Creative Reaction

“Some of the biggest technology firms, including Microsoft, Intel, Google and I.B.M., are banding together to fight information overload. Last week they formed a nonprofit group to study the problem, publicize it and devise ways to help workers — theirs and others — cope with the digital deluge.”

Kudos to Techdirt for seeing an analogy here between The Simpsons and the above quote from an NYT article (Subscription required, don’t bother; as the article is not very coherent, let me save you some time by regurgitating it.)

We all know the dangers that cell phones, IM, and e-Mail pose to our productivity - primarily that of the constant interruptions. Of course, we already know better than the “typical information worker who sits at a computer all day (and) turns to his e-mail program more than 50 times and uses instant messaging 77 times” (if not, see here and here and here and here) though seeing an actual dollar amount, $650b (billion) in lost productivity, in the United States alone, drives the point home.

So what new technology are we getting? I hope it’s better than this “E-Mail Addict feature” in Gmail, “an experimental feature for the company’s e-mail service that lets people cut themselves off from their in-boxes for 15 minutes”. “Clicking the ‘Take a break’ link turns the screen gray, and a message reads: ‘Take a walk, get some real work done, or have a snack. We’ll be back in 15 minutes!’”. “Those who find they are truly addicted can cheat by hitting the escape key”. Ugh.

Michael Davidson, the engineer who created the feature, admits this is for people who say, “I don’t have self-control”. Is quitting your e-Mail and IM, and shutting your cell phone ringer off for an hour or so at a time really that difficult?!

This leads me to think (perhaps being overly cynical?) that the aforementioned nonprofit study group may not lead to much. All things being equal, the simplest solution is best. This is a problem most easily solved by equipping and training our employees with basic productivity skills and making sure we as managers are leading by example.

Parents can go around their homes, inserting plastic safety caps into every power outlet in sight, or they can simply train their toddlers not to stick their fingers in the outlets. I’d rather train. Besides, it’s simply a matter of a few hours or days when the toddlers figure out how to remove the caps!

I mentioned this post, though from a very different perspective back on March 9th - (Fire the Workaholics). Jason Calacanis, CEO of Mahalo.com offers some excellent tips on how to save money running a startup, which could be applied to any frugal business.  It is full of practical advice about spending money what really matters; for example, not spending money on desks/tables, but happily paying $600 for a good office chair.

What I appreciate most is that it takes into consideration the often unmeasured and therefore under-accounted benefits of productivity. Few businesses calculate productivity gains (and losses), and without dollar signs attached to these measurements, they often go unnoticed. A business’ largest expenditure is talent (labor), yet without an emphasis on training, and without providing employees the proper tools and an environment conducive to getting work done, we might as well be grabbing fistfuls of petty cash and throwing them into a bonfire every few minutes!

I’ll just highlight a few items, then go into detail on each of them in later posts:

• Buying Macs (Apple hardware, Mac OS, Apple software)

• Second or larger Monitors for everyone!

• Providing Meals, snacks, espresso

(Keep in mind, we already touched upon hiring workaholics and why that’s actually a bad idea)

Something for us all to think about!

I know, I know - I just wrote about 37Signals yesterday. Yet their business philosophy continues to challenge and provoke. Yesterday I mentioned their recent move to a four-day workweek and its good results. Today I’d like to commend them for their other “Workplace Experiments“.

Creating a work environment where the employees are “allowed” to have lives, and yes, even encouraged to do so, is a recurring theme here at Creative Reaction, and so 37Signal’s experiment to “fund people’s passions” resonates with me. If their employees want to attend flight school or learn to cook, the company encourages its employees to do so by subsidizing or paying for the lessons.

Another recurring theme here at CR is that of educating and training employees. 37Signals encourages this by giving its employees company credit cards and discretionary spending accounts for books, software, or conferences.

As far as I’m concerned, I think these guys have a shot at replacing Pixar as the coolest-place-to-work-EVER! Bravo 37Signals!

Of course, many of you, dear readers, are in a position to make your own companies just as great. Will you one day unseat Pixar or 37Signals, earning my accolades? You can’t afford not to!

“Does your employer deserve you?” is the actual title of this short article on Fortune Magazine though it offers both perspectives. The writer interviews Peter Cheese, who is co-author of The Talent-Powered Organization: Strategies for Globalization, Talent Management, and High Performance and, of course, she asks him about his book.

According to the author, companies which seek to thrive in an increasingly global market place must create an environment which develops the skills of its employees. Such companies “give their employees frequent, constructive feedback on their performance. They also present people with regular, planned opportunities to learn new skills and develop their abilities”. These organizations are also able to attract the best talent.

“Train everyone lavishly”, says management guru Tom Peters, “you can’t overspend on training”. I wholeheartedly agree.