For many companies, telecommuting will continue indefinitely, if not forever. How should publishers adjust expectations and evaluation metrics to reflect this new reality?

By William Dunkerley

We made a mistake. Last issue we identified five internal obstacles to recovering from the Covid crisis.

But we missed one that is quickly growing in significance.

What is it? It is an emerging relationship problem between publishers and work-at-home staff. It portends to be a major obstacle to success as we go forward.

You see, when the pandemic hit, most publications quickly jumped into a crisis management mode. That meant moving some or all staff members to working from home. Normally employees tend to respond to imposed change with resistance. But here the team pitched in, driven by a survival instinct.

That was largely successful. The adaptations made by publications helped most to survive one very enormous challenge.

Now, though, some of the crisis mode changes are still hanging on. They've become routine, at least for now. We're seeing two attendant unfavorable trends come from that. They deserve your attention. We hadn't picked up on them last month. We'll deal with them now.

So what's going wrong now? In short, here's the story:

Supervising and Evaluating from a Distance

Many publishers are feeling a lack of control. They can no longer see their staff working at their desks and on task. They wonder if they are getting their money's worth from the people. That's creating anxiety for the publishers.

In compensation, they are often initiating Zoom meetings, sending emails, or texting without a real purpose -- just to be sure that everyone is there. They may not be conscious of their motivation, but it is happening nonetheless. Beyond that, some publishers, many of whom have had their own workdays extended by the crisis, are contacting work-at-home staffers outside of normal working hours.

Some staffers are beginning to feel put upon. Many are reporting that accomplishing their work is requiring significantly more time than it took in the office environment. Some fear that they will be evaluated negatively if they are not always on call.

In my view, both the publishers and the staff members need to adjust better to today's work environment. There also needs to be more of a common vision of what is expected all the way around.

Reassessing the Concept of the Workday

One thing publishers should consider: Is the traditional concept of a 9-to-5 workday now necessary or appropriate for all staffers? Isn't getting a job done satisfactorily more important than whatever time on task is required?

There's an old story from the logging industry in Germany. A group of workers goes out into the forest each day. They work hard chopping wood with their axes. But there was one wood chopper, Wolfgang, whom everyone regarded as a slacker. Many times during the day he would take a break and sit behind a tree for a while. Other workers would often chide him, saying, "Oh, Wolfie, you are so lazy." The only problem was that by the end of the day, Wolfgang had chopped more wood than any of the others. One day a wood chopper named Gunter asked, "Wolfie, how is it that you are always taking breaks, yet you out-chop everyone else?" Wolfgang replied, "Easy -- each time I take a break, I sharpen my ax."

That's an example of how productivity does not necessarily correlate with time on task.

This is something we as publishers need to realize and keep in sharp focus:

If an ad salesperson can satisfy her sales objectives perfectly, what difference does it really make how long she took doing it?

Similarly, if an editor can produce content of the quantity and quality that you want, what difference does it make how long it takes him to do it?

Shifting to a Goal-Oriented Focus

We're now talking about management by focusing on the goals each staffer is expected to achieve instead of supervising their time. To do this, there must be a clear and shared understanding on the part of publisher and staffer alike of what can be reasonably be accomplished. That should result in identifying objectives and key results. This will provide the worker with clarity on what needs to be accomplished. And it will provide the publisher with a way to measure results. The publisher can then respond with satisfaction over success, or to intervene helpfully if an employee is falling short of the objectives.

To start with, though, publishers must accept that working at home does not provide a work environment equivalent to that of a traditional office. A home-based worker can be confronted by an abundance of distractions and interruptions. Another member of the household also may be working from home, too. If your staffer is a parent, there could be a student engaged in remote learning or a toddler underfoot. Pets may provide additional interruptions. And the work environment could be filled with reminders of home-related chores that are waiting to be done.

We publishers need to accept this as a reality.

At the same time, work-at-home staffers must realize that none of those potential distractions can be an excuse for failing to meet one's responsibilities. Those staffers must be prepared to somehow achieve key results. Perhaps that can be done by sharpening one's ax, like Wolfgang. Or if a home-related responsibility interferes with doing a task as planned at 9:00 a.m., the staffer may choose to do it at 9:00 p.m. instead if that doesn't interfere with deadlines.

The matter of initiating contact with your staff members outside normal work hours needs to be handled with some sensitivity. I think if you foresee a need for occasional after-hours contact, you should seek general permission from the staffer. You should encourage that person to let you know if such contact becomes problematic so that you can discontinue the practice.

In future issues we'll provide guidance for fully implementing the concept of objectives and key results and transitioning away from supervising time on task.

William Dunkerley is principal of William Dunkerley Publishing Consultants, www.publishinghelp.com.

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