Is It Time To Restructure the Workplace?

by Ray B Williams

Like all perceived "bad" things that happen in life, the current recession is providing us with the opportunity to reassess how our economy, business and government works. Of course, the truth be known, there is really no such thing as bad times or good times, there are just times, period. It's how we perceive those times and what lessons we learn that can provide a great stimulus for the changes we need in our society and personal lives.

Is the way we have defined the workplace viable any longer? We need only visualize the scene every day, twice a day, when millions of one person cars travel long distances to work, with an extreme cost to society in terms of urban sprawl, increased polution, use of non-renewable resources, and increased stress on individuals and families.

In a great article by Harvard Professor, Rosabeth Moss Kanter, entitled "Stay Home and Work," she points out that 84% of the U.S. population lives within 383 metropolitan areas. Jobs with the central business district have been declining, while jobs in the suburbs have increased.

She points out that this daily commute exacts a high cost to society, and if it became a staggered commute of four days a week for everyone, 20% of the traffic problems would vanish.
How long someone works and what kind of schedule has been toyed with for years. We know when people can choose when to work and for how long, increases productivity and allows workers to address family and personal needs better.

For many dual earner families, being able to work remotely from the office is a desirable way to achieve work-life balance. Many executives and professionals testify that they are more productive when they occasionally are out of their office environment. The dramatic increase in people starting their own businesses and becoming entrepreneurs in part comes from an increased desire to control one's work life and not be harnessed to the typical 8-5, 40 hour work week.

Rosabeth Moss Kanter observes that technology makes remote work more feasible. People are connected 24/7 around the world, so office locations and operations are becoming less of a requirement.

So what holds us back from reorganizing how work is structured? It's not our technological limitations. They are human limitations. Without a culture of accountability, collaboration, trust and personal responsibility, remote work doesn't operate well.

The answer may lie in creating new conditions in organizations that are office-bound, before we have the capacity to restructure work. And that requires different kinds of leaders and managers who don't rely on face-to-face compliance as a method of supervision. And we need to move beyond the naive assumption that having a lot of "butts in seats"--which gives the appearance of engagement--is actual productivity. Putting in face-time is no longer a valid measurement of productive work.

What's needed now is a complete reexamination of the work structure paradigm, work processes, and leadership methodologies to develop a more flexible and productive workplace.

About Ray B Williams
Ray B Williams is Co-Founder of Success IQ University a company based in Phoenix, Arizona providing the most innovative products and services to help professionals, entrepreneurs and business owners be more successful in life and work.
Ray is also President of Ray B Williams Associates, a company based in Vancouver B.C., providing executive coaching services.
Ray has been an executive, management consultant and coach for over thirty years, working with leaders throughout the world. He is also a Certified Hypnotherapist and Master NLP Coach. Ray has written a number of books on leadership and writes a regular column for the National Post, Canada's leading newspaper.
Ray is in demand as a speaker, coach, consultant and author throughout North America.
www.successiqu.comwww.raybwilliamsassociates.com;
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