I’m old school. I earned my PTO and no one was impressed with my extra PTI (put time in). It came with the territory. One was measured, given sparingly, and tracked rigorously. The other just happened. A lot. Time is the price paid by the ambitious.
A technology leader recently raised a question to me and some of his peers. During the pandemic adjustments, he has seen an uptick in full-time, salaried employees tracking their hours and seeking comp time for over forty hours worked.
Old school is out.
He asked two questions: What is the norm for you in providing comp time, and what are the policies or strategies in place for compensating off-hour work?
He said that he is not reacting to a problem, but trying to get ahead of a potential one. We applauded his initiative, clarified the context a bit, and then chimed in.
I was very surprised at what I heard.
The CIOs speaking into the situation gave answers I would put into five different categories, each of which I will outline for you here. But overwhelmingly, every answer touched on this first one: Culture.
Culture
Culture is often seen as a soft area, an ambiguous “You know it when you have it” dynamic. It is often associated with values, which can also be written off as the statements left for the walls.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
This year, the Cincinnati Bengals are headed to the NFL Super Bowl. I am writing before the game is played, but as far as a season goes, they have already won. No one in NFL history went from worst to first faster than they did.
As I watched the conference championship game, an upset victory for them, one of the commentators mentioned a statistic: They are the least penalized team in the league. When the coach was asked why, he said, “They are smart and disciplined.”
Being an underdog and emotionally rising to an occasion is one thing. Going from worst to first under a new coach and a new quarterback is culture.
As one of the CIOs said in this conversation, culture isn’t a ping pong table in the break room. It is the steady application of values.
Values are not belief statements. Too many written today are just that. Values are behaviors. They can be audited. If you tell me you hold a value, I will ask you to show me the time put into it, the strategy adopted for it, the talent mobilized around it and the money spent on it.
If you can’t prove it, it’s not a value, it’s an aspiration.
Mark Cuban is starting a pharmaceutical company to disrupt the industry. It is called Cost Plus, and he has stated “We will do whatever it takes.” On the one hand, that’s a rallying call, a visionary cheerlead, a motivational mantra. But he already put the money on the line: Plus equals 15%. That’s it. That’s a value.
To see it another way, millions of Americans vowed at the start of the year to be healthier and fit, as in, “I value my personal health.” Well, show me the time, money and skills you are putting to it. Otherwise, your resolution was met with a weak solution.
Values are the floor for honesty. I told a friend about the eating plan I was on and asked if he was interested. He said, “No, unless it has Twinkies on it, I won’t do it.” That’s honesty. He values medical relief for his diabetes. I value prevention. No judgment, just differing values.
Nine CIOs responded to my friend’s question. All nine said they address comp time by starting with clear operating values in a well-defined culture: we do what it takes and proactively care for the ones doing it.
As a result, four leadership practices surfaced on how your peers are addressing comp time and off-hour work in today’s environment.
- Recognition for embodying values.
One CIO said his company pays bonuses based on value adherence as part of their review process. I loved hearing that. For them, reasonably-expected “overtime” is part of the culture for salaried employees, but so is recognition for doing the values.
Another CIO mentioned recognition as part of their weekly stand ups. Honor is its own reward.
- Discretion in granting time-off.
One takeaway we all grabbed was the practice of a CIO who anticipates extra time needed, and gives time-off in advance. As he said, “I know next weekend is going to require extra time for you, so take-off a half-day this week.”
Many of the CIOs were granting half-or full-days after the fact. They were stimulated by the idea of looking out for an employee’s well-being in advance. (Side note: The family of the employee appreciates it too. It heads off negative reactions).
- Assessment of operations
One of the CIOs said that repeated overtime was a sign for evaluation: Is the employee doing repetitive work that a) can become boring and b) could be automated?
His answer to overwork wasn’t compensation but efficiency. He cares for his employees by keeping them at work they prefer rather than tolerate.
- Knowledge of individual’s perspective
One of our CIOs is incorporating “stay” interviews. In light of the great resignation, he prioritized understanding of a person’s situation. He recommends an article from FastCompany about "stay" interviews.
Another CIO has his managers conduct monthly 1:1s so that they can get a better “real-time” read than other review schedules provide.
Interestingly, I asked, “Is there one generation over another that is tracking their time and seeking compensation for it?” There was. Predominantly. Guess which one. Yes, the twenty-somethings.
No judgment; just adjustments. The CIOs agreed on the importance of setting expectations during on-boarding, and then following up on those expectations during the 1:1s to see how chemistry with the company and its values were developing.
The impressive impression I gained about the CIOs I was with was their compassion and genuine care. No one faulted people for seeking comp time. My friends just wanted to grant it effectively. And they are.
Frankly, I was expecting someone, especially the international company at the table, to have rigid guidelines and proven policies. Nope. Managers are entrusted with the care of their team. Guidance? Yes. Rigid rules? No.
It’s still going to be an issue. What of the manager is more generous in one division than a manger in another? Complaint usually leads to conformity.
But for now, your peers operate more in the domain of the human than the dictates of the structure. And maybe, when dealing with humans, that’s still the best course of all.
Want more insights or need to kick around some ideas of your own? Contact me.
