The Benefit of Employees Who Cut Corners

Time and Attendance software enables employers to see which employees are cutting corners. The problem is they're often the highest producing employees.

Joe Main is a salesperson at a Fortune 500 company. He only puts in two-thirds of the hours that his cubicle mates do. Yet he is producing more income for the company than any of them. His productivity went up after he abandoned the traditional eight-hour workday.
Current studies show that employees who "cut corners" away from the eight hour work day produce 85% more income for a company than employees who punch in for eight or more hours. Yet most employers are mistakenly stuck in the dark ages of a work ideology that favors employees who log in the longest hours, not those who produce the best results.
Time and Attendance software allows employers to keep close track of their employees. At a glance of their computer screen, they can see a list of employees who are out to lunch or sitting at their desk. Many employers feel happy when they see an employee who has only used 45minutes of their 60-minute lunch break. Better yet-no lunch at all! Employees who bring their lunches to their desks and continue to work during breaks are viewed in the office as the hardest workers of all. Career centers that counsel new college graduates are still advising: "Be the first one there and the last one to leave." On the sly, they say, "it doesn't matter what you are doing. Just look busy."
Is this what employers really want? Employees who are arriving early, leaving late, not taking lunch and trying to look busy at all times?
The problem is, many employers see such an employee and reward the "busy" behavior, although it is usually unproductive. So entrenched in the 8-5 philosophy are employers, they neglect to encourage their employees to work smarter, not harder.
The usage of Time and Attendance software is helpful for companies to understand their employees' work patterns, but employers need to start rewarding quality of work rather than quantity of time.
Joe Main received a warning from his employer after Time and Attendance software proved he spent on average six hours instead of the expected eight hours in the office. When Joe provided documentation that his sales had skyrocketed by 160% since cutting back on office time, his boss was shocked. He asked Joe, "How could you possibly be more productive away from our office?"
Joe explained that by working from his home for two hours a day, his concentration had increased. No extraneous meetings or office chitchat could interrupt him there. He then shared with his boss his belief that many of the long office meetings could be condensed and pre-planned via email. But despite Joe's outstanding sales results, he was not listened to, and was told to stay in the office. Shortly thereafter his sales decreased, but his boss was happy.
In this situation, not working remotely is insane. Working remotely makes sense because of the mobile lifestyle the Internet allows. Not only do most people have internet at home, but nearly every cafe has Wi-Fi. Even rest stops on the freeway in Washington State have Wi-Fi access. One could work in their car and produce just the same results, or better, than being at the company office.
Slowly our culture is shifting towards the acknowledgement that many office spaces are unnecessary expenses. Allowing employees to work remotely requires a trust and willingness not to watch the clock to see how long of a lunch break the employee took. Here's a tip: If you are ever wondering if your employee is doing a good job, look at their results, not their hours.