With rising gas prices and a shrinking economy, both employers and employees are looking for creative work arrangements that will save valuable resources. Some companies have adopted four-day workweeks, while others are encouraging employees to work from home.

If you have ever cherished the desire to work in your pajamas, now may be the time to pitch for it. Fortunately, technology has made it easy. With video conferencing tools, multi-party phone conferencing systems, webinars, online meeting and presentation technologies, and other cutting-edge tools, every business task that once required a physical presence can now be done virtually.

While some companies have fairly structured telecommuting policies, others are still unaware of such a possibility. If your company is a late adopter, you may have to do some work to convince your boss. We have outlined a few strategies:

Provide concrete proof

You may have to prove to your superiors that not only is telecommuting a possibility, it can actually produce comparable results in terms of quality and effectiveness. As a pilot, you may have to volunteer on extra projects and complete them from home. Once your boss starts seeing tangible results on these projects, he may become more open to telecommuting.

Don’t be unfair to your employer

Work-life balance, shorter commute time, gas savings -- whatever may be your motivation for a telecommute lifestyle, don’t forget the employer’s needs. Evaluate your company’s requirements and propose a deal that would be fair to your employer. Offer to work an extra hour everyday (which could be less than your commute time), volunteer to work half days on Saturdays, offer to come half-day every day, or propose a late evening work schedule if that is what your company needs from you -- give them some incentive.

Highlight benefits

Senior executives base their decision-making on numbers, models, and analyses. Perform cost-benefit analysis, provide ROI numbers, demonstrate cost savings --- highlight benefits to the employer.

Provide a workable solution and an accountability mechanism

Your proposal should have details about how you will make this arrangement work. Describe a detailed system for feedback and accountability. If done correctly, this should alleviate most concerns about telecommuting.
Defend the disadvantages

Despite the numerous benefits, there are some downsides to telecommuting that your boss may be concerned about. Prepare compelling reasons describing how you will minimize the impact of these disadvantages.