5 December 2011
It's OK to leave office before the boss
Evaluate staff on output, not face-time at the workplace, say experts
WORKING late in the office demonstrates your commitment to the job. Leaving the office before the boss heads home is unacceptable. That, at least, is the conventional wisdom.
Those who leave earlier probably do so quietly, hoping to go unnoticed. The rest toe the line.
'They think, 'I better be here until the boss leaves or he will think I am not committed,'' says executive coach B.H. Tan.
But at recruitment consultancy Xpand Group, things are different after it implemented a 'Rowe' framework last year. This evaluates staff according to their output rather than where and when they did their work.
Rowe stands for 'results only work environment', developed about a decade ago by two United States human resource workers.
There are no set working hours, you have unlimited time off and there is no such thing as a compulsory meeting, says Xpand's managing director for South-east Asia, Mr Luke Partridge.
'It's empowerment. We feel as if we are treated like adults,' says Ms Joyce Lee, a consultant at the firm. 'If I feel particularly stressed out, I can go for coffee and then make up for it later.'
She added: 'In a traditional work environment, even if you can work from home, you would have to ask, 'Can I do this from home today?' Under the Rowe framework, you don't have to. You just go ahead.'
If this is the way forward, the term 'desk-bound job' may no longer be common in the future. What is needed is mutual trust between employees and their managers, says Mr Tan.
Some objections to offering more flexibility to staff include the idea that some employees may slack off, or that jealous colleagues may complain about it.
Still, experts have argued that companies should not place so much premium on people showing their faces in the office, if it is possible.
Says National University of Singapore sociologist Paulin Straughan: 'When the competition is within the same office and same workgroup, if you can see your 'competitor' slogging away past dismissal time, you are also likely to want to stay on so that you don't lose out.'
'Of course, much of this internalisation is mere perception because you don't really know how efficient and effective your co-worker really is,' she added.
'But the very nature of the illusive output makes it even more important that one at least clocks sufficient face-time.'
The way we work has to change, she says.
Most workers are aware that productivity levels vary throughout the day. After a few hours of intense work, energy levels drop and workers may move to less demanding tasks such as answering e-mail messages.
Towards the end of the day, the mind is so cluttered and drained that people will do work that appears productive but may not be effective.
Indeed, if you are mentally tired, you will be hard-pressed to come up with a new idea or strategy, for example.
The good news is that more companies and leaders are embracing flexibility at work as they realise it is pretty archaic not to, says Mr Tan.
'If people are disengaged, they will still come into the office to work but they will just put in the nine hours and leave. They won't put their heart and soul into the work.'
Mr Partridge says Rowe has created a more motivated team and increased productivity. And it does not mean an empty office. In fact, he says his consultants like to be in the office during work hours.
Nevertheless, it is not a panacea to everyone and every business challenge.
The approach applies very well to the recruitment sector as consultant remuneration is tied very clearly to results and not irrelevant key performance indicators, he says.
Also, working according to Rowe is not all rosy; it just means you are able to better manage and make use of your time. For instance, if you are a morning person, you can start work earlier.
'If you need to go for a run at 3pm or want to catch a movie at 11am, then feel free to do so. We just expect, in return, a mature approach to know what you need to do to achieve your result,' says Mr Partridge.
That calls for a lot of discipline, says Ms Lee. 'It teaches us to work in a more effective manner... It's for the better as it helps to enhance efficiency and morale.'
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