Make room for quiet as you reopen offices | Pay for performance doesn't work like it's supposed to | Companies get creative with offices as employees return
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Millions of people who worked remotely during the pandemic have discovered the benefits of a little extra quiet and space to think, and any return-to-offices plan should look to infuse those benefits into how offices function, what meetings are held and how teams communicate, David Dye writes. "What did you stop doing that doesn't need to come back?" he asks.
Pay-for-performance systems sound good in theory but have failed to deliver the promised benefits in practice, in part because they create incentives outside of management's control, redirect behavior in undesired ways and are difficult to coordinate, argues strategy adviser Roger Martin. "If you default to the blunt instrument of PfP, you will get blunt results -- and you won't like them," Martin writes.
Some employers such as Urban Outfitters and Inventionland have turned offices into spaces that aim to inspire creativity and collaboration and help returning employees feel more comfortable. "The office is starting to look more residential," says Todd Heiser, principal and managing director of Gensler's Chicago office.
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Mark Sanborn was stuck on a plane next to a droning, complaining person until he asked, "Why do you feel that way?" That question, with its empathy and curiosity, is just one of 15 tips Sanborn offers for understanding people who think differently than you, even if you ultimately disagree with them.
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Wall Street financial companies and banks are finding workers are reluctant to return to working in New York -- with Florida their preferred destination, especially workers who have second homes there already. New York's higher crime rate, cost of living and taxes often are the culprit, but some companies are balking at the idea.
Federal Reserve officials face competing issues at this week's meeting as they look to further lower unemployment in a period of higher-than-expected inflation.
The pandemic slowed sales of Girl Scouts cookies this year, creating a lot of leftovers ... 15 million boxes! Some of the cookies, which have a 12-month shelf life, are being donated for food relief, but many are still for sale.
