Jurgen Appelo, management consultant and writer, predicts that by 2020, “work-life balance’ will be replaced by ‘work-life integration’ – the convergence of professional and personal lives – due to increasing telecommuting and cloud computing, which will allow people to work anytime, anywhere.
Appelo believes that this change in workplace behavior will only be effective if compensation plans evolve from rewarding ‘most time spent at work’ and ‘results achieved’, to those that incentivize employees ‘commitment to their work and the organization. This is because if targets are being met using unethical means, then this dilutes a business’s brand equity in the long run. Furthermore, employees with a result driven work attitude are less keen on devoting time and energy on ‘experimental learning’, the basis of innovation in any company.
Appello has identified five levels that employees usually fall into. He recommends that HR managers should determine which level an employee is in and draft their compensation plans accordingly; the higher the level, the better the compensation package should be:
●Level 5 employees. The salary provided by the organisation is their only source of income; they do not have other business interests and tend to be the most loyal and committed.
●Level 4 employees. The salary provided by the organisation constitutes 80% of their total income; they usually have at least two jobs, and therefore less time, effort and brain power to contribute compared to level 5 employees.
●Level 3 employees. The salary provided by the organisation constitutes 60% of their total income; they sometimes run a profitable business and therefore do not always give priority to the organisation’s work.
●Level 2 employees. The salary provided by the organisation constitute 40% of their total income; they typically have well-established freelance careers and find it difficult to concentrate on one project at a time.
●Level 1 employees. The salary provided by the organisation constitutes 20% of their total income; they tend to perceive their work as a hobby and are reluctant to put in extra effort to improve quality.
By Arshia Wasif Ahmed. The writer is a corporate trainer.