Slackers
You might imagine that during my time as a manager of a video game retailer I was, if not encouraged to play games on the job, at least free to take the occasional liberty with the Xbox 360 machine on down times. After all, these are the products I was expected to market and support, so being seen enjoying the stock from my shelves, the bounty of my reasonably priced harvest, the fruit of my retail loins might be seen by potential customers as a positive endorsement. Besides, how shocked can you be to walk into a video game store and discover that the guy behind the counter actually plays video games. And yet, not only was this practice sharply frowned upon, but was a fast-track toward dismissal.
The crime of playing games on the job was so severe that we were frequently brow-beaten with strongly worded directives reminding us that any employee found playing on the demo machines, or worse a portable game machine they had brought in on their own, was at minimum subject to a "write-up". Apparently the job of convincing absentee parents and feckless malcontents to buy video games is such a serious proposition that to lose one's focus, even during breaks, is anathema for the retailer. I must imagine that the management geniuses in their retail ivory tower handing down edicts to the lowly fiefdom slogging in the muck and mire of actual work below, imagined that giving the appearance of being a gamer, despite working at a gaming store, must somehow sully the highly professional atmosphere they had cultivated with big Mario standees and a poorly groomed workforce. Like virtually everywhere else at the time, gaming at work was strictly forbidden.
But, over the past few decades a strange and subversive attitude has snuck into the corporate zeitgeist, and a new breed of liberal minded corporations not only allow their employees to occasionally relax at work, but even encourage it. Some even provide the accoutrements of relaxation. The Googles of the world have set the stage for a cultural shift in corporate philosophy by proving that a mega-company does not have an artificially binary choice between being extremely profitable and providing unique employee benefits. Even in an economy described as soft or, by those of us without the hindrances of any economic education, awful, some of the most successful companies are turning out to be great places to work.
My own recent experience is a polar opposite of what I had become familiar with. As a new employee of a multi-national corporation, working on a campus of nearly 7,000, I was quite surprised on my first day to discover that taking "me-time" was actively encouraged. In what seemed a shocking change to everything I knew and had experienced about how big companies work, apparently my latest employer seems to feel that as an adult I can be responsible for getting my work done without being monitored like an ill-tempered toddler. There is even a break room with flat screen televisions, free drinks, comfortable seating and a Nintendo Wii to be used as I see fit. Mind blowing as it seemed this massive company, which imbued me with far more responsibilities or expectations than hocking pre-sells to pasty-faced kids on a tight budget, felt fine about my playing video games at work. I just need to be an adult about it.
I realize that there are any number of explanations for this, not the least of which is that my former employee’s hiring policies are, shall we say, not exactly rigorous. At the risk of being bluntly unkind, a good reason that Gamestop doesn't treat their employees like adults is that they rarely are, at least in any meaningful way. In far too many instances the retailer’s counter jockeys live down to lowered expectations, even exceeding them and finding whole new depths of negligence previously unplumbed. I speak from a position of some authority on this issue.
But, ultimately the reason Gamestop is burdened with such unmotivated workers is that they have boldly failed to create a place that anyone with skill and intelligence would really want to work. Retail is an unpleasant enough job to begin with, but working retail under a company with combative policies toward both employees and customers will not do much to engender loyalty. So again, what we really have is an endemic issue of corporate philosophy where a punitive mindset feeds on itself, creating a place where competence is the exception, feeding the finely tuned fail-machine by hiring people who fit the mold. Of course, Gamestop would probably argue vehemently against this line of thought, and certainly there are diamonds in the rough—I like to think I was one myself—-but even most employees of the company are only too happy to point out what a collection of juvenile monkeys they work with, starting with management.
It seems to be something of a rule that employers who feel they need to fiercely monitor their work staff end up with employees who need to be fiercely monitored. There’s something of a self-fulfilling prophecy to the idea that workers cannot be trusted to adequately manage their own time and achieve their goals. And in complete opposition to that model, there’s increasing evidence that the opposite is true; that if you set the goals, the timeframes and create a stable and pleasant work environment people will want to achieve and exceed expectations. Why? Well, because most of us have worked where this kind of freedom and respect wasn’t the norm, and we sure as hell don’t want to go back to that!
The fact of the matter is that the Wii in the “Collaboration Room” spends most of the day unplayed. There are not crowds of workers lounging in chairs watching the CNN ticker on the flat screen, and while you aren’t exactly surprised to see a desktop with the USA Today Crossword or Microsoft Hearts on it, the big results clearly indicate that people are also getting their work done.
