by Marnie Larson, CEO
16. February 2012 13:09
Whenever I see an article about Gen Y and the changes that are needed to accommodate them in the workforce, I just have to read it. Being a Gen X, I continue to struggle with the fact that we as the leaders of business today have to change how we do things so the most talented Gen Y employees do not run to the competition. My entry into the workforce (which I don't think was that long ago) was much more about what I could do for the employer than what the employer could do for me. Regardless, by 2025, Gen Y will make up 70-75% of the workforce. So we need to put some serious thought in now about how our workplaces will change to meet the challenge.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-0205-outside-opinion-gen-y-20120205,0,2120130.story
I have blogged a couple of times about telecommuting and flexible work schedules. The next step in the evolution of the flexible workplace may be Results-Only Work Environment (ROWE). The focus is not on time logged or even physical presence, but rather the results that an employee achieves. Makes sense. I certainly agree that as long as the work is getting done to the standards set, the time to do that work is less relevant. The tough part though is establishing what the goals are.
Stacy Swanson tackles this question in her blog found here http://www.govloop.com/profiles/blogs/how-do-you-track-results-instead-of-time.
Stacy believes it has to be a two way conversation as to what needs to be accomplished and there has to be a transparent way to track results. This could be a weekly discussion about what needs to get done in a set period.
Quite a shift for those of us that are used to logging the time each week, and for certain industries (e.g. law and accounting firms), a completely different currency to evaluate performance.
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