Discussion Question:

1. Describe the elements of ROWE. What do you think might be the advantages and
drawbacks of this program?

Elements of Results Only Work Environment (ROWE):

o Flexibility: ROWE is about changing the work culture of an organization into more
flexible working hours which is targeted more towards maximizing output rather than
working for longer hours.
o Autonomy: Employees were given the freedom to determine how, where, and notably
when they did their work. 
o Improving productivity and efficiency: In this management strategy, employees are
rewarded for results, which mean that employees are proactive in improving productivity
and efficiency.
o Result Oriented Job: In this management strategy, activities and leaders can focus on
the things that drive business results; all activities and managers focus on outcomes rather
than spending time on "useless activities."
o Accountability: In this system employees are trusted to make responsible decisions
about how they work and live. They are not rewarded for the number of hours they work;
the paycheck encourages them to participate and strive to increase production.

Advantages of ROWE:

o Increased productivity: Because this strategy is based on production, and employees'

remuneration is based on productivity or output, workers have the motivation to improve
efficiency, which translates into productivity improvement, as can be seen in the case of
Best Buy, for example.
o Less micromanagement: ROWE eliminates the need for micro-management, which is a
counterproductive approach. It will dilute the attention and overall productivity of
managers and management.
 o Empowered, engaged employees: The autonomy and responsibility provided by ROWE
lead to greater employee empowerment and greater commitment, satisfaction, loyalty,
and long-term success. Another benefit is that ROWE often reduces staff turnover.
o A focus on what matters. ROWE values the most important thing: getting the job done.
Employees are not tied to their desks for a certain amount of time every day but gain the
freedom needed to succeed and be rewarded for the initiative, innovation, and results.
o Greater visibility. ROWE enables managers to understand better and manage
underperforming people. Employees who may have been overlooked in the past only by
spending time and making relatively few contributions to the organization.
The disadvantages of ROWE can be:
But every method has disadvantages, and of course, there are some cons to the ROWE strategy.

o Loss of Interaction: Spending time in the office is necessary for effective collaboration

and achieving goals. When colleagues are not together employees may begin to feel
isolated and lonely.
o Loss of Control: In this plan, If not monitored correctly, the managers would find it
difficult to control the whole situation and the freedom and flexibility would easily turn
into chaos.
o Time Consuming: It is a time consuming program/ activity. So before the program is
fully established, managers would find it very difficult to collect enough data to measure
performance and output.
o Difficult to manage: It is often more challenging to communicate with remote
employees who have different working hours.
o Lack of Clarity during appraisal: Managers will find it difficult to prove the validity of
the performance evaluation system.