Come on in
October 3rd, 2007 by Cali & Jody
Sometimes when we read articles like this about flexibility at work we just can’t stand it. On the one hand, this story rightly talks about how people are craving flexibility at work, how it’s a competitive advantage for business, and so forth. On the other hand, the piece frets about how flexibility is not for everyone, and how there needs to be core hours. It’s like watching someone at a swimming pool who won’t dive in even though the water is fine. Are you in or are you out?
What’s missing here is trust. At Best Buy, we’ve found that if you actually trust people, then you’ll get amazing results. People not only like and benefit from flexibility, but if you take it a step further and actually give them control, their performance soars. And this happens not just with the best educated workers. Or the most ambitious workers. Everyone responds to being trusted. As long as you give people clear expectations, they will perform. And you don’t even need it in writing.
