Why Work Sucks and How to Fix It_ The Results-Only Revolution - Cali Ressler [72]
“This will work for some people but not everyone. Some peoplesimply need more supervision.”
People don’t need supervision. They need a clear idea of what they need to do and a clear sense of when it needs to be done. If you call your deli and ask them to deliver you a delicious turkey sandwich in the next half hour, you don’t need to then go down there to watch them make it and follow the delivery guy back to your office. You trust that they are going to deliver on expectations. And if they don’t deliver a delicious turkey sandwich in a half hour then you have two choices: complain and hope that service improves, or switch delis.
“How will we know if work is getting done if we can’t see people?”
How do you know now? In today’s economy people work with information. They talk on the phone. They type on their computers. If you walk by a row of cubicles you don’t know for a fact the occupants are actually working or if they’re just looking busy. In a ROWE you know the work is getting done because you’ve been crystal-clear about goals and expectations. X is to be delivered to Y on such-and-such a date. If people don’t deliver the work, you know immediately and can act accordingly.
“Relationships are so important. What will happen to relationships?”
Relationships are important. And relationships will be fine. We assume that we’re improving relationships with people because we’re all in the same building together. But being together doesn’t guarantee that people are connecting. In a ROWE people work on their relationships with more purpose. Because you can’t assume people will be around, you make career development, mentoring, and coaching a part of the results to be delivered. No more taking people for granted.
“How can you schedule meetings if you don’t know when people are working?”
In a ROWE you can no longer casually schedule a meeting. You don’t schedule meetings based around time. You schedule meetings based on outcome. If the outcome requires that people attend, then they will attend. If they don’t need to be there in person they can send a representative, or they can provide the information they’re supposed to deliver ahead of time.
“How will we know if salaried employees are putting in forty hours?”
You don’t know. And it doesn’t matter. In a ROWE you measure someone’s performance based on results. You tell them what they’re supposed to do and they either deliver or they don’t. Time is not a factor. People start performing rather than putting in time.
“What about teams?”
Teams are overrated. In a ROWE people stop teaming because they feel obligated to team. No more teaming for the sake of teaming, because it’s fashionable or expected. People team up because the outcome requires it. In fact, teams get much stronger in a ROWE because there is natural cross training. Because you can’t assume that people are going to be in the office (including you) teammates make sure they can support one another in an emergency.
“What if everyone decides not to work at the same time?”
That depends. Does the job require that people work at the same time? Because if the outcome doesn’t demand that everyone work at the same time, then the answer is “That’s fine.” But if the job requires certain people to be together or to coordinate their efforts at the same time, then that’s what they have to do. ROWE gives employees power over how they work and when they work, but they still have to work. They are still responsible for serving the customer, whether that customer is internal or external. That sense of responsibility—coupled with the power to meet those responsibilities however they want—actually breeds higher performance. People don’t even think about blowing off work in a ROWE.
“If there’s no line between work and life, how will I keep from overworking?”
In a ROWE you don’t overwork, because there is no incentive to overwork. You aren’t getting rewarded for putting in more hours. You are no longer a hero for pulling an all-nighter or being