White Collar Nomad

I just returned from an 8-day/7-night vacation and it felt GREAT!  I am a corporate worker and have some hobby web sites I am trying to turn into small businesses on the side, but I escaped from all of that for the week.  No laptop.  No forwarding number.  Blackberry was off and packed in the bottom of the suitcase for emergencies.  With my company in the middle of sale negotiations and financial crisis, it was good to return and find that the place had, in fact, NOT burned to the ground because of my absence.  On top of it, they are getting a recharged worker to assist in this critical time.

I admit, when I learned that my mobile would indeed work on the tiny island of Aruba, I had a moment of weakness where I thought of checking email "for just few minutes".  Then I looked over at my wife and daughter sitting on the beach next to me and remembered my top priorities for the day.

For me, being able to work anywhere in the world at anytime is a great thing.  But this shouldn't mean that you have to work EVERYWHERE and at ANYTIME!  The choice to become a white collar nomad is usually driven by the desire to break the chains of typical work engagements.  In doing so, we must not let ourselves lose the benefits we promised ourselves.

For most of us, packing up our laptop and working from a beach half way around the world has its difficulties.  As an individual contributor at a Fortune 500 company or owner of a small business, we must maintain a certain level of contact with our colleagues and ensure that we're getting our work done.  But can you imagine the level of scrutiny you would get if you were a CEO?  At a former Fortune 10 company?  Which recently posted the largest loss in corporate history and was the recipient of hundreds of billions of dollars in aid from the US government?

Yes, I'm talking about Robert Benmosche, the new CEO of American International Group (AIG).  Benmosche has recently taken some heat for a working vacation at his villa in Dubrovnik, Croatia.  While an extended absence for a CEO isn't always the best idea, it appears he has been doing all he needs to do while separated from company headquarters by seven timezones.

Clad in shorts and sandals and overlooking the Adriatic Sea, Benmosche relies on satellite communications to support his schedule of conference calls.  AIG employees are also given Internet access to company systems while traveling.  Still, Benmosche has not been able to avoid the wrath of the press or the public.

What are your thoughts?  Is there a certain level of employee that should be disallowed from these nomadic jaunts?  Or should location not matter, even for the top dog?

Bloomberg: Benmosche Said to Start AIG Tenure With Croatian Trip