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September 29, 2005
Where Did The Time Go?
BusinessWeek recently had a cover story on "The Real Reasons You Are Working So Hard....and What You Can Do About It". Both the story and the comments following it are interesting. Any manager I've ever talked to speaks of "not enough time" both to do their job and in their personal life. Cell phones and networked computers have just about removed the last vestiges of privacy and families don't even have the time to talk about their lack of time. The article pins the main problem on organizations that haven't re-structured to utilize new technologies to their best advantage. While that's probably the major item, I've often run into another major cause. The company CEO who likes to talk to their staff at their own convenience and ignores the same intrusions that come from board members.
In my first job as a manager, my boss was having continual family problems and so, would hide himself in his home office and talk to employees for half the night. Phone call would come in at all hours and last anywhere from 30 minutes to 3 hours. This was before caller ID and as a new employee, I didn't feel comfortable hanging up on him. Job security and all. When I started not answering the phone at home, or returning calls at night, he took it personally and things were never the same. Since then I've worked with others who have similar penchants. A lot of company owners are Type A personalities who work 16 hour days and can't understand why you don't want to or can't.
Unless it's an emergency there is absolutely no reason to bother your employees or your manager (if you're a board member), while they are off the clock and at home. If you don't have a policy to let your staff know that they are entitled to some sort of privacy, it's past time to put one in place. The jobs tough enough without pushing it into their home.
Posted by joewest at September 29, 2005 3:50 PM