Working from Home

Good Morning America recently did a story on the ever-growing demand for at-home employees. As ever curious about such employment, considering the high risks of getting scammed, I decided to check out one of the companies GMA covered.

Arise Virtual Solutions, Inc. labeled as a messenger service and located in Miramer, Florida, offers outsourced call center services to Fortune 500/1000 companies such as Home Depot, Virgin Atlantic and Carnival Cruises.

Formerly known as Willow CSN, Arise was founded in the 90s as a virtual call center. Rather than having an established singular site full of CS employees the company routes calls to their CyberAgents who work directly out of their homes.

Arise does the legwork of hiring and training agents as well as expanding their client base.

So rather than reaching a CS agent in a call center wearing semi-business casual amongst a sea of cubicles or reaching a likewise individual across the ocean, one may very well be speaking with a rep snug at home, in their slippers, bathrobe and Fido at their feet.

The opportunity for Arise and their agents (not referred to as employees as agents are prompted to look at themselves as self-employed) is immense.

For Arise they don't have to worry about the financial mountain of housing agents in a call center. No monstrous heating or perhaps for Arise's Florida location case, cooling bills, enormous electric bills, the need for supervisors, managers, costly electronics for all the CS reps, etc.

The advantages for the agent is no costly commute to work, fees to sitters, clothing costs and a choice amongst hours, clients and of course, working from the comfort of home.

I had to dissect this opportunity, to see what the disadvantages are for individuals, such as myself, who may see such an opportunity as working from home being a perfect solution to working outside.

My first off surprise, while attempting such a venture as a home-based CyberAgent, is the expense. Perhaps "some" doesn't quite give the full picture as it's going to cost quite a bit of money to get started, especially if an individual does not own a computer or have the software and hardware that Arise requires.

Some of the hardware listed: Obviously a computer with DSL or cable modem (no satellite or wireless connections of any kind), printer (preferably color), backup ISP, UPS backup with surge protector, dedicated phone line with none of the bells and whistles, in other words, a flat line with no voicemail, call waiting, *69 service, etc., a telephone with hold, flash and headset compatibilities.

Software includes: Windows 2000 or XP with all updates, anti-virus, firewall and spyware software, Outlook or Gmail service, and Internet Explorer, Office Suite so to be able to view Microsoft Word, Excel and Power Point files.

This doesn't include the average $16.00 background check charge, agent certification at $99, client training averaging $50 to $225 or Arise's monthly charge of $39.50.Or the cost to have your home-based business Incorporated. (Being in Ohio, the state charges $50 for the application, $150 for filing)

Plus, one doesn't want to forget the comfortable chair and sturdy desk at which to work at in their home, preferably in a room that allows one the peace and quiet in which to take phone calls.

At an average of $10 to $14 an hour, a choice of clients and scheduling, plus the freedom of working from home, the upfront costs appear miniscule with consideration of long term self-employment, especially after calculating the costs of working outside the home, specifically for parents with childcare costs or those with a handicap who might else not have the ability to work at all.

Having had four years experience in a call center, plus having the majority of the equipment on hand, the most out-of-pocket expense I face is a dedicated phone line, telephone/headset, all the training fees and the Incorporated status. It doesn't sound like much on paper but once one does the math we're talking anywhere from $400 to $600 just to be eligible to receive clients from Arise.

To date, I've passed four out of the seven required admissions process. Profile assessment, Arise services agreement, Ideal match assessment, and the background check.

Stay tuned for future coverage on the home-based self-employment venture.