Ask the Wizard of Weirdness
By John Putzier
Dear WOW:
I work on an R&D technical team, and have a dilemma. One of my team members, Charlie, has 17 patents and is obviously of great value to the organization. However, in addition to not being a team player, he also has a problem coming to work at 8 am every day because his most creative time of day is in the middle of the night. When he gets into one of his creative flows, he comes up with some very creative and innovative breakthroughs, but he is worthless the next morning. So, some days he doesn't come in until almost lunchtime.
We have a traditional flextime program, but it is not flexible enough to accommodate Charlie's unpredictable cycle. If the company lets Charlie pick and choose his own sleep/work schedule, shouldn't they let everyone make his or her own hours too? I don't want us to lose Charlie or his contribution to the company, but we also have to think of the team, don't we? I think we are faced with a difficult choice here, don't you?
Sincerely,
Hobson
Dear Hobson:
The choice is not as difficult as you may think. The word "discrimination" has gotten a bad rap over the years, especially in employment arenas. Treating everyone the same regardless of their value or contribution is not just wrong, it's downright stupid.
One of the most important roles of a manager is to be able to make tough decisions and distinctions, which it appears your manager has done. It is not illegal to discriminate on the basis of performance. In fact, it's called leadership.
The bottom line is, if Charlie is earning his keep, and bringing value to the company, who cares when and where he does it? Is the company paying him to warm a chair, or to innovate? It's obvious he is not "taking advantage" by the fact that he has produced 17 patents for the company.
In my newest book, "Weirdos in the Workplace! The New Normal…Thriving in the Age of the Individual" there is something called the "Weird:Worth Ratio" which simply put means, the more you're worth, the more you can be weird!
That's also called pay for performance. Pay is not just a paycheck, but perks, privileges and prerogatives, as well. But they must be earned, not endowed. That's how you create a culture of high-performance! And what better place than in R&D?
Where I believe your manager(s) may have dropped the ball is in not "educating" you and your team as to the reason and the rationale for accommodating Charlie's "circadian rhythms." One of the essentials to creating a successful meritocracy (i.e., an organization that rewards according to contribution) is to communicate the rules of the game to everyone, so they understand how they too can reap the rewards of success, and how success is defined. When you or your team members have 17 patents, feel free to come forward and ask for "special" treatment, as well. Just make sure it's job-related!
Discriminatingly Yours,
John Putzier
Wizard of Weirdness (WOW)
