The early 1990’s saw the explosion, at least hypothetically and academically, in the flexible working offer. The thought being that due to the advances in technology everybody could Work From Home. Over the last 10 or 15 years the technology and the commercial reality of Internet Business has improved to the extent it is now, not only feasible to Work From Home but in some industries almost necessary classified their business persona’s as nomadic (typically sales) or semi-nomadic (usually management, sales and team leader roles). These job descriptions found it feasible to exist between the capability to Work From Home and flexible workspace in the office or offices within which they still had a base. Further up the management chain superior managers and executives found the ability to be effectual anywhere, specially in the case of those dealing with National and International groups and time changes.

The mid 1990’s on the other hand, saw another sort of flexible worker starting to immerge. The surge in Internet Business shaped a different group. These people are not part of a corporate machine running their roles within the structure of touchdown and virtual meetings but rather what would have been a small business outlet on the main street. They are small service providers and sellers now cost effective because they can work from home without the high fixed cost of property.

On the back of this second tranche comes another group, those involved in online jobs. These employees and entrepreneurs actually make their living by offering services to support the growing virtual market place. In doing so their contact with clients is mostly via the electronic work media. This new business model alters the idea of flexible working because not only can these companies be run by people who work from home they can also be staffed by people with the same working patterns.

Is this a principally new phenomenon? Or a return to the pre – industrial revolution patterns of work. Are what we now see as new age Online Jobs merely a paradigm shift from the requirement to be co-located, brought about by the mechanisation of jobs and the process vital for high output, to the skilfulhighly skilled, craft based model of the cottage industries.