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You don't have to do all the leading and inspiring yourself. You are busy, and perhaps not always in the best moods. But leadership does not have to be only about you and what you do. You can also let the workplace itself do some of the leading and inspiring for you. Why not create a working environment that naturally tends to turns people on and bring out the absolute best in them? Even something as simple as the color of a wall or the presence of artwork, llight, or moving water can have a big influence on how people feel at work. The Ultimate Perquisite: Privacy Most employees work in a public space. From their workstations or cubicles they can hear and see others all the time, and others can see and hear them. Most people like a lot more privacy than that—or else they'd choose to live in communal houses instead of private apartments. If you want to help people make their workspaces better, give them the option of solid walls and increased privacy, even if it is only for a small portion of their working time. Even a one-foot extension panel on top of the cubicle walls can make a big difference in morale. You can also encourage them to use tall potted plants, cloth hangings, or anything else they can find to increase privacy. "Shhh" The average workplace has too much nouse for good health or focused work, yet most of the time people are unaware of this according to a recent study by Gary W. Evans of Cornell University. He subjected one group of clerical workers to typical "low-intensity noises" like typing, phones, and conversations. Another group worked in quiet. Neither group reported any stresses or problems when interviewed. The group in the noisier environment, however, had elevated levels of the stress hormone epinephrine, had trouble focusing on their work, and did not make appropriate adjustments to their chair and computer sreen. In other words, the group with low-level noise around them suffered a range of negative effects. This suggests that workplace leaders need to take a proactive approach to minimizing background noise, even if employees don't complain about it. Think Walls, Not Cubicles According to Strategies Development Group, a corporate facilities consulting firm, it is not as expensive to buil individual offices as you might think. A hard-walled office might cost more in building materials and time to create, but the free-standing furniture needed to outfit it is usually much cheaper than good built-in furniture for a cubicle station. When the dust settles, the private office usually costs only 10% more. So if you are outfitting new space, don't assume private offices are beyond your reach. Offer Both Private and Public Space Employees who do knowledge work generally work in spaces that are an unhappy medium—their workspaces are semi-private, with small cubicles and offices that fit only one or two people, but also lack privacy for individuals who need to concentrate alone. Ideally, workspaces should provide quiet, private places to work, combined with confortable common spaces where employees can gather for teamwork or social bonding. When Adobe System moved into a new building in San Jose, it divided the floors into small walled offices and, at the end of every corridor, informal lounges where employees could gather. That way they have the choice of either working in private or coming together in a larger, confortable setting. Even if you aren't constructing new facilities , you may be able to juggle things around in order to give your employees more private workspaces, along with a common area or lounge to encourage them to work in larger groups when appropriate. Encourage Employees to "Get a Life" O'Neill Pine Co, of Beaverton, Oregon, is unusual that it used a 3-hour workweek and also allows employees to choose when they work those 30 hours. Employees find the flexibility and extra tim for family life appealing and their turnover is extremely low as a result. Keep It Simple If you don't have the time and money to put an architect to work making things more inspiring, why not ask employees for some simple, practical ways of improving their environment? You could circulate a request such as the following: "Can you think of any ideas or suggestions for making our work environment more fun, and inspiring? Please post all suggestions (whether serious or not) on the message board". Or you could ask a team to collect and act on the suggestions, letting them redecorate the office. Working in the Garden of Eden At Cisco Systems' United Kingdom offices, the more than 2000 employees are offered an unlimited supply of fresh fruit in the workplace. This simple symbol of support and appreciation may be one of the factors leading employees to vote this Uxbridge-based facility the best place to work for in the United Kingdom. Create a Great Place for Great People to Do Great Work Marilyn Carlson Nelson, CEO of Carlson Cos., is often quoted as saying, "We call what we're doing creating a great place for great people to do great work." The company's philosophy is to invest in relationships with employees and build a loyal employee base, so that those employees will buil similarly strong relationship between the company and its customers. One of the measure of success for this strategy is that employees generally find it a good place to work. Turnover is low and the company often makes local top ten lists of best companies to work for. Some of Carlson Cos' efforts to implement its strategy are big and expensive—for instance the company recently opened an on-site childcare facility at its Minneapolis headquaters. But in other facilities, the company arranged for discounts from existing childcare providers since it wasn't practical to build their own facilities in smaller offices. Nelson also pushed through a new time-off policy makiing it easier to quallify for vacation and personal time. A little less expensive but still positive for employees are the many great gift certificates managers hand out to the TGI Fridays restaurant chain and sometimes for weekend stays a Radison hotels as well. The company owns both these chains so presumably this perk is less expensive than it looks—still it does say "we're thinking about you" to employees. So do the occasional weekday barbecues in a local park and the daily access employees have to cafeterias in the headquarters office. (There is a bif one with an impressive menu, plus a smaller one in the I.T. employee's building called the Megabyte.) Let's Get Moving Motivation is simply the urge to take action—in other words, it is energetic movement. Yet there is a startling lack of movement in the average workplace environment. If the people are the only animated element and everything else is still, then the people have to generate all the energy. To combat this problem of low-energy physical work environments and add a little energy people can tap into, you could introduce things that move in pleasant ways. Calder-style mobiles can hang from high ceilings or low-traffic corners. A fountain with an electric pump can be combined with some plants in the entry or the window of a commonly used hallway or lobby. Fish tanks can be sources of energy of they have an active school of neon-colored fish. Remember that employees need to have personal control over their direct exposure to such things. While pets can add a lot of movement and interest to the work environment, they are only appropriate if everyone likes them. For instance an office cat will produce negative energy in employees who are allergic to its fur. Similarly, a bird feeder can add a lot of positive stimulation to a window view or entrance area—but make sure employees don't have to pass too near since some people are afraid of birds. Birthday Dances At the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, they have an after-work birthday party for each employee on their birthdays. It's not mandatory, but people come if they can because it's a good party... and the music is usually pretty good too! Beat Boredom with Games and Contests In some factories, call centers and other workplaces with repetitive jobs find that Bingo games, safety contests, and other game-oriented recognition and reward schemes are quite successful. Managers generally assume that employees are participating for the prizes, but in truth it is more likely that they are eager to relieve the boredom and appreciate having something new to engage their attention. Any new participatory event or program can have this effect if it is somewhat complex or varied and especially if it requires any decision-making on employees' parts. A key to leadership principle is to make sure nobody is bored at work. Let Employees Decorate Their Own Walls Decorating the walls in you office or other work area is a great way to make the space your own and increase your sense of ownership. Yet most organizations control the walls—choosing everything from paint color to hangings without consulting the employees. You can boost motivation and commitment very simply by giving your people control of their walls. Follow basic rules of civility (nothing goes up that someone hates or is offended by) but otherwise, why not give people a complete control of what they look at on the walls of their workspaces? People are more energized and take more initiative when they have more control over the appearance of their workplace. Book, $10.95, signed by the author, reg price $19.95  |
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