Rethinking How We Work
Tue, October 9, 2012 at 12:00 Tweet
The world of work is changing, as is how much time we spend at it. Is there a shift underway? It is changing before us, which was particularly evident when Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg started leaving work at 5.30 pm after she had her children. A media circus ensued after Sheryl publicly acknowledged it. How many more professionals are doing the same?
This example of a successful female professional’s actions may be an indication of how we can re-think the way we work. There are many other examples of SME’s and corporate organizations approaching work in creative and innovative ways. The ROWE ~ Results Only Work Environment ~ model is one of the models being used by innovative organizations. The model focuses on results as opposed to time spent on the job. ROWE illustrates a workplace that clearly defines desired outcome(s) or what is required. It is not a model for the unmotivated. Professionals working to this end achieve their outcomes as they see fit. They choose their working method, location and hours, whilst performing and producing quality work and results. These changes are having a profound effect on individual lives, with the potential of changing corporate culture.
Dr. Alison Konrad, professor of Organizational Behaviour, from the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario in Canada believes organizations have a long way to go before embracing this idea on a bigger scale. Dr. Konrad published a study in 2011 that showed honours business administration students want a meaningful career that allows them to contribute to business and society whilst maintaining ‘balance’ in their lives. The students specifically identified they did not want their identity to be all consumed by their professional lives. As these students leave university, let’s see if corporations start listening.
Businesses are seeing the value in adopting creative strategies to how people work. The core number of employees in organizations is shrinking. People are working portfolio or flexi careers in ever increasing numbers, an idea advanced by Organizational Behaviour and Management Thinker, Charles Handy. Research reveals that Gen Y and Millennials have a deep desire for ongoing learning and development in their careers aligned with meaning and flexibility, see Doing What you Love. What more exciting time could there be to navigate your way through your professional life? Career Guides at Position Ignition are available to support you on that journey.
About the Author:
Stephanie Mount is a Position Ignition Guide. She is profoundly interested in people and their potential. Stephanie engages with individuals to discover their most authentic self (the positive energy, their passions and strengths). Stephanie’s diverse career in the helping profession spans two continents. She uses her international experience, professional knowledge and living as an expatriate to enable others to create a fulfilling and balanced life. Stephanie is an adventurer, passionate about the ‘great outdoors’ and travelling to far flung places on this beautiful planet.
