What does a results-focused workplace look like?
We keep hearing about new work models such as the 4-day week, results-focused workplaces, and additional jargon that is being discussed in the business world.
The reason for these discussions, post-pandemic, is in response to our employees’ need for flexibility and a better work-life balance. In order to accomplish this, employers need to review and adapt their current work model to attract and retain their employees.
This goes beyond offering remote or hybrid work by looking at changing from the traditional approach of associating performance with the number of hours worked to assessing how effective employees are in terms of achieving objectives in a results-focused workplace.
This includes building an effective work culture and environment where all the employees are truly valued as individuals and the employer cares about the well-being of their employees. Businesses need to overcome the belief that an employee is only successful in their role if they are sitting in an office/home space for a set number of hours.
How do we get started?
-
Establish effective and collaborative communication – Promote open communication between leadership and team members. Leaders display empathy and try to understand their employee's needs. They allow their employees to be heard, feel appreciated, and overall, be more productive.
-
Set and measure results - Managers must set specific and clearly defined objectives and goals for their teams to create a results-focused model of work. When specific metrics are set for individual employees, it provides them with the structure needed to meet their goals allowing the results to speak for themselves as a point for evaluation.
-
Don’t micromanage - It is crucial that all leaders lead by example and don’t feel they need to prove their worth by working longer hours. Working in a results-focused model takes away some touchpoints that managers might use for monitoring and evaluating the process.
-
Act on feedback - In a results-focused workplace, it is imperative for managers to provide feedback on the objectives that are achieved. Since the attention is shifted away from the overall process, evaluation needs to be based on employee output. Having regular 1:1 sessions are key to ensuring that employees have an opportunity to give and receive feedback.
By evaluating employees based on results produced, instead of hours spent at work, organizations can create a highly driven workplace with increased employee output, improved team collaboration, and a flexible company culture.
Work should be something you do, not just a place where you go. We are seeing many organizations adopt that mindset with positive effects. The workplace is changing; a physical office is no longer essential and the 9-to-5 working day is becoming outdated.
The traditional way of measuring success in hours is not sustainable in the new world. Is your company ready to embrace this change?