The progress in technology that has occurred over the past several decades has rapidly changed the pace and mode of working in nearly all fields. The ability to connect with one’s colleagues at any time or place has the potential to free one from the constraints of a fixed work schedule, but at the same time poses new challenges to maintaining a reasonable work-life balance. As the boundaries between “at work” and “not at work” become less defined, it is all too easy to lose sight of the importance of the person over productivity.
In an interview with Alice Trimmer, of the Murray Hill Institute Board, Teresita Abay-Krueger, Technology Marketing Manager, Software Group, IBM Corporation discusses her own experiences with the borderless workplace and comments on the changes introduced by technology from a cultural and historical perspective. She also gives some tips on how to clarify expectations regarding one’s own availability.
1. In what ways do technical innovations have the potential to erase the boundaries between work and personal life?
Advances in technology have created a lot of the issues in and around work−family balance these days. To place this in some historical perspective: since the invention of the computer chip in 1965, the capability of transistors has evolved to the point that handheld devices such as the I-Phone or BlackBerry have as much or greater capability in processing power than the entire North American Defense Command had back in the 1960s. This has placed quite literally a whole world of information into the palm of one’s hand, and these devices have great implications for work-family balance today. By having this device, anyone can reach me at any time: they can communicate with me via voice, via text, or send all kinds of content in the form of web pages, photographs, or any other type of information that can be carried digitally. Anyone with a device like a laptop and connectivity can reach anyone, anywhere, at any time, and one can work in this way with any number of people at once.
2. How can the end-user (in this case, the employee) control the tendency to intrusiveness that technological devices can create?
It is question of knowing when we have enough information for what we need. In our world today there is a kind of craving or need for information that can sometimes be so overwhelming that it overruns our day. It is up to each person to evaluate when and to what extent you really need that connectivity, and to what extent are you truly dependent on the technology to accomplish what you need to do.
With the help of technology, we are now capable of working from anywhere at any time: we are no longer tethered to a particular physical location to get our work done. This undoubtedly provides flexibility, for example, for a working mother who needs to be home with children for whatever reason. This flexibility is very advantageous for working parents today, and brings a lot of reassurance that they can still be productive and in touch with their work group using the capabilities that the technology provides.
But on the other side, at what point do you decide when this technology needs to be turned off to attend to one’s other roles as mother, spouse, community member? The simple answer is: “just turn it off,” but other conditions can make this difficult, especially in our current economic situation where workers are under pressure to demonstrate their increased value and productivity to avoid being squeezed out of a weak labor marker. The situation is akin to thinking that you can never leave the office: with technology, people can literally always be “In.” This can lead to a temptation to never turn off whatever device is keeping you connected, for fear that you will miss out on something, or from thinking that you need to constantly demonstrate your productivity.
It is getting increasingly common that people do not take their allotted vacation time: workers are willing to forfeit their vacation time in order to stay connected. Although with the appropriate technology, one can work from anywhere as long as there is an internet connection and telephone, the problem becomes: work is all that you may end up doing.
3. What has been your experience as a result of 24/7 availability?
For the past 10 to 15 years, as a working mother, I first worked in a traditional office or research lab. But for the past couple of years, as a result of working from home, I find that I spend more hours “at work” working from home than I did when I was in the research laboratory. Why?
First of all, I can still collaborate with people from my home: through web casts, they can see me face to face, so isolation from my work group and colleagues is really not an issue. Working from home, I don’t have to worry about travel—including the daily commute, which can be very time-consuming. I can dedicate that time to productive work on behalf of my job. I can still effectively collaborate with people—one can get a team of people together very quickly via instant messaging and web casting—a team that can number 100 at a time rather than the 10 or 12 one might deal with in an office environment.
Secondly, technology enables me to quickly and easily use time to my advantage. Time as a resource is not recoverable. With the use of a lot of these devices I can use any amount of my time, be it 9 to 5, weekend, evening, vacation—to accomplish a set of tasks and meet the outcomes I want. It also enables me to provide a level of assurance immediately to my colleagues that such-and-such a task can be accomplished in a timely way.
One of the more difficult questions is: When do I decide that this technology has become too intrusive? You struggle at times with the idea that “I can be everything to everyone at all times,” and it can become difficult to let go of this idea. The reality sets in when you try to set some clear and concise boundaries about your work load with your peers. Make clear what level of expectation you can meet, and pursue an agreement with your peers regarding what their expectations are regarding your productivity. This is not unlike the type of discussion that would take place in a traditional office environment, but such a conversation would typically take place face-to-face. Without this face-to-face setting, you need to be even more clear and definitive about your expectations because you are relying on a certain level of trust. They can’t see you and they need to understand what those parameters are.
4. How can you establish reasonable boundaries to disconnect when you need to? How do you convey these boundaries to your work group and to your manager in a positive way?
This is a question that all kinds of think tanks and organizations are trying to get a handle on. All of technology has the power to elevate the human person, but it can just as well become degrading by putting ourselves in a constant cycle of work. We need to understand and recognize that the false sense of comfort and convenience technology may provide can also entrap us.
Instant messaging and similar technologies can enable us to immediately engage one’s co-worker's availability—by whether they are online or not, whether they have a “do not disturb” or “I am available” notice posted on their interface. This can help delineate for oneself and one’s co-workers when you are actually “on-call” and when you are not.
5. To what extent do the goals of the individual, those of the workplace, and those of the general culture interact in creating expectations of productivity? How does an individual analyze their own goals and motivations in order to create a sane and realistic work schedule for themselves?
Well, we all need to put the brakes on somewhere. I often go back to this idea that ambition is a good thing to the extent that it can drive me to stretch myself a little more towards accomplishment. Most organizations genuinely want to nurture creativity and resourcefulness in their employees and work to enable employees to function as best they can.
Everyone operates at different levels, and people can make all kinds
of differences in community, family life, workplace, country. But you
need to understand yourself and how much you can capture and impart those
talents under the best conditions possible. This involves choosing the
right venues and projects that you can excel at and driving towards excellence
as you accomplish those. Work with your peek times and in your peek situations
insofar as possible.