Monthly Archives: August 2012

Turning Disabilities into a Workplace Advantage

For 18 glorious days, the Olympics took over my life.  Cycling, fencing, handball, gymnastics, I watched it all.  Now that the Olympics are done I’m not exactly sure what to do with myself besides wait for the Paralympics, which start next week.  If you were following the Olympics even half as closely as I was, you’ve probably heard about Oscar Pistorius, the double-amputee South African runner.  Pistorius was allowed to compete against able-bodied runners in the Olympic Games for the first time this year, after running in the Paralympic Games since 2004.

I was inspired by Pistorius and his views on being disabled.  He was raised by a mother who treated him the same as his able-bodied brother, and he personally believes that disabilities should not be seen as shortcomings.  In fact, he is regularly quoted for saying, “being disabled doesn’t mean you have to be at a disadvantage.”  Personally, I believe this is a view that should be carried over into the workplace.

Did you know that the unemployment rate for the disabled, at 15 percent in 2011, is almost double the unemployment rate for the general population?[1]  Employers just aren’t looking to the disabled population to fill open positions, even though according to the U.S. Department of Education, disabled employees tend to rate at or above average in performance, quality and quantity of work, and flexibility.  When you couple in the fact that disabled employees also tend to have lower absenteeism and lower turnover rates, it turns out that hiring disabled workers may actually prove advantageous over able-bodied employees.

Just as Pistorius needs special prosthetics for racing, some disabled employees just need simple accommodations to be productive in the workplace.  For example, a visually-impaired employee may need better lighting or magnification in order to complete job tasks.  Organizations may see these accommodations as barriers to hiring disabled employees.  However, according to the Job Accommodation Network, over half (56 percent) of necessary accommodations cost nothing to implement.  For the rest of accommodations, the average price tag is just $600.  In exchange, employees who receive these accommodations tend to be more loyal to the organization, and 72 percent of employers report an increase in employees’ productivity who received workplace accommodations.[2]

The bottom line is that disabilities should not be seen as a disadvantage in the workplace, and disabled employees can even offer distinct advantages to employers.  Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to start gathering supplies for the Paralympic Games.  I’m going to be spending quite a bit of time on the couch cheering on Pistorius and the other athletes.

[1] Persons with a Disability: Labor Force Characteristics Summary, Bureau of Labor Statistics, June 6, 2011, http://www.bls.gov/news.release/disabl.nr0.htm (accessed August 15, 2011).

[2] Phone interview with Anne E. Hirsh, MS, and Lou Orslene, 4/29/11.

Soaring Engagement and High-Altitude Customer Service

I am a dedicated customer of Southwest Airlines.  I will choose to fly this airline even if it is slightly more expensive than alternative organizations.  I constantly recommend Southwest to my friends and family when they ask for recommendations on what airline they should fly.

While it’s true that many times Southwest is the cheapest option for me, based on where I am flying, I don’t choose Southwest due to the price; I choose to fly this airline because of the employees.  Southwest is widely known for great customer service, and in all my experience, the airline has consistently confirmed this image.         

The overall culture of Southwest Airlines provides a great illustration of what engagement should look like.  Team members go above and beyond their job duties to provide the best possible experience for customers.  In an airport, this dedication to customer support is especially important because people who are traveling can be stressed and at times are extremely difficult to handle.  Engaged employees are the employees who recognize, while it may require a little more work, providing good customer service will help the overall organization.  As such, they are willing to put forth the effort to provide a better experience.

Just as engaged employees are committed to the organization, the organization must be committed to employees as well.  As part of Southwest’s mission, publicized online, leadership at the airline promises to provide employees with a stable work environment, opportunities to express creativity, career development options, and “the same level of concern, respect, and caring attitude within the organization that they are expected to share externally with every Southwest Customer.”  If you’ve read other blog posts on our site, you know these initiatives are all factors that help create a culture of engagement.        

