This month, the Center for American Progress began chronicling the District of Columbia Office of the Chief Technology Officer’s transition to a “results-only work environment” (ROWE) where employees are free to work when they want, where they want—so long as they meet predefined goals. It will be interesting to see how the change under way at OCTO compares with the OPM ROWE pilot (you can read more about the latter at Henry Brown’s active group, ROWE and Federal Government). DC leadership seems more passionate about this change. Have you been through major workplace changes? If so, did your top leadership cheerlead for the change, and did that make it easier?
Love the series as shows what it is really like vs just the hype around it
Question for those in Public Affairs, if a secure VPN could be available, would you work one day home each week, rather than the 4-10s. Because it seems to me, unless there is a large staff of PA officers, there needs to be coverage during the standard work week.
ROWE, in its purest form, represents the ultimate re-structuring of the workforce. If each of us can focus on the slices of our jobs that we do best, we could be incredibly productive. It is akin to our current contracting or consulting, but in a much less formalized way (eg no procurement OH).
If only our health care and pensions were not predicated on a single employer relationship, people would be free to offer their talents to multiple employers simultaneously. It’s the quintessential “win-win” – staff would work only on the areas where they have the greatest talent and employers would only pay them for what they do best. We still have a long road to travel to get there, but it is within our reach AND this country is where it is most likely to happen first!