  summary {
    json
  }
  ...contentSchemaRenderContent
}

fragment defaultArticleDateContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksArticleDateUtilsContent
}

fragment entityLink on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  __typename
  entityId
  entityUuid
  urlAlias
  urlRedirect {
    toUrl
    id
  }
  application {
    entityId
    id
  }
  ... on Section {
    fullSectionPath {
      entityId
      id
    }
    parentSection
  }
  ...helpersAppBarVariantBase
  ...helpersApplicationBase
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusArticle
  ...helpersStyleSectionContent
}

fragment helpersAppBarVariantBase on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  ...helpersCheckIsLiveArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  ...helpersSectionContent
  ...helpersStyleSectionContent
}

fragment helpersApplicationBase on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusPage
}

fragment helpersCheckIfNewsSectionInFirstIndexSection on Section {
  name
}

fragment helpersCheckIsAmpEnabledArticle on Article {
  entityId
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  disableOffPlatformContent
  sponsorType
  published
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
}

fragment helpersCheckIsLiveArticle on Article {
  flattenTypeIds
  liveArticle {
    status
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsMainTopicContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPlusArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ... on Article {
    paywallTypes {
      entityUuid
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPlusPage on Page {
  urlAlias
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle on Article {
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle on Article {
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostiesPage on Page {
  urlAlias
}

fragment helpersCheckIsStyleArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersGetArticleTypeArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ... on Article {
    types {
      value {
        entityId
        id
      }
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter on Newsletter {
  entityId
  name
  alternativeName
  description {
    text
  }
  summary {
    text
  }
  homepageDescription {
    text
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizeArticleTypeEntityIdsArticle on Article {
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizeAuthorTypesArticle on Article {
  authors {
    types
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizedAuthorEntityIdsArticle on Article {
  authors {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersSectionContent on Section {
  fullSectionPath {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersStyleSectionContent on Section {
  fullSectionPath {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersUseContentSponsorContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    sponsor {
      ...sponsorTagSponsor
      name
      type
      id
    }
    id
  }
  ... on Article {
    sponsorType
  }
  ...helpersCheckIsMainTopicContent
}

fragment hooksArticleDateUtilsContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  createdDate
  publishedDate
  updatedDate
}

fragment hooksArticleSeoArticle on Article {
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  ...hooksContentHeadlineTagContent
  ...helpersCheckIsAmpEnabledArticle
  entityId
  headline
  socialHeadline
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  authors {
    entityId
    id
  }
  images {
    generic_og: style(filter: {style: "og_image_scmp_generic"}) {
      url
    }
    styles(filter: {styles: ["og_image_posties_article", "og_postmag", "og_image_style", "og_image_scmp_analysis", "og_image_scmp_explainer", "og_image_scmp_editorial", "og_image_scmp_fact_check", "og_image_scmp_debate", "og_image_scmp_live", "og_image_scmp_obituary", "og_image_scmp_opinion", "og_image_scmp_review", "og_image_scmp_series", "og_image_scmp_generic"]}) {
      url
      style
    }
    type
  }
  urlAlias
}

fragment hooksContentHeadlineTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  __typename
  ... on Article {
    types {
      value {
        name
        entityId
        description {
          text
        }
        id
      }
    }
    ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  }
  flag
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  ...hooksContentHelperContent
}

fragment hooksContentHelperContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...helpersSanitizeArticleTypeEntityIdsArticle
  ...helpersSanitizeAuthorTypesArticle
  ...helpersSanitizedAuthorEntityIdsArticle
  flag
}

fragment hooksInlinePlusWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment hooksPaywallPromiseContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
}

fragment hooksTrackPageViewArticle on Article {
  entityId
  publishedDate
  headline
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  urlAlias
  authors {
    name
    id
  }
  entityUuid
}

fragment imageContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  headline
  ...checkersCheckContentContainsStarlingImageContent
}

fragment inlineWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...contentNewsletterWidgetContent
}

fragment mainImagePrintArticleArticle on Article {
  images {
    title
    url
    isSlideshow
    size_652x446: style(filter: {style: "652x446"}) {
      url
    }
  }
}

fragment photoGalleryDialogContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  __typename
  ...contentShareWidgetContent
}

fragment photoGalleryWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...photoGalleryDialogContent
}

fragment scmpYoutubeContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  urlAlias
  publishedDate
}

