Keep Your Eye on the Goal – chapter 2

Here are examples of how some in the workplace have lost sight of the goal and are letting instinctive and conditioned behaviors distract them.

The article ‘Face time’ trumps telecommuting during recession, which appeared in the business section of the March 25th edition of the Twin Cities Pioneer Press newspaper, describes employees (and apparently bosses) who are jettisoning telecommuting in favor of face time with the boss. In the article, Author John McKee advises “Be in the office whenever the boss is in, whether that’s on the weekends or late at night.” He tells the reader “Simply put, if your boss is at work, you should be as well.”

The article implies that “face time” trumps results – especially in tough times. This is a poor management practice for several reasons. First, “Face time” has never correlated well with results. Managers may like those workers who they see more often. They may know them a little better. They may think they are more dedicated. Managers and employees may also find it more convenient to manage and measure “face time”. But are they getting better results? Those who get the best results and are most efficient may not be the ones we most often see. The fact that they are not seen by the boss as frequently as those seeking “face-time” may be part of the reason they are getting good results. They are out doing what needs to be done.

Another example of losing sight of the goal is found in a recent Society for Human Resources (SHRM) survey which reports employees spend an average of nearly three hours a day worrying about their job security. The article also states that “Bosses might be exacerbating employees’ fear by one simple action—staying behind closed doors”. The article further states that nearly one-half of employees surveyed felt the human resource department was “unhelpful” in foster confidence or in facilitating communication between management and employees.

These are not the engaging behaviors to which I referred in my March 14 blog entry.