It's 6 a.m. Gasoline is more than $3 a gallon. You are 25 miles from your office, which means a 45-minute commute on a great day, an hour on a regular day, and two hours on a bad day. Once at the office, there is so much commotion around your cubicle, you are seriously considering purchasing noise-cancelling headphones. Maybe it's time to start taking advantage of that telecommuting policy? But just how much work can you accomplish from your home office? How "connected" can you be when you are not plugged into the corporate network? More important, how many tools are available for remote employees and telecommuters?

Communications with other employees, business partners, and customers is the first area to be considered. Cell phones, land lines, and home VoIP (Voice over IP) provide readily available and reliable replacement for the office systems. Consumer-grade speakerphones generally are of inferior quality and should be avoided.

Bluetooth ear buds for cell phones pick up a lot of background noise and should be avoided. In addition, their use should be restricted while driving–road noise is a killer. It is OK to talk to a colleague over a noisy connection, but it is not acceptable during an important conference call or with a client.