can you see me now?

I became a Mac convert just this past year and have since discovered Skype. It's been wonderful for communicating with family members who live in the U.K., thanks to the Mac's built-in webcam. It's the first time I've made routine use of a webcam. And it's been a blessing to have this with a young daughter who rarely gets to see her extended family, and vice-versa.

So, in a conversation at lunch about virtual offices, it occurred to me that much of the objection to telecommuting seems to exist because managers can't see that you are working if you are working from home. Never mind that they can't see that if you are in your office with the door closed. But what if virtual workers all had webcams installed? Not only would that help telecommuters with the internal relationship building, but it would also provide the capacity to conduct visual conversations with members. You could even put something like this to work for you.