How Millennials And Firms Can Strive For Work-Life Integration
With the influx of a younger generation in to the workforce across multiple industries, there also seems to be a growing sense of friction-- even discontentment, between the millenials and their employers over their take on work-life balance. While most employers are stuck in their archaic, almost Stone Age mentality, millenials have a different approach to this balance. Many meandering corporate giants have forgotten that a new business era is bound to usher in new and innovative approaches to work and continue to overlook adoption of smart workplace flexibility programs. Several traditional work management models are antiquated and no more result in accountability, productivity or even employee engagement.
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The need of the hour is to embrace new solutions. Old-school ways of corporate functioning are slowly but gradually being eclipsed by the virtual workplace. This includes mobile work stations and other flexible work options. If companies want to remain competitive in face of innovative disruption spreading like wildfire, here's how they can help millennials create a healthy work-life integration.
What is ROWE?
Results-Only Work Environment (ROWE) is a management model gaining attention in the corporate scenario. Its goal is to maximize productivity while permitting specific segments of the workforce to integrate their work-life in a more seamless manner, through the use of high-tech tools and work flexibility. In addition to increasing accountability, job satisfaction and employee engagement, this progressive approach helps companies attract young talent who yearn for more autonomy at work. It's dependent on a high level of trust between managers and employees and its bottom line is flourishing results.
ROWE maximizes productivity
Under ROWE, employees are given the choice to decide when, where and how they want to work. Some may choose to work out of a traditional office environment, while others may choose to work remotely. Some others may select a combination of both. ROWE has the ability to increase bottom-line productivity through flexible work arrangements which lead to excellent results for the organization and the work culture. It is a management strategy where workers are judged based on their performance and not their presence. This work model focuses on results and results alone.
Better work-life integration
The ROWE work model is fitting for today's frenetic modern work style. It is especially important in today's day and age as it moves past work-life balance and embraces work-life integration. Several employment experts and workers are finally admitting that striking a work-life balance is a mistake. This is because even work-life experts can't keep their life balanced. We should therefore strive for work-life integration instead. Today, millennials are demanding greater flexibility and autonomy as a pre-requisite while accepting any job offer. Hence, work-life integration is a smarter strategy and a natural evolution for the new generation of employees who were born and raised in the digital age.
Innovation disruption is inevitable and it is for the same that smart employers recognize that the only constant in today's workplace is change. The ROWE model is bound to gain more prominence in 2017 and upcoming years, and therefore companies should keep an eye out for it.