As improbable as it may seem, evidence seems to support the notion that facilitating limited game time and free time at work actually boosts productivity. It eliminates the subversive element of sneaking in some Sudoku when the boss isn’t looking, or even creating elaborate work around programs to sneak some World of WarCraft in when the firewall isn’t looking. I only hope this is a concept that more employers adopt.
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Words to live by, and boy oh boy do I wish my boss'd pay attention, lol. I've always been a firm believer since my school days that as long as I got the results my teachers/employers wanted in the timeframe they demanded it shouldn't matter if I goof off at the same time or keep up with todays hourly-news cycle while typing up my reports.
They, of course, never saw it the same way...
The measure of a man is how truly his actions reflect his own truth - not how well his actions fall into line with what makes others comfortable.
I managed a GameStop for five years and the sad thing is that when I began (back when they were known as Software Etc and Babbages and we didn't care about our competitors at Funcoland) it was a much different company than what it became. When I started they let the store manager really manage, from merchandising to what to focus the reservation push on, etc. When the company went public, a lot of the early managers got big bonuses.
However, you can't grow from 1,500 stores to 3,000 to 5,000 in just a few years without prematurely promoting unready managers and importing district and corporate thinkers from other companies. And soon, at least to the folks up at the top, it starts looking reasonable to start micromanaging. By the time I left, I wasn't a manager anymore, I was a sales team leader, with little else to do (even the scheduling was done by templates by then.)
It's this culture shift that leads to a company where playing games while on the job is frowned on.
I can't tell you the number of times my parent heard semi-complaints that I did a better job on projects and reports I whipped up the night before than other students did with weeks of work, and that they'd really like to see me do more than just meet their expectations.
With my current job, if the manager sees you not actively searching for things to fix, he thinks you're goofing off and assigns busy work, obvious busy work too. If he sees you in the middle of a mental health break, looking at a web-comic or playing a simple game like minesweeper, he finds things for you to do. However, if he were to see you looking at a web page about one of his own hobbies (hiking, fishing, survivor, general outdoorsy-ness), he'd either pass on by, or he'd stop and chat about good lakes to fish at, suggest a trail with a great view, or offer his opinions about the current crop of Survivors. Needless to say, one of the reasons I loved working the nightshift was that I didn't have to deal with having to look busy all day. I'm not lazy at my job, and I certainly don't sit around playing flash games or browsing the web when there's actual work to do, but when there's absolutely nothing to do, I don't get paid enough to spend hours pouring over all our scripts and procedures (which already work perfectly) looking for possible ways to improve them.
Duoae wrote:
Stengah's Steam ID
ICO: Stengah
The way I see it my boss doesn't pay me to exceed expectations, and if I made a habit of doing it they'd just raise the stakes. Worker productivity per dollar of profit has gone through the roof for decades, I'm not working any harder than their "efficiency studies" say I should even if that's still half-assed. They want more they can damn well pay for it, I'm not salary.
Since they're not interested in giving raises I'll just settle for knowing when to look busy. Sure does make night-shifts appealing, doesn't it Stengah? Almost makes it worth the loss of social life brought on by sleeping during the afternoon. Almost.
The measure of a man is how truly his actions reflect his own truth - not how well his actions fall into line with what makes others comfortable.
I don't think it's a question of the amount of money, it's a question of feeling appreciated and going the extra mile because you feel comfortable doing it. I certainly didn't read the article as Elysium sticking around after work's over to get projects done and ignoring his family and friends because of it. One can go the extra mile, work harder on a project or whatnot and still keep work at work and away from the home.
I'd rather have a positive office environment, full of people enjoying their jobs, and be constantly working than be working only a quarter of the time but needing to deal with a horrid office environment. I've had jobs like you're describing, trying to look busy despite finishing those TPS reports an hour back. They suck. All the free time and money you can throw at me doesn't make up for the feeling of doom and constant vigilance that comes in that world.
Remember, only by treating everyone with dignity and respect can we maintain the element of surprise for that inevitable day when we wipe our enemies from the face of the Earth.
For clarification, "bnpederson" is pronounced "Brian."