When companies are in the same industry and offering the same services or products, employees are often the differentiating factor between one organization and its competitors.  What makes an organization really shine is how engaged employees are, and how leadership and team members treat customers.  Recently, a blog post discussing an incident at United Airlines where an unaccompanied minor was “lost” on her way to meet family members was published here.  The post illustrates employees in a starkly different light than Southwest employees portray, and unfortunately provides examples of incredibly disengaged employees.  Bob Sutton’s account of the airline losing his friend’s 10 year old daughter outlines how employees refused to accept responsibility, were unwilling to go out of their way to help, and expressed a “do not care” attitude.  This lack of engagement increased the problem, causing anger and frustration among the child’s parents, eventually leading to negative publicity for United. 

United certainly has engaged employees that work for them, just as Southwest most likely has disengaged employees.  Unfortunately, United is better known for its culture of disengagement and apathy, and this is the image some consumers may consider when choosing a flight.  In order to overcome this image, United should work toward building a culture of engagement.  The same can be said for all industries; increasing engagement and altering your culture will help improve your reputation, and likely increase customer retention.

As for me, I will remain a devoted Southwest advocate until United’s culture changes.    

 

Honey, I Shrunk the Office…

As you read this blog post, your workspace might be shrinking in front of your eyes.  Given many recent changes in the workplace, workspaces have dwindled in size over the past several years.  According to data compiled by the International Facility Management Association, non-management office employees lost nearly one square foot of personal space per year between 1994 and 2010.   There are several factors contributing to this change.

With more employees working remotely, the increased concern for reducing a company’s carbon footprint, and the rampant use of mobile devices, companies have more incentive to reduce the size of their offices.  During the past two decades, workspace has become a less important commodity.  In fact, more and more companies are breaking down walls and removing cubicles to create an open workplace environment that many people believe increases creativity, fosters teamwork, and builds engagement.  Such office modifications are also saving organizations money during a tough economy because less space per worker usually means lower rent.  

Despite the economic benefit for employers, employees may actually be unaware of how much smaller their personal workspaces have become in recent years.  Earlier this year, CoreNet Global, an association of corporate real estate and workplace professionals, conducted a survey on workspace.  The study found that square footage per worker has already slipped from 225 square feet in 2010 to 176 square feet today.  Interestingly, the decrease in workspace has not negatively impacted employee performance, productivity, and engagement.

Companies are better equipped to do more with less workspace than they used to be.  Today’s technological advances enable employees to avoid being attached to their desks.  For example, WebEx allows staff on the go to easily participate in meetings.  More and more organizations are using web conferencing to allow their employees to have a “presence” even when they are out of the office.  Both older and younger employees are taking advantage of technological devices to finish tasks in multiple locations and juggle their workload more efficiently.

Younger generations not only value technology, but also the freedom to work remotely and from different areas within an office.  Having such flexibility empowers employees to fulfill their job responsibilities wherever they can.  As long as employees are given the resources to effectively complete their work, stay connected to colleagues, and remain engaged in their jobs, a shrinking office could actually increase engagement.

In Defense of the Coffee Break

Reading the title of this blog article, you might be thinking, “Hey buddy, coffee breaks do NOT need defending!”  And on the surface, perhaps they don’t seem to—caffeine, relaxation, idle chatter with coworkers; what’s not to love?  Yet there have been signs of late that this longtime pillar of workplace equanimity is losing favor with employees.  Today many of us may be more inclined to spend our weekday downtime running errands or catching up on Facebook than sitting with a cuppa in the break room.  I think in some ways this trend is hurting both workers and organizations.  Time we spend “liking” our friends’ photos of puppies or languishing in line at the DMV is time that could be contributing to increased productivity and innovation.  I’ve learned this through personal experience, and it’s also a lesson borne out by anecdotal evidence, as well as scientific research.

