Case Application 1: NINE-TO-FIVE NO MORE

Talk with nearly any HR manager in a company of considerable size, and they will tell you the
same thing. To make HR function smoothly, employees need to know what the policies are and
how they are to be followed. For without such policies there can only be chaos; out of that chaos
can comes serious organizational problems. Well, somebody apparently forgot to tell Greg
Strakosch, CEO of TechTarget, a Needham, Massachusetts-based interactive media company,
that policies need to be written and strictly followed.

Strakosch leads an organization of more than 550 employees in the high-tech media field. What
makes TechTarget so unique is that employees are permitted to come and go as they please
TechTarget's management has neither implemented attendant policies, nor offers employees
sick-leave benefits. Rather, as a general rule, the company believes in hiring the best
employees in the market, and then giving them the freedom and autonomy to do their jobs.
Simply stated, this means leaving them alone. Thus, if someone works better from 4 p.m. until
midnight, so be it. But they must remain available to others should they need to be contacted-
availability by email, cell phone, and the like. Yet if they need time off during the day to attend a
child's school event or some other personal issue, they take it. No questions asked-ever.

But don't assume that this "freedom" is risk-free. It carries with it significant responsibilities.
Employees at TechTarget are given quarterly goals that they must meet. While it's true how and
when employees complete this work is up to them, failure to meet targets is not acceptable.
Should that happen, the employee is terminated.

Does TechTarget's "autonomy" work? For the most part, the answer is yes. While employees
have the freedom to work when they want to, employees in the company report they often
spend more than 50 hours per week on job-related activities. But they do so in a way that's
convenient to them-which is translating into success for the business. TechTarget was named
one of the "Best Places to Work" by the Boston Business Journal in 2011. And during its ten
years of operation, company revenues have steadily risen, even through recent recession. 2011
revenues were up over 11 per- cent from the previous year. TechTarget has shown steady
growth since it was founded by Strakosch in 1999 and has recently increased international
operations by opening an office in Sydney, Australia. Maybe there's something to be said about
giving employees their freedom!

Questions:

1. What is your reaction to this "no attendance" plan implemented at TechTarget? Do you
believe it's too simplistic? Defend your position.
2. Do you believe that such an employee policy as described in the case can succeed in other
companies? Why or why not?
3. What special HRM conditions must exist for such a plan to work? Explain. How do you
believe these conditions relate to employee motivation?