Dear Matt: I just read the book "Why Work Sucks and How to Fix It." It talked about a work atmosphere that rewarded work done and not time in the office. It's called ROWE - the Results-Only Work Environment. How could I bring this up where I work? How do I approach a company with an idea like this and do you think they would be receptive to this idea?
Matt: The first thing I will say is that this method won't work for every workplace. The second thing is if you do think it will fit - why not go for it? Many organizations oppose change and aren't open to new ideas - but if you can present the positives and potential successes of this to company leaders, just maybe you can generate a ROWE-oriented movement.
Twin Cities HR guru Arlene Vernon assists organizations with employee-relation solutions. I agree with her when she says that because the concept is in its infancy, it's important to do extensive background work on this method to set the stage for the discussion with company leaders.
Once you've mastered the concepts through research, take a hard look at your organization. Is the concept a good fit for the business? Can you serve your internal and external customers effectively with normal business and office hours? Can the jobs and responsibilities be perfor- med off- and on-site? Would this work in some departments but not in others?
"Why Work Sucks and How to Fix It" authors Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson are located in St. Paul (www.culturerx.com). Their research shows that if you work in an office environment, ROWE can be successful at improving productivity by an average of 41 percent. It can also increase employee engagement and morale, and improve retention, studies show.
Vernon, Ressler and Thompson all say you should be prepared to have the idea initially denied by company leaders. You'll likely hear something like "that won't work here" because moving into a ROWE requires significant paradigm shifts that must be appropriately paced and guided in order to be successful.
Liz Beckius, culture program manager at Best Buy, which has successfully implemented a ROWE program at its corporate headquarters in Richfield, says the key to getting this program implemented is helping your manager understand what a ROWE is really about. Again, it goes back to planning and research.
"What company would not want its employees to focus on results?" says Beckius.
