Inc.: Two Entrepreneurs Plan for Higher Energy Costs

By Alexandra Cheney

With summer gas prices steadily climbing toward $3 per gallon, according to the Energy Information Administration, many entrepreneurs who were hit hard by previous pump price spikes have permanently incorporated energy-saving strategies into their company culture.

For the last 35 years, Rita Henry an employee of Atlanta-based Lathem Time, had driven 70 miles to work every morning. That is, until gas prices rose so sharply she couldn't afford to do so. Her employer, Bill Lathem, the president and CEO of Lathem Time, a manufacturer of time clocks, door locks and electronic recorders, started a vanpooling program in 2004 as a result of the strain rising gas prices was having on his employees. Today, 23 percent of Lathem's 105 employees participate in the program either by self-arranged carpools, or by climbing into one of the two white vans Lathem provides.

On Friday's, Lathem encourages his employees to work from home via a teleworking system that redirects calls from the office to their homes. He calls the operation "seamless" and believes his employees are more productive when working from home one day a week. (more)