人為創(chuàng)造的靈活性vs.貨真價(jià)實(shí)的好處

????家庭與工作協(xié)會(huì)主席兼聯(lián)合創(chuàng)始人艾倫?加林斯基稱：“由于經(jīng)濟(jì)衰退，全球經(jīng)濟(jì)不景氣，以及技術(shù)等方面的原因，工作越來越難做。”加林斯基表示，成功的公司紛紛通過合理放松對員工的限制來應(yīng)對這些挑戰(zhàn)，而不是靠一些不徹底的措施。

????例如，如果公司用所謂“靈活的”朝七晚三的時(shí)間規(guī)定來代替原先的朝九晚五，可能依然無法滿足員工處理個(gè)人事務(wù)的需要，比如照顧生病的孩子，處理浴缸漏水，修理汽車等。加林斯基稱，而其他公司則對工作安排進(jìn)行重新設(shè)計(jì)，將公司的激勵(lì)措施與獎(jiǎng)勵(lì)和員工的工作成果掛鉤——而不是他們在公司露面的時(shí)間。

????以位于達(dá)拉斯的稅務(wù)服務(wù)公司Ryan為例。幾年前，公司一位“明日之星”遞交辭呈，促使公司CEO G?布林特?萊恩重新審視公司注重超長工作時(shí)間和出勤的策略。

????評估的結(jié)果是，公司推出了一款名為MyRyan的軟件，該軟件可以顯示與每一名員工和每個(gè)團(tuán)隊(duì)真正有關(guān)的績效目標(biāo)，比如營收目標(biāo)、360度評估得分、客戶服務(wù)評級等。跟MeetingMatrix一樣，Ryan公司的員工再也不需要卡點(diǎn)上下班，而且，他們可以獲得不受限制的帶薪假期和病假。

????Ryan高級副總裁德爾塔?埃莫森稱：“時(shí)間再也不是公司的主要關(guān)注點(diǎn)。”今年，薪酬委員會(huì)在評估員工績效，決定是否加薪時(shí)，甚至完全沒有考慮員工的工作時(shí)間。

????于是，Ryan公司的自愿離職率從18.5%下降到6.5%，而非自愿離職率（也就是炒掉表現(xiàn)較差的員工）則由4.3%提高到6.9%。盡管處于經(jīng)濟(jì)衰退當(dāng)中，但公司在2009年和2010年連續(xù)兩年的利潤和營收均創(chuàng)下了歷史記錄。埃莫森表示：“以前，每天在公司花很長時(shí)間的人可能表現(xiàn)卻非常糟糕，但他們投入的工作時(shí)間卻能讓他們過關(guān)。但以后再也不會(huì)發(fā)生這樣的情況了。”

Faux-flexibility vs. the real deal

????"Because of the recession and because of the global economy and because of technology, work has become so much more demanding," says Ellen Galinsky, president and co-founder of the Families and Work Institute. Galinsky says that successful companies have begun to tackle these challenges by legitimately loosening their hold on their employees rather than resorting to halfway measures.

????For instance, companies that replace a 9 to 5 schedule with "flexible" hours of 7 to 3 aren't necessarily accommodating employees' need to handle personal affairs, whether it's a sick child, leaky bathtub, or car repair. Other businesses are redesigning work such that incentives and rewards are aligned with the results that an employee delivers -- not the hours that they show their faces in the office, Galinsky says.

????Take Ryan, a tax services firm based in Dallas. A few years ago, a resignation letter from a rising star in the company prompted CEO G. Brint Ryan to reevaluate the firm's focus on long hours and face time.

????The result: MyRyan, a software package that displays the performance objectives that truly matter for each employee and the team, whether it's revenue targets, 360 review scores, customer service ratings, or other things. Ryan employees no longer need to account for their time -- as with MeetingMatrix, staffers can take unlimited paid vacation and sick days.

????"Hours no longer are the key focus," says Delta Emerson, a senior vice president at Ryan. When the compensation committee met this year to evaluate performance and decide on pay raises, employee hours were not even mentioned.

????Voluntary turnover at Ryan decreased to 6.5% from 18.5%, and involuntary turnover (in other words, firing poor performers) increased to 6.9% from 4.3%. Despite the recession, the firm posted record profits and revenue in both 2009 and 2010. "In the past, somebody who was putting in a ton of hours could be performing poorly, but the hours would carry them. That no longer happens," Emerson says.