Manager's Edge

Having Fun at Work Doesn't Happen by Accident
Having fun at work boosts morale, productivity and creativity, while reducing burnout and turnover. But it doesn't happen by accident.

Here's how three companies promote fun at work.

• Lands' End recruits about 2,600 employees a year for its catalog business in Dodgeville, Wis., a small town in a state with low unemployment. What's the draw?
  
  To start, department heads listen to employees' ideas for activities. Managers sometimes serve their staff members cookies and other treats. And the Lands' End Choir provides a musical outlet for about 70 employees. One result: Fortune magazine ranked Lands' End among the 100 best places to work three years in a row.
  
  Fun events: On "Inside-Out Day," warehouse workers wear clothes inside out. At a "Harvest Ball," customer service reps wear tuxedos and old bridesmaid dresses. And in the "Cruise Room," employees can enjoy punch and calypso music during breaks.
  
• Schwartz Communications, Waltham, Mass., has 160 employees and yearly turnover of about 12 percent; one-third its industry's average. Fun factors: an on-site swimming pool, Ping-Pong, dart boards, video games, a freezer full of ice cream and parties at unusual sites, including the Boston Aquarium.
  
• Gymboree Corp., Burlingame, Calif., offers "snack time" and "recess" for its employees. The children's product manufacturer gives its 300 staff members small perks that add up, such as 15 minutes on Wednesday afternoons for snacks paid for by in-house sample clothing sales. They also endorse a half-hour break on Thursdays to walk around the lagoon, play Frisbee, hopscotch or Hula-Hoop, or simply to lounge.
  
  Fun dividends: While Gymboree employees "play," they often talk about work. Ken Myers, senior VP of HR, says it pays off. "We're a company of creativity, and creative ideas don't always come sitting in an office." Also, Myers stresses intangible benefits, such as team building and developing a better understanding of the organization's clients who are children.

Adapted from Journal of Business Strategy, Faulkner and Gray Inc., 11 Penn Plaza, New York, NY 10001.

Which Employees Will Work through Change?
Enacting change in your organization is a lot easier when you know which employees are most likely to accept it and which ones are worth trying to persuade.

Here is some help on that front from the Hay Group, a worldwide HR firm whose research has identified four types of employees, based on how they adapt to change.

1. Superstars. They are the high performers who understand the organization's vision and know what it takes to achieve it.
   
   What to do: Do whatever you need to do to keep them: rewards, compensation, choice assignments. In exchange, they will help you drive the change by serving as examples for the rest of organization.
   
2. Open-minders. These are not your top performers, but they are ready to sign on to the plan. You can develop their talent and increase their contributions to the group. It's worth the effort and cost to get them on board quickly.
   
   What to do: Offer coaching, formal training and development, and rewards for improved performance.
   
3. Skeptics. This is a critical group because they are good workers, but they'll wait and see how the changes shake out. If you identify them early and help them adjust, roughly half of this group will become superstars. The other half will become dead weight.
   
   What to do: Once you have identified who is worth developing, invest heavily in mentoring and coaching. Clearly state your expectations and tie their rewards to changes in attitudes and behaviors.
   
4. Resisters. This group comprises about 15 percent of employees in most organizations. They are likely to be strong producers, but they worship the status quo. Your only choice may be helping them to move on.
   
   What to do: Concentrate on developing the other three groups.

Adapted from Hay Group News, The Hay Group, 229 S. 18th St., Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia, PA 19103.

Barbara Baker Clark is the editor of Manager's Edge. Written in a concise, quick-to-read format that will take you just 15 minutes a month to read, Manager's Edge will help you be a great communicator, a super motivator and an extraordinary leader. To subscribe, please call 800-722-9221 or 703-518-2343. Or visit www.managersedge.com.