From the viewpoint of the work being done, it is the commute that is virtual, not the office. No wonder the subject of telecommuting from a virtual office often gives rise to suspicion and skepticism. We probably can't change the language. The best ideas come from teamwork. But some are cultural and personal issues masquerading as implementation issues.
Corporate work falls into four fundamental categories in relation to telework.
In some companies, teleworking is perceived as a necessity. These include management consultancies, financial planners, sales and marketing, real estate agencies, and installation and maintenance, all of which require doing work at client sites or on customer premises. Such companies deliberately structure their internal operations and technology to facilitate a highly mobile and absent work force. Some have sophisticated voice mail phone systems that allow remote collection of messages, as well as easy forwarding and broadcasting of messages to multiple parties from any cellular or pay phone. They may issue every worker a laptop instead of a desktop computer, so that no traveling employee is out of contact with e-mail, network files, or application software.