I used to work in an arcade where we weren't allowed to play on the machines, no matter how quiet it was. And an arcade, in a casino, on a work day, was a VERY quiet place.
kuddles wrote:
I'm in a unique situation; I am working in a small satellite office of a large multinational. In the context of the company as a whole we are restricted, every second website is blocked including GWJ. In the context of our office we're considered the red-headed stepchild of the multinational and they just leave us to our own devices 90% of the time. I left my job two months ago and after a week the new manager hired me back on with a raise because I'm the only person who can do three quarters of what needs to be done. So I can do what I want in the office to the point of bringing games in from home and installing them on the work computers, because my boss knows everything gets done and if she wants to keep me she has to keep me happy. Unfortunately we are part of a company that still hands down the decrees from the Ivory tower... Oh well it could be worse.
Never violate a woman, nor harm a child.
Do not lie, cheat or steal.
These things are for lesser men.
Protect the weak against the evil strong.
And never allow thoughts of gain to lead you into the pursuit of evil.
I am a manager in a semi-large national company. In my experiences, it has been the middle manager between the on site managers and the home office based managers (in our case this is a field based regional manager) that makes all the difference in how the environment is for the workers. The ivory tower edicts are certainly there from corporate, but how they are applied and with what level of voracity is what can make or break the moral of a particular location. My company blocks a lot of websites too, but thankfully they haven't blocked this one.
"Then tragedy struck, Captain Tragedy."
That was an awesome article. I just sent it all around work, since it seems like everyone here has that problem of being treated like children. SHORT STORY TIME!
So, I work on a Canadian military base. When I got here, I was in what is known as the bullpen, and I worked under a civilian who sucks at life. He treated me with such disrespect that I completely stopped working. Like, at all. I wouldn't even pretend to work when he came around. But, rather than get fired, they just wanted to get rid of me by sending me down to what is known as the dungeon. Once I got down there, I was treated with such respect that I'm still down in the dungeon, happily working away on projects I mostly truly enjoy. There have even been times where my boss would tell me to jump into a game of Call of Duty 4 and I would refuse because I really wanted to put that extra polish on a particular thing I was working on. It's not even because I want to look good in order to reap some sort of benefits in the future. This is contract work, and when the contract is up, I'm out of here and off looking for something else, preferably non-contract. I wanted to make what I was working on the best it could be because I genuinely want this department to look good and maybe get more funding because everyone here has been so awesome.
Everyone else who works in different departments on the base spend a lot of time during non-work-related get-togethers complaining about work, and it always seems to revolve around their bosses treating them like retarded children. Funny thing is, all of their bosses are civilians, while my boss is an army captain. I never expected when I first got here that the people in the military would be so cool and laid back while the civilians were so uptight.
XBL Gamertag: Effin Bear | PSN Name: Effin Bear | Steam ID: MechaSlinky | Wii Console Code: 5185 2886 9649 1657
Being a IT contractor i've moved around to some different work environments, and it just kind of depends what the industry is. In the mortgage industry business casual to complete business attire was the norm. Getting up to stretch your legs garnered funny looks. In the chemical industry. Business casual with emphasis on casual and jeans aren't frowned upon. Flex time is used extensively and sometimes encouraged. Media company in the entertainment industry. Dress was casual. People running around in shorts/flip flops and tv sets on all our desks. What they all have in common is that you got your work done everything was great. Needless to say the media company was a blast to work for and from my view point got the most productivity out of their employees. People willing to work extra hours if needed without a gripe. People truly enjoying what they do.
Tighter the restrictions the more rigid the employees seem to be on whats asked of them.
Gamer Tag: Rantyr
My philosophy is simple.
Act like an adult and I'll treat you like an adult. Get your work done and I won't ask any questions.
Whether my title has been Senior, Lead, or Manager I have never felt like one of my responsibilities is "babysitter". Everyone I work with is typically between the ages of 25 to 55 and I have enough to do without needing to monitor people every minute of the day.
Some people need more management and care than others. Even some good employees really want someone checking up on them, they almost need it. Then you have people who really want to be left alone, and if they're getting tasks done you're best off leaving them alone.
Personally, I like being pointed in a direction and told what to do. You don't need to check on me until I get to the finish line. If there is a problem along the way that I can't manage or will impact the deadline, I'll let management know as soon as I'm aware. The best managers I worked with took advantage of my nature, the really good ones even let me wander off the reservation and reeled me back in when I got too far. Other than that, they left me alone and I got the job done.
Micromanaging hurts productivity. This is not a recent discovery. A lot of what we hear going on in the workplace are people stubbornly refusing to learn lessons everyone else picked up a long time ago.
Places like Gamestop may be big now, but their policies aren't conducive to long-term success. The question on my mind is will they learn the error of their ways or just to the route of the inevitable meltdown while pointing fingers at everyone but themselves?
