190 Part 3. Organizing CASE APPLICATION #1 You Work Where? Y Pahool, a pioneer in Web search and navigation, strug- there at work did as little work as needed and then took off gles to remain relevant in the face of competition from early. She also discovered that other employees who worked the likes of Google, Facebook, and Twitter! I missed from home did little but collect a paycheck or maybe work the two biggest Internet trends-social networking and mobile, on a sideline business they had started. Even at the office, However, in July 2012, after the company did its own search former manager described morale as being as low as it could it snagged a gem as the company's new CEO--Marissa Mayer, be because employees thought the company was failing. These one of the top executives at Google. Mayer had been one of the were some of the reasons that Mayer abolished Yahoo! few public faces of Google and was responsible for the look work-from-home policy. If Yahoo! was to again become the and feel of Google's most popular products. Guiding Yahool nimble company it had once been a new culture of innova as it tries to regain its former prominence is proving to be the tion, communication, and collaboration was needed. And challenge that experts predicted, but they're also saying that if that meant employees had to be at work physically at work anyone could take on the chal- together. Restoring Yahoo! lenge of making Yahoo! an cool from its products to innovator once again. Mayer is Where IS work done most its deteriorating moral and the person efficiently and effectively? culture-would be difficuli Two of her initial deci if the organization's people sions included free food at the weren't there. That's why office and new smartphones for every employee something Mayer's decision at Yahool created such an uproar. Yahoo! that Google does. However, in February 2013. Mayer launched only official statement on the new policy said. "This isn't a an employee initiative that has generated lots of discussion broad industry view on working from home. This is about positive and negative. She decided that as of June 2013.Yahoo! what is right for Yahool, right now." employees who worked remotely had to come back to the Where work is done most efficiently and effectively office. The memo from the vice president of people and de office, bome, combination is an important workplace velopment (code for head of Human Resources) clarified that The three main managerial concems are productivity, in the new initiative was a response to productivity is that vation, and collaboration. Do flexible arrangements lead 10 often can arise when employees work from home. With a new greater productivity or inhibit innovation and collaborative! boss and a renewed commitment to making Yahoot a strong Another concem is that employees, especially younger ones company in a challenging industry, employees were expected expect to be able to work remotely. Yes, the trend has been to be physically present in the workplace, hopefully leading toward greater workplace flexibility, but does that flexibility to developing a strong common bond and preater productivity, lead to a bloated, lazy, and unproductive remote workforce The announcement affects not only those who work from home These are the challenges of designing work structures. full time mainly customer service reps but also those em ployees who have arranged to work from home one or two days Discussion Questions a week. Yahoo isn't the only company asking remote workers 6-14 Evaluate Yahool's new work initiative Did it have to be an all to retum. Bank of America, which had a popular remote work or nothing proposition Discum program, decided late in 2012 that employees in certain roles 6-15 What can managers and organizations do to help had to come back to the office who work from home be officient and effective Before Mayer became CEO at Yahool, it was a wonder 6-16 Take the three main concoms--productivity, innovation and anything ever got done there. What she found wasn't even collaboration from the perspective of management, low de remotely like the way employees functioned at Google. At you think leible atrangements stack up? How about from the Yahool, few people were physically at work in the office employee's perspective? cubicles throughout the building. Few cars or bikes or other 6-17 la "face-time that is showing up at work to be seen by you bots and others critical to one's career? Discut vehicles could be found in the facility's parking lots. Even more disturbing some of the employees who were physically 6-18 is being able to work foretely important to you? Why or why