ROWE PROGRAM AT BEST BUY
Abstract
We all have been employed at a job that we thought overworked us and did not get enough time off with our families. And if we were to try and take time off, someone would always have something to say about it. We all also wish that we could have a job where we can make our own schedules and our managers could not control us as much. That is why Best Buy implemented a program called ROWE (Result- Only Work Environment) that would help out with all of these factors. The program will also help reduce voluntary turnover, improve productivity, and increase employee morale. Working somewhere that we hate to work can affect our morale, performance, and attitudes about the employer. Best Buy is one of the few companies who found a solution to combat these problems. If all companies implemented the ROWE program within their organization, would the workplace be better? Would the employees respond better to their employers and perform better?

ROWE PROGRAM AT BEST BUY
Describe the culture of Best Buy
At Best Buy, the culture is like it is at most employers. All eyes are on you at all times and everything that you do is seen. As for Jennifer Janssen in this case, she needs to leave to pick up her kids from daycare but if she does leave early, someone is bound to notice and say something about it. Or at least before the ROWE was implemented in Best Buy’s culture, a coworker of Jennifer may have judged her. In 2003, Best Buy finally launched the ROWE program to boost morale and productivity. Also the Best Buy’s culture also embraces long hours and sacrifice. According to “Hellriegel/ Slocum’s Organizational Behavior”, one manager even gave out plaques for being the first one in and the last one out of the office. The culture at Best Buy seems to embrace overworking their employees in order to get the job done and to also overwork employees to get noticed so they will have a better chance of advancing within the company. Also a trend was noticed that women were taking lower pay and status and still doing the same work in order to get flexible family time.
Discuss the approach to organizational change that the ROWE program illustrates.
The ROWE program simply illustrates a better work environment for some Best Buy employees. It was brought along to improve employee morale which will affect their performance in positive ways. When employees are overworked, their performance shows it and also shows that morale is low. From experience of being overworked by a company, it makes coming to work hard and it also makes doing the job hard when you hate work. The ROWE program illustrates that everything is optional. There is no traditional work schedule, meetings are not mandatory, and no one will be judged for leaving work early or for coming in to work
ROWE PROGRAM AT BEST BUY late. If someone has something important to do or just need a little time off, they can come in to work late without being judged or talked about by any of their coworkers. As long as the job gets done, they are free to do what they want. It also illustrates better schedules so employees can spend more time with their families. Some of the Best Buy managers did not like the idea of the ROWE program because that would mean less control over their employees. For the managers it would also mean not being able to pop deadlines on certain projects because the employees may not be there to know about a last minute project.
Discuss the resistance, both organizational and individual, that the ROWE program had to overcome. Not everyone at Best Buy approved of the ROWE program. As stated before, some of the managers did not like the idea because that meant giving up a lot of their control over their employees. The managers also had to accept more responsibility and also had to learn not to treat their employees like children. The employees felt that it was inhumane that they had to punch time clocks. The employees who are data-entry clerks and claims processors still punch the clock but they have more flexibility over work schedules and they now focus on how many quality forms they get each week. Employees in Best Buy’s legal department have resisted the ROWE program because they are concerned that it will affect their pay. The lawyers at Best Buy are paid on how well they serve their clients. Also some of the older employees from the baby- boom generation had to be persuaded to give the program a chance. The older employees had to sacrifice a lot of time and family in order to get in the position that they were in. In ROWE

PROGRAM AT BEST BUY ROWE training sessions, some of the older employees were even crying because they had realized what exactly they had sacrificed for their jobs.
Discuss the sources of stress that are apparent in the case. The sources of stress that are apparent in this case are employees feeling like they are being overworked, limited control over employees due to the ROWE program, and reducing voluntary turnover. Best Buy also had to find ways to improve productivity and increase employee morale. By employees feeling like they were being overworked, employee’s productivity and morale was low. Best Buy saw what a positive impact on productivity and employee morale that the ROWE program was having and realized that it may need to implement the program throughout the company. When employees do not feel as if they are overworked or cannot get enough family time, attitudes about work starts to deteriorate. Another one of the major issues that ROWE was to control was high turnover rates. Usually a company that has a high turnover rate, employees are unhappy with their jobs and are usually overworked. Experiencing first-hand what it feels like and what it does to a person’s attitude to work for a company with a high turnover rate, the company did not try to accommodate or work with its employees to try and retain some of their employees and solve the problem. So by Best Buy finding a solution for their employees in order to boost morale and productivity shows that Best Buy cares for their employee’s well- being.
Discuss whether or not the organizational culture has helped with the change. The organizational culture in this case has helped with the change. Best Buy employees are able to see the positive impacts that the ROWE program is having on the employees and the
PROGRAM AT BEST BUY ROWE company. Employees at Best Buy look at work differently now because of the program. Thompson states: “They feel happier about work. They feel more ownership of their work. They feel clearer about what they are doing for the company, and they see ROWE as a benefit that is almost more important than any other. They talk about it as if to say, ‘Someone else could offer me more money, but I would not go because I now have control over my time’.” When employees feel this way about their work and their jobs, the turnover will reduce and employees will work harder for the company. Employees at Best Buy have also caught on to the program and seem to like ROWE. According to “Hellriegel/ Slocum’s Organizational Behavior”, during the first few weeks in ROWE, employees call “sludge” out loud when they hear an offending comment. Until everybody is use to the ROWE idea being a reality, they tried to keep a sense of humor about the ROWE program. Corporate management team, led by CEO Brad Anderson was at first skeptical about ROWE. After seeing its results, top management allowed managers in corporate headquarters to adopt the program at their discretion. It seems that in all, the company’s organizational culture is helping with the change. Joe Pagano, a vice president also seems to be enjoying the ROWE program as well. Pagano sacrificed time with his family, working Saturdays and Sunday at times in order to be in the position he is in. He also takes advantage of the program as well now and at times he takes time off to play golf or to go to his grandson’s school to participate in Special Persons Day. Pagano stated “If things had been different, I probably would have been a better father and husband, and a better manager. I’m doing this so other people do not do what I did wrong.” Someone as high of position that Pagano is in, also supports the program because he sees everything he sacrificed. If the program was

PROGRAM AT BEST BUY ROWE around earlier in his career, he would have had more time to spend with his family and if he would have had that time, he would have been a better manager.

PROGRAM AT BEST BUY ROWE
References
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