fragment sponsorTagSponsor on Sponsor {
  name
  type
  images {
    url
  }
}


sections

types

disableOffPlatformContent

sponsorType

published

headline

socialHeadline

authors

images

publishedDate

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

keywords

topics

readingTime

authorLocations

entityUuid

Tiffany Wong

Hong Kong has some catching up to do as an increasing number of companies adopt work-from-home practices
What would you do with your time if you could eliminate the daily commute to and from work? Perhaps not surprisingly, increasing numbers of workers around the world (yes, even those in workaholic Hong Kong) are beginning to find out.
The concept of teleworking, also known as 'working at home', and 'telecommuting' refers to the elimination of the daily commute by linking workers to the office through telecommunications.
Driven by an increasing awareness of the need to maintain work-life balance, surveys around the world have shown that an increasing number of corporations are adopting such flexible working arrangements. Usually it involves an employee either working from their home, or from a remote location such as a coffee shop, instead of travelling to a central office location. They also use computers connected to the internet to maintain communication with their employers and to submit completed work tasks.
Recently a survey of 2,700 corporations in the United States and Canada conducted by WorldatWork, a non-profit professional association based in the US, found that the proportion of companies adopting teleworking practices has grown significantly this year.
It found that in the US in August, 42 per cent of organisations surveyed said they offered teleworking options to  employees, up from 30 per cent a year before.
In Canada, the growth was even bigger, with 40 per cent of firms allowing some form of teleworking, up from 25 per cent the year before.
From a global perspective, the increasing readiness of corporations to adopt teleworking can also be explained by rising petrol prices,  advanced  technology,  and the ability to give employees  more work-life balance.
Teleworking has also been linked to other organisational benefits, including better employee engagement, which leads to better performance and retention rates.
It allows the employment of groups of workers who would otherwise be unable to take up permanent jobs, such as single parents with young children, and the disabled.  It has also been embraced by environmental groups because it eliminates  the carbon emissions produced by the vehicles of those who commute to centralised offices.
Locally, despite the city's well developed telecommunications infrastructure,  companies have been slow to embrace the practice.
'Hong Kong  [is not] in the forefront of teleworking  like the US, where it has been quite a common practice for some time,' said Barbara Chiu,  general manager,  Hong Kong and Macau, of Cisco Systems, a networking and communications company which  builds and sells much of the  hardware and software that companies use to implement telework in the workplace.
However, this is not because workers don't want to work from home.  In  the recent 'State of Work-Life Balance in Hong Kong' survey conducted by the non-profit Community Business,   one in 10 of 1,011 respondents said they believed that work-from-home arrangements would help improve their work-life balance. Teleworking was the fifth most desired measure that would help them achieve better work-life balance, out of a total of 11.
According to Brenda Wilson,  business leader for human capital at consulting firm Mercer,  in Hong Kong, the challenge for Hong Kong is the lack of space that constrains building home offices in employees' personal domestic spaces.
In Asian markets where face time is imperative, Hong Kong's businesses are slow to adapt teleworking which reduces hours inside the office.
'Anecdotally, some managers have expressed concern over whether or not teleworking can deliver results. Concerns span from feeling a loss of control in day-to-day work; mistrust in employees' ability to work from home given potential distractions; and limited ability to coach when employees are not in the office,' she said. 'Employees may be reluctant to embrace teleworking given the lack of face-to-face peer interaction.'
More mature markets with a different work culture, such as the United States, have readily accepted teleworking as an effective strategy to increase staff commitment. Its success involves management trusting employees to synthesise the empowering effects of flexibility without losing productivity.
'Teleworking isn't for all roles or types of employee, but it can and does work for many,' Ms Wilson said.
However, she expected that the demand for teleworking in this city would grow.
'People in Hong Kong work long hours and spend a great deal of time in the office. In fact, there are still companies that have not adopted a five-day work week. As a way forward, I believe that Hong Kong will follow the US and British trend with an increasing prevalence of teleworking, though it may be a long time before organisations fully realise the full benefits of such an initiative.'
Ms Chui agreed, adding that as wireless internet access became more readily available in Hong Kong and the use of mobile internet devices continued to grow, acceptance of teleworking by corporations would increase.
'And let's not forget the intangibles, such as improved lifestyles and healthier family relationships when working at home. Simply put, happy employees are a bonus for all concerned,' Ms Wilson said.
Ms Chiu said that 25 per cent of Cisco's Hong Kong staff  regularly worked in  various remote settings. Dubbed the 'Cisco Virtual Office', and launched in September, it allows  employees working from home to communicate with their colleagues in the office through internet-based data, voice, and video chat applications that are installed on their computers at home.
The only challenge the company  has faced so far  has been balancing network security and maintaining the convenience of employees working productively outside the  office.  Trust again is important between management and employees.
To illustrate the benefits of the scheme, Ms Wilson said that a similar initiative implemented in the company's Singapore office had allowed it to shave up to 30 per cent from its office rent, with savings expected to reach US$5million in the next three years.
Dominic Tong,  general manager, IBM Hong Kong, and executive sponsor, Work-Life Integration, Greater China Group, said  an adaptive workforce  gave companies a competitive edge.
'To date, 40 per cent of IBM's employees are either mobile, working at dedicated client sites or working at home, [while] 73 per cent of IBM managers manage their employees on a remote basis.'
IBM's remote workers use several tools ranging from e-mail and instant messaging to phone calls to maintain contact with their managers.
IBM's flexible work practices had been in place globally since 1956, said Mr Tong. As technology developed over time, IBM adopted it naturally to help create a mobile workforce - with a push in 1995 accompanying the accepted use of notebook computers.  IBM  now adjusts its teleworking practice to accommodate a global business strategy that functions flexibly.
The main concern echoed by others surveyed is that freedom from a traditional office environment comes with greater responsibility.
'Employees are accountable for their business performance, results, and accessibility during work hours,' said Mr Tong.
'Teleworking is one of the essential enablers to provide employees with flexibility, and it is no different in all IBM offices in the world, such as Hong Kong, the US or Britain,' he said.
However, Ms Wilson noted that teleworking was not for everyone, and was usually best suited for employees with a high sense of self-discipline who could work from home using limited technical support.
Most teleworking programmes must also  be supported by a management style with an emphasis  on  results, rather than scrutiny of work being done.
Some industries do not readily accommodate computer-based remote operations. To be successful, teleworking requires a strong IT department  which has to manage a range of devices and computer networks  and work with applications that manipulate information remotely,  with a high level of security.
Ms Chiu believed that teleworking should not be a privilege that was extended to all employees.
'New employees should not be allowed to work from home until their abilities have been assessed and they have established professional relationships with other colleagues and management,' she said.
Companies which decide to implement teleworking should also encourage staff who work away from the office to come in to the workplace at least once a week to  prevent feeling isolated from their  colleagues, and to boost company loyalty.



Eliminating the daily trudge