Hours worked

I had coffee the other day with a senior executive who told me how tired he was, never saw his family, always working late. Tough deadlines to be met, and an overly demanding boss doesn’t help. ‘What can I do?’ he shrugged.

Two ex-HR execs wrote a column in the new Business Week on line edition entitled “Results Count, Not Hours”. Since we work virtually, they write, the only thing that counts is the result, not the hours.

Obviously neither have been senior executives in large MNCs. Face time is crucial for success, m’dears..

The art is knowing when to stay late (or arrive early) and when not. The truth is, those that always stay late are worker bees, not bosses. Don’t believe me? Look around the office (assume an MNC, rather than a 3-man operation) and you will often see those who are always labouring at their desk, working and reworking their presentations, spreadsheets, emails, reports, etc. They are often the ones who assume that if they do their job well, they’ll get noticed—or promoted. But their boss is busy doing other things, and unlikely he or she knows; they have enough to juggle. People that stay late think they’ll miss out on something if they leave on time-or early; they’re always present. But the only relationship they make is with their work, not with the people or groups that count.

The perception of working as hard as everyone else is an art. It means you understand the game, and know when to speed up or slow down, but not constantly have your foot on the pedal. That nearly always results in a wreck..