Unfettered Blather - Daily updated nonsense
X-Box Live Gamertag - CrazedJava
Less chatter more splatter!
I can't help but think the "Wii in the break room" is a big bluff some of these companies do.
It's an illusion designed to make it look like you have freedom, but you really don't. The problem is you easily get a label as being the guy who plays the Wii in the break room. And that can't be good for advancement or for avoiding layoffs.
It rings along the lines of the old adage, keep your friends close, but keep your enemies closer.
Keep your lazier employees closer. Give them areas to goof off in that are in the open and more easily monitored aka in your own workplace. It makes it that much easier to weed them out.
I bet at some places employees form a fear of using things like the Wii in the workplace for fear of what others will think.
I'm cynical aren't I?
I'm generally with you on that one, though it is possible for good managers to overcome this. At my first position out of college, I had a group manager who would make it a point to come around to various offices on Thursdays or Fridays when we didn't have any big deadlines looming, and invite people into the morale room for some beers, margaritas, and Soul Calibur. Having the big boss in there playing makes it acceptable, and having him come to your office and tell you to stop working and come have a beer and beat the pants off a co-worker who's feeling cocky tonight is even better.
XBLive: Ruckus
Oh! That's just a lovely string of words. That phrase will be written down, remembered, and repeated.
Some of the best work comes from people who aren't being pistol whipped, especially in a creative capacity. It's amazing how many managers don't realize that.
"And the circle has been charged through the power of unphysics, which are physics so stupid they erase normal ones from your mind." -Wields-Rulebook-Heavily at rpg.net
This reminds me of when I worked in a bookstore, we weren't allowed to read on down time. Yet were expected to be able to guide customers to books they'd like and give reviews. Makes sense...
Argh! I was just about to say the same thing about working in a bookstore. Nothing was worse than having a huge chunk of downtime and not being allowed to read a bit.
Steam ID: protagonist42
I myself was formally investigated for playing games at work during my lunch time (company PC though, that's what they "officially" had a problem with). Got away with a warning, but it was pretty damned embarrassing.
Codexica - GWJ Alliance
As much as I think we'd like to believe in this model of "karmic business retribution," there are many businesses in this world that are DESIGNED with turnover in mind. Gamestop? I can't speak to Elysium's experiences, but I doubt they have a shortage of teenaged gaming nerds applying for those few positions... they probably get several applications a day. That neverending pool of fresh recruits is exactly what keeps these companies from changing their policies or treating their employees like human beings... find one or two people to be managers, and then just keep the flow going... someone doesn't sell enough? Fire them. Someone burns out? Take your pick of the newbies.
xbox LIVE: NatsuMatto
That's What She Said -- A Podcast About NBC's THE OFFICE
I was thinking more on the effect it has on their customers. Gamestop used to be my first stop. Now I check Wal-Mart first. From an anecdotal standpoint I'm finding this to become standard. As was said, their policies are combative towards employees and customers alike. So far I haven't found a business that treated it's employees like crap but its customers well. Gamestop is certainly not breaking that trend.
Unfettered Blather - Daily updated nonsense
X-Box Live Gamertag - CrazedJava
Less chatter more splatter!
The problem all of you are describing is integral with the issue of trading your time for money aka "a job". When we are "on the clock" most bosses frown on any activity that is not work related. Even if you get all you work done you are generally handed more even if it is "busy" work. I have seen this even with positions that are quota or project related. Reached your sales quota before the end of the month? Well then lets raise the quota!! Or maybe help with so and so who hasn't made quota yet. Or give me more TPS reports!! Ahead or on time with your project deliverables?? Well lets move the date up (even though other dependent tasks can't be moved!) or Lets work on the system documentation (before the system is even finished!!)
It is the rare boss or even corporate culture that allows "unproductive" tasks on the job (even if they create feelings of worth and respect in the employees).
"Do. Or do not. There is no try." - Yoda
The only allure a place like Gamestop has is in the selling/buying of used games... and that is why these companies will never go away and why people will continue to put up with them. Does it annoy me to be hassled over buying a protection plan or reserving a title? Some. I would rarely/never buy a new game from one of those specialty stores, but I will always take advantage of the "buy 2 get 1 free" sales on used games. Best Buy/Wal-Mart really only serve as a benign repository of major releases... sometimes that's all I want. Other people-- especially parents/grandparents buying gifts-- NEED someone to offer assistance, no matter how incorrect or snobbish it might be.
