ROWE is for . . .
January 12th, 2008 by Cali & Jody
We were about to reply to Terese Blanck’s comment to Telecommuting, Jealously and You, but then we thought our answer was worth its own post.
Terese wants to know:
“Does [ROWE] work for all types of personalities? Does the employee who is young and needs more direction still show results? Are there main personal traits that must be present in order for this to work such as self-directed, engaged and passionate about your work? Also, how does a receptionist feel who must be present at work…do you make some type of arrangement for this role as well?”
This questions points to what we feel is one of the most insidious aspects of the traditional workplace: the idea that control over your job is only for the select few. The traditional workplace teaches us that only some people (upper-level employees, employees with more seniority, employees who show the most can-do spirit) get the privilege to run their own lives. Everyone else needs to be put on a schedule, crammed in a cube, and watched over.
But you do not have to be special to be in a Results-Only Work Environment. You don’t have to be more focused or savvy or passionate or anything. It’s for everyone.
The reason is that a ROWE is not that different. You’re still going to work and doing your job. You still have meetings and solve problems and communicate with customers. None of that changes.
What changes is that if you want to go pick up some dry cleaning at 2 pm, you just go do it and don’t worry about it. You don’t have to announce it to your team or get permission, because you’re getting your work done and that’s all that matters. (The same goes for the receptionist. Someone covers for the receptionist now, when he or she is sick, or at lunch, or in a meeting. So it’s no different.)
In fact, as you continue to think about and explore the idea of a ROWE, we’d encourage you to think about how ordinary a Results-Only Work Environment is. It’s really just like the rest of your life. You know, those hours away from work when you actually get to be an adult.
I had an interesting conversation about ROWE and the “is it for everybody” issue with a close friend. Not even in her 30’s, I surprised to find how married to the “structure” of a traditional workplace she is. She and another close friend both feel there is no way they would be able to “work” if at home. Yikes! She continually reverted back to the argument that she would feel guilty if she only did 2 hours of work and did nothing for 6. The dreaded 8 hour “work”day!!!!
It was not until I posed it this to her this way, which I hope is still aligned with the ROWE philosophy. Without going into much detail about her career, she is responsible for processing claims for institutions which in turn generates revenue for her organization. I explained that under ROWE, you would be tasked with meeting processing x amount of claims per week or month. Of course, it would need to be based on her productivity and the organization’s expectations now. Therefore, if the magic number was to process 40 claims in a month, that is your goal and to structure your life and work routine to do so. Though, she was a bit more understanding, she still remains skeptical.
Funny thing was prior to Christmas (which is a paid holiday for her), she must work on Christmas Eve (and that whole taking the day off before/after a paid holiday negates being paid for the holiday persists). Employees bring in food and the company usually dismisses them a whole 30 minutes to an hour early…but never lets them know until the last minute. Ah yes, the funny part of this story…I asked her what work she got done on that day…her response, “Not a thing!”
I pressed her by explaining that’s the beauty of ROWE. You didn’t do any work anyway, but I bet you could have been doing some last minute holiday prepping or even better….simply enjoying the holiday season…..
The ideas here are great and have proven successful by many companies. Having the freedom to make your own decisions about your work that is plugged in to a great mission is truly life changing.
We have embraced this type of philosophy for more than 10 years and we truly are a Great Place To Work. Well known for our unlimited vacation, make your own hours, and gaming in the office as long as you get your work done. But, I would caution that it isn’t for everyone and every personality type. Our number one criterion in recruiting is fit in our culture. We are careful to select great candidates who can handle the responsibility of trust and freedom at work.
Not everyone can handle this. I have heard Libby Sartain of Yahoo and SouthWest make a great point about culture, “Every company has one.” I encourage people to seek out the company culture that is right for you. In turn, companies need to seek out the type of people who are right for their culture (Libby’s book, “HR from the heart” is worth a read). If you make the switch to more of a ROWE culture some of your team wont’ fit anymore.
I’d encourage folks to pick the pieces of the system that work for you. For instance, we don’t support telecommuting on a regular basis. You can when you need to. But, we have a culture where we encourage folks to come in to the office and share in our community. That is what works for us. Pick the pieces that work for you.
With the right people and support from the most senior leader, stripping away policies at work is a beautiful thing. Great work, Cali and Jody. Nice to see others carrying the torch. Go get em.