What has social media done to the coffee break?  As a young professional, I feel fairly comfortable with new technologies and most of the major social media platforms, but I can remember a time when Twitter was just something that birds did when you were trying to sleep in on a Saturday morning.  It was around that time that I was first exposed to the concept of the coffee break on television.  Every sitcom that had a workplace had a coffee break—at least once.  As a rascally teenager, my favorite show was News Radio, an office sitcom rife with coffee breaks.  Interestingly, television’s workplaces of today—The Office comes to mind—are still fairly littered with coffee breaks, even while fewer employees in the real world practice the ceremony of breaking for coffee and small talk.  A number of sources far more credible than I am have chalked up the trend, in part, to the proliferation of social media as a leisure activity.

Before I continue, I think an editorial “full disclosure” is warranted.  While I’m not directly affiliated with any coffee farmers associations, distributors, or chain café conglomerates, I am utterly infatuated with coffee and adore the act of sitting down to a hot cup with friends, coworkers, or John Steinbeck’s East of Eden.  I’m completely biased and I admit that.  However, my assertion that the loss of coffee breaks is harmful to individuals and organizations alike is not insupportable.  In order to consider the anecdotal evidence in its proper light, let’s assume that the coffee break is a stand-in or cipher for any social activity completely unrelated to work and one which makes a group of employees happy.  For you or your employees, this may be talking a walk with coworkers, sharing some conversation in the park, or jogging with a friend during your lunch break.  Disregarding any impact these activities may have relative to the organization’s best interests, these acts are human moments—they allow us to be more completely ourselves during a daily routine that, while fulfilling in its own right and absolutely necessary, places constraints on our most basic, undeniable selves.  And by providing us time to simply be, the coffee break and its analogues infuse balance into our days and make long-term job loyalty attainable.

Supporting coffee breaks has additional benefits for the organization.  According to a recent study by professors at MIT[1], employees who engage in frequent face-to-face interactions at work are statistically more productive than those with fewer interactions.  And while coffee breaks certainly don’t hold a monopoly on opportunities for social interaction at work, they provide an excellent excuse for some good old fashioned face-to-face interaction in an environment in which it can otherwise be difficult to connect live.  With full workloads, looming deadlines, and the nature of deskwork contributing to a sense of physical inertia, we may often opt to email a coworker when questions or input could just as easily be conveyed with a walk down the hallway.  The coffee break rewards a bit of mobility and face-to-face interaction, potentially resulting in higher levels of productivity for some employees.

The coffee break may also have the ability to spur innovation in the workplace.  Let us consider just a few of the theories or works conceptualized during the act of rest.  Portions of Albert Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity, for instance, are said to have been developed while Einstein daydreamed at work.  Some experts believe Rene Descartes’ early explorations into coordinate geometry were first inspired by his watching a fly cross the ceiling as he lay in bed late one morning.  Much later, Poet Samuel Coleridge scrawled down much of the Kubla Khan upon waking from a dream in which he visualized the poem’s language.  And that stuff that keeps our feet on the ground—gravity?  Legend has it that Isaac Newton first caught on to gravity while drinking tea under the shade of an apple tree.  Could the links between rest, recreation, and creativity have implications for non-work-related breaks in the workplace?  I believe they do, providing us with the mental “space” necessary to think creatively.

So the next time you see your coworker or direct report thumbing feverishly at their smartphone between tasks, invite them to join you for a cup of coffee.  By doing so, you’re taking part in a beautiful ritual as old as work itself.  You may even give your productivity a boost in the process.  And your coworker’s social news feed?  All those inane epigrams and pictures of adorable puppies will be right there waiting for them at the end of the workday.

[1] Mining Face-To-Face Interaction Networks Using Sociometric Badges: Predicting Productivity In An It Configuration Task; http://vismod.media.mit.edu//tech-reports/TR-622.pdf

Take A Break – You Deserve It!

As the summer comes to a close, many people are preparing to take one final vacation before work gets busier, school begins, and the leaves start falling.  Most people would agree that taking a break from work every now and then is beneficial.  Vacations often allow employees to relax, spend time with their families/friends, and come back to work refreshed and more productive.  

