ROWE workplace inevitably creates a challenge for the more traditional managers to evaluate the performance of their subordinates. Which performance appraisal method will you suggest to the managers to evaluate the staff performance more adequately? Provide detailed explanation to your suggestion.

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Author:WINSTON, Wayne L.
Publisher:WINSTON, Wayne L.
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Best Practices at Best Buy
Do traditional workplaces reward long hours instead of efficient hours? Wouldn't it make
more sense to have a workplace in which people can do whatever they want, whenever they
want, as long as the work gets done?" Well, that's the approach Best Buy is taking. And this
radical workplace experiment, which obviously has many implications for employee
motivation, has been an interesting and enlightening journey for the company.
In 2002, then CEO Brad Anderson introduced a carefully crafted program called ROWE
Results-Only Work Environment. ROWE was the inspiration of two HRM managers at Best
Buy, Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson, who had been given the task of taking a flexible
work program in effect at corporate headquarters in Minnesota and developing it for
everyone in the company. Ressler and Thompson said, "We realized that the flexible work
program was successful as employee engagement was up, productivity was higher, but the
problem was the participants were being viewed as not working." And that was a common
reaction from managers who didn't really view flexible work employees as "really working
because they aren't in the office working traditional hours." The two women set about to
change that by creating a program in which "everyone would be evaluated solely on their
results, not on how long they worked."
The first thing to understand about ROWE is that it's not about schedules. Instead, it's about
changing the work culture of an organization, which is infinitely more difficult than
changing schedules. With Anderson's blessing and support, they embarked on this journey to
overhaul the company's corporate workplace. The first step in implementing ROWE was a
culture audit at company headquarters, which helped them establish a baseline for how
employees perceived their work environment. After four months, the audit was repeated.
During this time, Best Buy executives were being educated about ROWE and what it was all
about. Obviously, it was important to have their commitment to the program. The second
phase involved explaining the ROWE philosophy to all the corporate employees and
training managers on how to maintain control in a ROWE workplace. In the third phase,
work unit teams were free to figure out how to implement the changes. Each team found a
different way to keep the flexibility from spiraling into chaos. For instance, the public
relations team got pagers to make sure someone was always available in an emergency
Some employees in the finance department used software that turns voice mail into e-mail
files accessible from anywhere, making it easier for them to work at home. Four months
after ROWE was implemented, Ressler and Thompson followed up with another culture
check to see how everyone was doing.
So what's the bottom line for Best Buy? Productivity jumped 41 percent, and voluntary
turnover fell to 8 percent from 12 percent. They also discovered that when employees'
engagement with their jobs increased, average annual sales increased 2 percent. And
employees said the freedom changed their lives. They don't know if they work fewer hours,
they've stopped counting but they are more productive." ROWE reduced work-family
conflict and increased employees' control over their schedules. As Ressler and Thompson
stated, "Work isn't a place you go, it's something you do."
Source:
Robbins, S. P., & Coulter, M. (2012). Management (11th ed.). Pearson Education.
Transcribed Image Text:Best Practices at Best Buy Do traditional workplaces reward long hours instead of efficient hours? Wouldn't it make more sense to have a workplace in which people can do whatever they want, whenever they want, as long as the work gets done?" Well, that's the approach Best Buy is taking. And this radical workplace experiment, which obviously has many implications for employee motivation, has been an interesting and enlightening journey for the company. In 2002, then CEO Brad Anderson introduced a carefully crafted program called ROWE Results-Only Work Environment. ROWE was the inspiration of two HRM managers at Best Buy, Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson, who had been given the task of taking a flexible work program in effect at corporate headquarters in Minnesota and developing it for everyone in the company. Ressler and Thompson said, "We realized that the flexible work program was successful as employee engagement was up, productivity was higher, but the problem was the participants were being viewed as not working." And that was a common reaction from managers who didn't really view flexible work employees as "really working because they aren't in the office working traditional hours." The two women set about to change that by creating a program in which "everyone would be evaluated solely on their results, not on how long they worked." The first thing to understand about ROWE is that it's not about schedules. Instead, it's about changing the work culture of an organization, which is infinitely more difficult than changing schedules. With Anderson's blessing and support, they embarked on this journey to overhaul the company's corporate workplace. The first step in implementing ROWE was a culture audit at company headquarters, which helped them establish a baseline for how employees perceived their work environment. After four months, the audit was repeated. During this time, Best Buy executives were being educated about ROWE and what it was all about. Obviously, it was important to have their commitment to the program. The second phase involved explaining the ROWE philosophy to all the corporate employees and training managers on how to maintain control in a ROWE workplace. In the third phase, work unit teams were free to figure out how to implement the changes. Each team found a different way to keep the flexibility from spiraling into chaos. For instance, the public relations team got pagers to make sure someone was always available in an emergency Some employees in the finance department used software that turns voice mail into e-mail files accessible from anywhere, making it easier for them to work at home. Four months after ROWE was implemented, Ressler and Thompson followed up with another culture check to see how everyone was doing. So what's the bottom line for Best Buy? Productivity jumped 41 percent, and voluntary turnover fell to 8 percent from 12 percent. They also discovered that when employees' engagement with their jobs increased, average annual sales increased 2 percent. And employees said the freedom changed their lives. They don't know if they work fewer hours, they've stopped counting but they are more productive." ROWE reduced work-family conflict and increased employees' control over their schedules. As Ressler and Thompson stated, "Work isn't a place you go, it's something you do." Source: Robbins, S. P., & Coulter, M. (2012). Management (11th ed.). Pearson Education.
6. ROWE workplace inevitably creates a challenge for the more traditional managers to
evaluate the performance of their subordinates. Which performance appraisal method will
you suggest to the managers to evaluate the staff performance more adequately? Provide
detailed explanation to your suggestion.
Transcribed Image Text:6. ROWE workplace inevitably creates a challenge for the more traditional managers to evaluate the performance of their subordinates. Which performance appraisal method will you suggest to the managers to evaluate the staff performance more adequately? Provide detailed explanation to your suggestion.
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