Thanks for the comment!

We don’t want to under-contribute but don’t want to over-contribute either.

Also, we want to contribute the pre-agreed value using as little of our time and effort as possible.

I think the whole full-time concept is bogus. It’s more like full commitment and full engagement regardless of elapsed time.

But it also depends on the nature of work. Yes, nurses and firefighters are location and time-dependent.

Sadly, in the age of the knowledge worker, many companies are still in the vise grip of Frederick Taylor and his “scientific management” with his dreaded stopwatch.

As Niels Bohr said many years ago, “science advances funeral by funeral.”

Many executives and managers have to kick the bucket in order to properly enter the knowledge age. But it’s coming.

Unfortunately not all organizations think the way you do. And force employees to choose between personal conflicts and filling a chair at work. I should know, I had that conflict. I quit my job. And now I am told (by HR, by the way) that if I want to work flexibly I will need to start full-time, then they will let me know if I can go down to a 35-hour/week schedule with 1 day from home.

Sorry full-time simply does not work for me and will not for a very long time. Your thoughts?

Kris, thanks for jumping into the fray! I hope you’ll indulge a few questions:

Unfortunately, most of the people who want balance don’t have your passion or drive.

Do those folks have a place at your organization? This is the old, “Do you want a team of all A-Players, or do you need B and C Players too?” debate.

You create the balance in your life by being who you are, and you’re naturally drawn to orgs that get that tradeoff.

A part of me really believes that organizations that don’t understand or embrace flexibility will be at a disadvantage in the coming years. Do you agree or disagree with that, and why?

Thanks, Kris! Always appreciate your insights!

Thanks for jumping in with the response. Here’s my take to your points – you’re right in many ways. I like team members like you, and I want you to have that flexibility. Guess what? Players get flexibility because of who they are. Not because HR is responsible for the definition of balance you lay out – which btw, I like very much.

You’ve got passion, which means you’re as likely to add value on a Sunday afternoon as Tuesday at 4:30pm. You have to provide that on your own. Unfortunately, most of the people who want balance don’t have your passion or drive. You create the balance in your life by being who you are, and you’re naturally drawn to orgs that get that tradeoff.

The free market rules in that way. HR can’t mandate the passion on your end, or the flexibility for the masses in the orgs they work in – cause not everyone deserves it or meets it with your mentality…

Good stuff CF – KD

I think many HR pros are still hung up on controlling people’s time – when, where and how they work – instead of coaching them on how to work better. Control is HR 1.0. Collaboration and freedom is HR 2.0. Let’s jump to that next curve!

Personally, I’ve never been more productive or happier than I am now working at home. I no longer have that nasty commute, and if I want to work 12 p.m. – 12 a.m., I can (it turns out that those are the hours that are more productive for me).

So, the question is: “how do we get managers to shed their Victorian attitudes about telecommuting?”

=>Donna Caissie, the ExtraOrdinary HRVA
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My real point is that people need the flexibility to work how they work best. Sounds like you and your peeps may already have that.

I can see where you’re coming from with the informal meetings, and kind of agree to an extent. Are random stop by’s always “informal meetings” though? I’m sure at many organizations there’s a lot of bullshitting and killing time. I’m sure you’ve seen the stats on how long it takes most people to recover from an interruption and get back on task?

In my case, I work with and support a global organization. Random stop-by’s really aren’t an option for many of the people I work with, but they can “random phone call me” anywhere.

I actually prefer face to face for some interactions, too, so I definitely get where you’re coming from there.

I don’t know that we have set hours; I have never checked. I am sure we do, but I work in an employee-owned firm where most folks manage themselves pretty well. We trust our managers to set expectations. I think that is my point: Good managers and employees figure it out, and HR does not need to be there unless it’s not working. For bad managers and bad employees: that’s a different problem with a different solution than we are discussing.

I do a lot from home and get good work done there, but the bulk of my work is in the office. Many of my partners like to come in on Saturdays. That does not work for me, but does for them, so, again, we are all figuring it out.

One note: There is great value in the drive-by–that informal and unscheduled interaction/discussion/collaboration is important in my work; it might not be in others’. I learn about issues/problems/concerns better face to face than I can via email. The two are not exclusive, but they are different interactions.