If your answers favor the alternative workplace, launch a simple pilot project and then phase in more people over time, tailoring the program with employee feedback as you go. Such people often favor a home office to avoid interruptions; to be close to their families; and to eliminate the time, expense, and stress of commuting. The plan’s current benchmarks and overall projections are summarized below. Straw bales can be used as a basis for walls instead of drywall. IBM’s entire U.S. sales force can operate independent of a traditional office. Modern theories …
AT&T’s project shows how significant the tangible and intangible results of an AW initiative can be. Technology can release these travelers almost entirely from their assigned workplaces because they need face-to-face time with clients and colleagues. Be the first to ask a question about The Alternative. This distinction refers to a management philosophy and style rather than to an economic sector or customer base. In such arrangements, a company typically provides team rooms and workstations in open areas. [citation needed]. Different companies use different variations on the AW theme to tailor new work arrangements to their own needs. The Alternative: And How We Build It - Kindle edition by Jones, Owen. The two managers agree that getting people to adjust to new ways of working is a major hurdle. Papercrete is an interesting and very new material that is a good substitute for concrete. By 1997, the total had dropped 42% to $3.3 billion. But beyond one frontier lies another—what one might call a mobility paradox. AW employees can take care of themselves. Finally, see to it that managers are given guidance in monitoring remote employees, that employees know what results they’re expected to achieve, and that other stakeholders such as customers are fully informed. The chemistry within teams also has different elements. American Express president and COO Kenneth I. Chenault says that AmEx’s AW initiatives help the company retain experienced employees who find the flexibility to work from home especially attractive. The alternative workplace is really about computers. When dried, it is exceptionally strong and heat-resistant. Thus, approximately 17% of IBM’s total worldwide workforce is sufficiently equipped and trained to work in AW formats, and one-third of all the company’s departments have at least some mobile employees. As Reimer says, “We are now training soldiers when and where it is needed. More than 12,500 employees have given up their dedicated work spaces, and another 13,000 are capable of mobile operation.
And everyone can find you because your phone, pager, and PC go with you.”. David Russell, a client marketing representative for IBM, says that his customers took a bit of time to adjust but notes that now communication is more efficient than ever: “I’m not in the office as much, so it’s more difficult to reach me in person right away. IBM began piloting various AW options in 1989 to reduce real-estate-related costs and to explore the use of technology to support sales. Independent employees can set up anywhere and anytime with a computer, modem, and telephone line. Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free. General Dennis J. Reimer, the U.S. Army’s chief of staff, offers compelling insight into what an executive can do from a remote location. So much is new and different about the alternative workplace that managers must reeducate people about what used to be intuitive aspects of office life: when they should work, how often they should communicate, whether to talk or type, and what to say when they do. The scorecard applied to manufacturing and development departments as well as to sales and distribution. In a virtual office, people learn different methods. The U.S. Army’s Reimer highlights the importance of intangible benefits in his widely dispersed organization: “The biggest benefit I have found is that leaders who are ‘far from the flagpole’ in places like Bosnia and Korea have direct access to me and to my latest thoughts on many issues. You don’t have to be physically present to monitor productivity, efficiency, and quality of customer service. But there’s also more resistance to virtual offices. In addition, a “concierge” may provide employees with travel and logistical support.
Still, I would be skeptical about whether management by fiat would work very well. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading.
Are you committed to new ways of operating? Does this book contain quality or formatting issues? But now they realize that I’m never more than a few minutes away from voice mail and that I can return calls fairly quickly. Then you can start reading Kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required. The company can emphasize the message that as long as it’s made up for in some other way and you’re still meeting your objectives, it’s okay.
After all, they are already self-motivated, relatively autonomous, and results oriented.
On his travels, he gathers evidence on how an economy can be built for the many rather than being a racket for the few; how we can reboot welfare states, education systems and health services for the 21st century; and, last but not least, how we can build enough decent homes for people to live in. The criteria below are not hard-and-fast definitions but guidelines that each organization should adapt to its own situation. Alternative or renewable energy sources show significant promise in helping to reduce the number of toxins that are by-products of energy use and help preserve many of the natural resources that we currently use as sources of energy.
Give careful thought to what you’ll do to ensure that remote employees still feel “in the loop.”. The new shared office works as follows: Through their laptops, employees log onto a system to reserve a workstation either before they arrive at the building or when they enter the lobby. In person? How can you sort through the myths and misconceptions to determine if the alternative workplace is right for your organization? In terms of customers, if a company has a sophisticated, highly efficient network for communications and data manipulation—an essential component of a broad-based virtual-office initiative—then its employees should be able to respond more fully and more promptly to customer needs ranging from simple inquiries to more complex product demands. From the United States and the United Kingdom to Latin. Since 1991, AT&T has freed up some $550 million in cash flow—a 30% improvement—by eliminating offices people don’t need, consolidating others, and reducing related overhead costs. In Japan, for instance, there simply is no “swing” space in most employees’ homes that could be used as office space; to accommodate a home-office initiative there, employees would have to sacrifice living space. The alternative workplace undermines teamwork and organizational cohesion. I need your help.’ Or as a manager, you’d be checking in with them anyway. The second sentence uses the term in a similar way, meaning that the nurse and therapist take turns visiting the grandmother, with each coming every other day. One major company goes still further by providing employees who work at home with a $1,000 allowance for furnishings and equipment to be used at their discretion.
But it does mean that managers and employees are moving up the curve toward information-age literacy, which is characterized by flexibility, informality, the ability to change when necessary, respect for personal time and priorities, and a commitment to using technology for improving performance. Driven into action, he asked the help of AT&T’s global real estate (GRE) organization in developing a new facility.
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It isn’t. He reports to an executive in New York whom he sees only several times a year. Do you have the financial resources to provide the above? Where, when, and what types of facilities and systems do they require? Another reason is the potential to increase productivity. An "alternative" mnemonic tool is to think of "alternative" as a "hive" of unpleasant choices: "Alternatives" are joined by "and" not "or." And everyone needs direct access to the systems, gadgets, and technical support that enable remote work. The first step toward determining whether any or all of the AW options I’ve outlined could work for your organization is to answer a few basic questions. The team rejected several scenarios. For some types of employees, performance is clearly measurable.
Miller knew that the staff would need full-time space in the new facility. Confusion and frustration inevitably ensue, not to mention drops in productivity. AT&T determined that for some groups of employees, up to six people could use the same desk and equipment formerly assigned to one. Owen goes in search of the people who are already making change happen: from the US and the UK to Latin America, from the struggles of Hungarian and Turkish dissidents struggling against authoritarian governments to the millions-strong anti-austerity movement in Spain. Over the next five years, AT&T’s initiative is expected to generate annual savings of nearly $50 million as people become accustomed to and take full advantage of the new style of working. Telecommuting is one of the most commonly recognized forms of alternative workplace. As I suggested earlier, the main reason for AW programs is to reduce current costs and avoid future ones. He says, “It’s really about a change in mind-set. They can’t survive without them.”. These small blocks of wood can easily be put together to make a structure that, like stone, has great insulation as well as thermal mass. How do I access the database? The word "alternative," by contrast, often has just a slightly different meaning than "alternate"; the differences are nuanced: In this case, "alternative" is used as a noun, meaning a second, or other, option, implying a choice between an unpleasant option and an even less-desirable option.
In a farsighted vision of its business, the U.S. Army is rethinking the fundamentals of its traditional workplace through a high-tech “digitized battlefield” supported by a virtual infrastructure of knowledge, training, and logistics. Copyright ©readershook.