Despite these benefits, however, many employees shy away from taking vacation time or truly letting themselves leave work behind for a set period.  In the always-connected world in which we live, it is definitely hard to completely shut yourself off from work, yet it is possible, if you make a conscious effort to do so.  However, many people do not make this effort, and I can think of two common reasons why: Guilt and Image.   

I feel guilty…

Sometimes, individuals experience feelings of guilt when they take time off.  Whether they are worrying tasks at work won’t get done, someone will need them in the interim, or they are taking “too much time away,” these feelings of guilt can affect their willingness to disconnect completely.  Often, this is why people continue to check their email and voicemail while out of the office.  Remember, however, there was a time before the internet and smart phones, when people truly were unreachable if not in the same place, and the business world survived just fine.  Don’t feel guilty because you are taking a break from work; think about how much more rested, dedicated, and ready to put forth your best work you will be when you come back.  If you let go and stop thinking about your job for awhile, you never know what ideas and insight will pop into your head.  After all, it’s been said that many people think of their best ideas when they take a step back and do something else.  You work hard the majority of the year, and you deserve a little time off.  You earned those vacation days!      

As a manager, you should let employees know that, despite how valuable they are to your organization, the business will survive without them for a short period of time.  Doing so may lessen the feelings of guilt many employees face when requesting time off.  Encourage your employees to avoid checking email and voicemail while on vacation.  Make vacations a normal part of each employee’s job.  You could even go so far as requiring employees to use a certain amount of vacation time each quarter, such as by giving employees a free “mental health day” which they must use.  Additionally, you should lead by example, and use your vacation time to disconnect from work as well.  After all, everyone, including you, needs a break at times. 

But taking vacation time could make me seem like a less engaged or dedicated employee…

Often, individuals think that when they go on vacation, their managers and coworkers will view them as less engaged and not as dedicated to their work.  After all, if a person truly loved his or her job, he or she wouldn’t take time off, right?  How very wrong this thinking is.  Personally, I know there are things I absolutely love to do, yet even if I had the option, I would not spend all of my time participating in these activities.  Life requires a balance.  Regardless of how much an employee loves his/her job, there are other interests the person has which should be given priority as well.  Striking a balance is key to engagement and happiness.

The idea that taking time off makes one look less dedicated finds its foundation in the commonly held (and outdated!) belief that those individuals who are more present and visible in the office are harder workers.  Managers and employees alike must move beyond this thought process, especially given that in this day and age, many people have the option to work from anywhere, depending on their job functions.  Just because a person works longer hours or is in the office more often than another person does not necessarily indicate he or she is getting more done or is more dedicated to work.  Everyone has different styles of working and various paces at which they complete tasks.  As long as the work gets done, that’s really all that matters.  Thus, if tasks are finished on time and in good quality, there is nothing to indicate that an employee is less engaged because he or she is on vacation or not in the office. 

Now that we’ve addressed two roadblocks people encounter when thinking about taking a vacation, let’s examine some tips for ensuring work runs smoothly while the employee is out of the office.

Tips for vacationing employees and their managers:

  • Establish an out-of-office plan so other team members know which of the employee’s tasks fall to them when that person is on vacation.
  • Set email guidelines.  Often, when employees return from being gone for longer periods of time, their inboxes are overflowing with emails.  Other employees and managers should make a committed attempt to think about which emails the vacationing employee should be copied on, which are urgent, and which emails can wait to be sent until the employee returns.
  • Communicate.  If employees are proactive by letting their colleagues know when they will be out of the office, and give coworkers plenty of time to request certain things before they leave, it will make the transition easier.
  • Remember to turn on an out-of-office response for emails and voicemails, indicating who people should contact if they need immediate assistance.

Everyone deserves a break, especially with the amount of work most people put in throughout the year.  So squash those feelings of guilt, pack that bag, turn off your phone, and go enjoy your vacation while this weather lasts.  You will be a more dedicated, reinvigorated, and engaged employee for it.