I guess that's a long-winded way of saying that these businesses exist because people USE them. Maybe if Best Buy gets into the used game business we'll see Gamestop collapse.
xbox LIVE: NatsuMatto
That's What She Said -- A Podcast About NBC's THE OFFICE
Except that now I plan to do my business with Play N Trade for the foreseeable future, because they provide many of the same services, same prices but approach it differently. What these companies have not had to deal with is competition for the specialty retail business, and in many ways (though only merged in the last few years) EB and Gamestop have long been virtually the same company.
"I think Elysium has the right of it" - Certis
The culture of my current work-place is why I happy accept a bit (perhaps even quite a bit) lower pay than I could be receiving.
As a fine example, on Monday, I finally made my way into the office at around 12:30 or so. Around six, I got a call from the boss asking me how much longer I planned on being around, and I replied with something along the lines of "as long as I need to be". He asked me if I wanted to go out to celebrate a co-workers birthday, and when I applied in the affirmative told me to pack it up because they were going out immediately. After a few years in a place like this, I'm not sure I could stand the average corporate nonsense.
private String paula = "Brillant";
Awesome bit.
I've been a manager of some pretty big groups, and I have (for better and yes, for worse) always had the mindset that people were expected to get their work done, and the rest of it really wasn't my business. If they communicated well with me, and I made sure they knew what was expected, I didnt' give a crap if they did it naked in the shower halfway across the planet.
When I was starting my own gig back in the dotcom era, the first thing we bought was a standup Discs of Tron machine and a foosball table - and not just because it's what every dotcom was doing. Some of the best strategic discussions we ever had were over that foosball table. In a later gig, I staffed up 6 guys in my basement, where most of our good work was done over the pool table or playing Counter-Strike on the server I hooked up to my T1 line.
Now, working entirely for myself in my own basement, self regulation becomes the issue. I am the worst when it comes to formally structuring my time. I work between projects all day long, bouncing around like a mayfly. So far, after however many decades, it always works out. By the time the deadline hits, SOME block of concentrated energy has emerged and made it all OK. Sometimes it's the playing of the game that makes me feel guilty that drives me to get it done (well). Sometimes its the peace that comes from having burned myself out on a game that makes it flow.
In short, I just let it happen, but if I tried to force myself into a "MUST WORK 9 TO 6" gig, where I was expected to write, and write well?
Fugedaboutit.
Gamertag: GWJ Rabbit | Last.fm | Twitter
"Think of it as 'grinding SO rep in the Kitchen instance.' " - Montalban
My old manager treated everyone like children. And so we all did as little as possible to avoid getting fired. Thank God I finally got out of there.
Fedaykin98 wrote:
Welcome to the workin' week.
Oh I know it don't thrill you, I hope it don't kill you.
I'm sorry, but every time you write about GameStop I picture you as Dante from Clerks.
I was one of those students as well. I had a few teachers in AP classes that respected me enough to see a little more shine from me, but by and large I didn't start to feel like my teachers respected me until I was in my third or fourth year of college. I still dogged a couple assignments then, but I actually felt ashamed of my sloth those times, which was fairly novel.
The democratization of the web ... has installed an illusion of a digital first amendment that protects speech no matter how poorly spelled or stupid. - Elysium
Wordsmythe is my hero. - rabbit
XBL: E Munnie
Is that the one down near France and Old Shakopee road? I haven't made it there yet - are they worth a trip?
There's a large company here that I won't name because I suspect it may be the one Elysium's talking about. They basically just ended rules about vacation time, attendence, core hours,etc. for many of their salaried employees. If you can get the job done, they don't really care when you're at the office. From everything I've heard, they actually do it.
Xbox Live: MNGwinn
Yup, that's them. They also just opened a store a mile from my house in Savage.
Whether it's worth the trip is a tough call. I just like the way they do business better. They allow you to try any game in store before you buy. They have older stuff for sale too, including N64, Dreamcast, Gameboy etc. They are more clearly targeted toward gamers, and they have an old-school vibe about them in that way. That said, the prices (either for trade-ins, used or new) are really no better or no worse.
Nope, that's not me, but I know the one you're talking about. It's a great example of another large company getting it right. That's not where I'm working, though.
"I think Elysium has the right of it" - Certis
Every time you people talk you make me hate my job that much more
The measure of a man is how truly his actions reflect his own truth - not how well his actions fall into line with what makes others comfortable.