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The popular webcomic PhD Comics, demonstrates perfectly one of the more serious side effects that the internet has had on science reporting, and something Weinberger (2011) discusses in Too Big To Know. The internet has both enable scientific advances and discoveries to flourish while at the same time provided people the echo chambers needed to remain ignorant (Weinberger, 2011, p. 156). And as noted in the comic linked above and by Weinberger (2011), the media tends to gravitate towards eye catching, even if incorrect or misleading, headlines (p. 157). But the insights regarding the positive and negative effects of the internet in terms of scientific reporting can also be applied to how workplaces are now dealing with networked workers and the opportunities and challenges that they bring to their organizations.
Jarche (2013) several advantages that networked workers bring, all directly related to an employees access to the internet. Among them are the the fact that value is created by the connections that each employee has, a prime indicator of relationship capital (Jarche, 2013). Additionally, the scalability that the internet provides has reduced the need for the traditional management functions. I'm sure everyone can think of an example in their workplace in which they directly e-mailed a colleague instead of coordinating efforts through a manager. This phenomenon is only amplified in the wirearchies that are developing compared to traditional hierarchies, as discussed last week.
That is not to say that networked workers are not without flaws. This is shown with the range of challenges that are present in one of the more popular networked worker trends, telecommuting. While there are many arguments and research on both sides, an article in 2013 by Network World notes that employees find work positive with bosses physically present and that virtual communication is more rife with lies compared to face-to-face communication (Bednarz, 2013). Finally, and maybe not too surprising, are the results of a survey that shows most teleworkers don't put in a full day of work (Bednarz, 2013).
With all the pros and cons of networked workers in mind, a couple particular things jumped out at me. The first is that while networked workers might be less reliant on the traditional manger role, there is still a great need for leadership. Aside from the benefit in job satisfaction discussed above, a leader can provide the vision and guidance to employees. With proper and effective leadership the opportunities of a freely available internet and networked workforce are more easily turned into competitive advantages and can outweigh the negatives.
References:
Bednarz, A. (2013, February 28). Is Yahoo's telework ban shortsighted or savvy? Data says both. NetworkWorld. Retrieved from http://www.networkworld.com/article/2163977/smb/is-yahoo-s-telework-ban-shortsighted-or-savvy--data-says-both.html
Jarche, H. (2013, November 5). Networks are the new companies. [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://jarche.com/2013/11/networks-are-the-new-companies/
Weinberger, D. (2011). Too big to know: Rethinking knowledge now that the facts aren't the facts, experts are everywhere, and the smartest person in the room is the room. New York, NY: Basic Books.
Jarche (2013) several advantages that networked workers bring, all directly related to an employees access to the internet. Among them are the the fact that value is created by the connections that each employee has, a prime indicator of relationship capital (Jarche, 2013). Additionally, the scalability that the internet provides has reduced the need for the traditional management functions. I'm sure everyone can think of an example in their workplace in which they directly e-mailed a colleague instead of coordinating efforts through a manager. This phenomenon is only amplified in the wirearchies that are developing compared to traditional hierarchies, as discussed last week.
That is not to say that networked workers are not without flaws. This is shown with the range of challenges that are present in one of the more popular networked worker trends, telecommuting. While there are many arguments and research on both sides, an article in 2013 by Network World notes that employees find work positive with bosses physically present and that virtual communication is more rife with lies compared to face-to-face communication (Bednarz, 2013). Finally, and maybe not too surprising, are the results of a survey that shows most teleworkers don't put in a full day of work (Bednarz, 2013).
With all the pros and cons of networked workers in mind, a couple particular things jumped out at me. The first is that while networked workers might be less reliant on the traditional manger role, there is still a great need for leadership. Aside from the benefit in job satisfaction discussed above, a leader can provide the vision and guidance to employees. With proper and effective leadership the opportunities of a freely available internet and networked workforce are more easily turned into competitive advantages and can outweigh the negatives.
References:
Bednarz, A. (2013, February 28). Is Yahoo's telework ban shortsighted or savvy? Data says both. NetworkWorld. Retrieved from http://www.networkworld.com/article/2163977/smb/is-yahoo-s-telework-ban-shortsighted-or-savvy--data-says-both.html
Jarche, H. (2013, November 5). Networks are the new companies. [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://jarche.com/2013/11/networks-are-the-new-companies/
Weinberger, D. (2011). Too big to know: Rethinking knowledge now that the facts aren't the facts, experts are everywhere, and the smartest person in the room is the room. New York, NY: Basic Books.
I would agree that there is still a need (if not a greater need) for leadership. I wonder though at your comment "...Aside from the benefit in job satisfaction discussed above, a leader can provide the vision and guidance to employees."
ReplyDeleteTrue...but this almost suggests a one-way flow, whereas the concept of wirearchy suggests a two-way flow. One of the reasons I gravitate to servant leadership is this concept of followers also filling leadership roles.
Good afternoon. I found myself reflecting on your comment, “Finally, and maybe not too surprising, are the results of a survey that shows most teleworkers don't put in a full day of work (Bednarz, 2013).” I am curious to hear a bit more. Do you think teleworkers are more or less productive than someone that works in an office setting, removing the “on the clock hours” they contribute portion of the conversation? A part of me thinks of all of the distraction that can occur at home, but in today’s world, many of the same distractions can occur in the office as well as other distractions that can occur in the office setting. I think of the number of productive hours I can put in at work versus at home and it almost seems like a wash but only because of the interruptions or distractions still occur they are just different. I look forward to your thoughts.
ReplyDeleteJason
You use the example of it being so easy to connect with anyone in the company via any number of channels. This along with the flattened hierarchy gives a somewhat false sense that emailing anyone in the hierarchy is totally acceptable. I have known a number of, especially newer workers who have found out the hard way that it is actually not acceptable to email the CEO or other somewhat lesser executives. This situation provides an excellent example of one area in which a leader’s guidance is needed. You bring up some good points about leadership in terms of remote workers. And with that in mind it’s important to recognize that some of those remote workers are often someone else’s leader. Allen, Golden, and Shockley (2015) reference data that indicate that workers who report to managers who telecommute are less satisfied with their relationship overall than those who have a manager with whom they interact with face to face. Notably, knowledge sharing and mentoring are down and innovation decreases for teams who never meet face to face. Even with the upsides, do you feel any limits should be placed on remote working? Thanks ~Tricia
ReplyDeleteReference
Allen, T.D., Golden, T., Shockley, K.M. (2015). How effective is telecommuting? Assessing the status of our scientific findings. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 16(2),
40-68. doi: 10.1177/1529100615593273