Why Does Work Suck?

We define work as going somewhere instead of doing something.  If I’m sitting in my chair at the office, I’m working, right?  For most of you, isn’t the answer to that question no?

What is it about work that sucks?

• Fixed schedules
• Mandatory meetings
• Sludge (more about that later)
• Sacrificing your personal life for work
• Lack of control of your own time
• Worrying about vacation/sick/personal policies
• And I’m sure you could add many more to this list!

So, what can you do about it?

You can implement a Results-Only Work Environment (ROWE).  In a ROWE you are responsible for your schedule and, as long as your results are achieved, you work when, how, and where you choose.  ROWE is a philosophy created by Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson during their tenure with Best Buy. They documented this project in their book Why Works Sucks and How To Fix It .

The duo were successful in moving the entire corporate staff of Best Buy (some 4,000+ employees) to a ROWE.  The results: dramatic drop in stress levels for employees at all levels within the company and solid positive financial gains for the company.  Voluntary turnover rates were substantially reduced (meaning that Best Buy is retaining talent), and involuntary turnover rates increased (the company rid itself of unsatisfactory performers).

The biggest mindset shift caused by implementing a ROWE is that time loses it power.  Instead of being focused on time—how much time? How little time? When did Bob get in this morning? What time did Susan leave today?—everyone in the organization becomes focused on effectiveness and results.

Cali and Jody describe 4 examples of how time’s power over work is diminished:

• In a ROWE, you don’t use time to judge your own performance.
• In a ROWE, you don’t use time to judge your coworkers’ performance.
• In a ROWE, managers can’t use time as a means of controlling their employees.
• In a ROWE, control over one’s time is no longer a perk for the select few.

I know what you’re thinking — “Yeah, but that won’t work around here!”

Deeply ingrained within all of our work-psyche’s is Sludge. The Sludge is what walks us down the path of thinking that a ROWE will not work. It has become such an integral part of our daily working lives that we do not even notice how much we all encourage and promote it.

Sludge comes in many different forms.  For example, you are running late for a meeting.  On the way to the meeting you think of excuses—traffic was bad, the kids are sick, I had a doctor’s appointment—because in the traditional workplace time is everything and we are not in control of it.  Once you get to the meeting it becomes even worse: Mr. Anderson, nice of you to honor us with your presence.  In this case you were sludged twice.  Once by yourself (fretting over the excuses) and once by your manager or coworker.

To get past the “that won’t work around here” issue, sludge needs to be eliminated. How do you begin to eliminate sludge? By developing clear and relevant results for everyone in your company. I have found that the most effective method of developing those results lists is collaboration between managers and employees.

My approach toward developing results lists is to first ask our consultants to define their results. Usually I find that their goals exceed my expectations. If I gave them my view of their results first, sludge re-enters the picture.

The very first step I took in implementing a ROWE in our company was to develop my own results list. I decided to come up with what my results should be for each day, week, month, and year.

How would you implement a ROWE in your company?  And what would your results list look like?

About the Author

John founded Aries Technology Group in 1996 and is President of the company. He is the recipient of the Trailblazer Award from the Verasage Institute for his pioneering efforts towards providing value and minimizing risk for his customers.