Choose two current worker and workplace trends from the textbook, and speculate on the primary manner in which each trend may affect the future of performance management. Provide specific examples that illustrate the potential changes in performance management. Worker and Workplace Trends from textbook: Changes in the Workplace Work teams. Organizations are increasingly turning to the use of teams for task accomplishment and emphasizing team performance. These often autonomous employees work together toward a common goal for which they are jointly held responsible and plan and organize their own work in the absence of supervisory oversight. Shared responsibilities among team members present challenges as the supervisor is charged with evaluating an employee’s contribution to the team effort as well as the overall success of the team’s performance without having been directly involved him-or herself. Geographically dispersed teams. Increasingly, work teams are composed of members who work in geographically different locations. Team members may work in different buildings on the same campus, different cities, and even different countries. Sometimes, team members live in different time zones and vastly different cultures. Because of the physical or temporal distances between supervisor and employee, direct methods of supervision no longer work. Often corporations construct these teams composed of employees from different locations due to the need for a particular expertise or because of the high cost, both in terms of dollars and employee satisfaction, of moving employees. In many global businesses, members representing all geographic areas are required to ensure the universal applicability of decisions made. These teams can be highly cohesive groups of people who interact extensively or a number of individuals who are assigned tasks that are part of a greater whole and work independently. Supervisors and team members may need to build relationships with people of diverse backgrounds without face-to-face contact or the benefit of informal opportunities for socializing. In some cases, team members will be vitally aware of each other’s performance; in others, team members will have no idea. Flexible definition of a job. In the past, jobs were clearly defined as a set of related tasks that were performed to achieve a particular goal. Recent trends suggest that jobs are becoming broader in the scope of tasks to be performed and that workers are being asked to shift tasks more frequently. Whether or not the concept of a job has changed or the belief that jobs as they once were performed simply do not exist anymore is arguable. What remains apparent, though, is that more workers are being asked to develop broad skill sets and bring high levels of adaptability to meet changing work requirements. Outsourcing. Many organizations are focusing on their core capabilities and outsourcing work that is not part of their main mission. Ongoing ou.

1. Choose two current worker and workplace trends from the
textbook, and speculate on the primary manner in which each
trend may affect the future of performance management.
Provide specific examples that illustrate the potential changes
in performance management.
Worker and Workplace Trends from textbook:
Changes in the Workplace
Work teams.
Organizations are increasingly turning to the use of teams for
task accomplishment and emphasizing team performance. These
often autonomous employees work together toward a common
goal for which they are jointly held responsible and plan and
organize their own work in the absence of supervisory
oversight. Shared responsibilities among team members present
challenges as the supervisor is charged with evaluating an
employee’s contribution to the team effort as well as the overall
success of the team’s performance without having been directly
involved him-or herself.
Geographically dispersed teams.
Increasingly, work teams are composed of members who work
in geographically different locations. Team members may work
in different buildings on the same campus, different cities, and
even different countries. Sometimes, team members live in
different time zones and vastly different cultures. Because of

2. the physical or temporal distances between supervisor and
employee, direct methods of supervision no longer work. Often
corporations construct these teams composed of employees from
different locations due to the need for a particular expertise or
because of the high cost, both in terms of dollars and employee
satisfaction, of moving employees. In many global businesses,
members representing all geographic areas are required to
ensure the universal applicability of decisions made. These
teams can be highly cohesive groups of people who interact
extensively or a number of individuals who are assigned tasks
that are part of a greater whole and work independently.
Supervisors and team members may need to build relationships
with people of diverse backgrounds without face-to-face contact
or the benefit of informal opportunities for socializing. In some
cases, team members will be vitally aware of each other’s
performance; in others, team members will have no idea.
Flexible definition of a job.
In the past, jobs were clearly defined as a set of related tasks
that were performed to achieve a particular goal. Recent trends
suggest that jobs are becoming broader in the scope of tasks to
be performed and that workers are being asked to shift tasks
more frequently. Whether or not the concept of a job has
changed
or
the belief that jobs as they once were performed simply do not
exist anymore is arguable. What remains apparent, though, is
that more workers are being asked to develop broad skill sets
and bring high levels of adaptability to meet changing work
requirements.
Outsourcing.
Many organizations are focusing on their core capabilities and
outsourcing work that is not part of their main mission. Ongoing
outsourcing can add another dimension to geographical
dispersion within teams. Not only can team members be

3. geographically dispersed, but they can literally work for another
company. Concern regarding co-employment laws often results
in strict limitations on who supervises whom, preventing
supervisors of one company from managing performance of
employees in the outsourced firm. Yet, in many cases, these are
the very employees who are vital to the success of the team.
Remote work arrangements (such as hotelling and
telecommuting).
Another growing trend is the use of alternate work
arrangements that allow some workers to work away from their
“office” location some, if not all, of their work time. In
“hotelling” arrangements, workers who travel extensively may
not have a fixed office; instead, their company provides
temporary offices from which they work when they have a need
to be in a company location. “Telecommuting” arrangements
allow workers to perform their jobs some place other than a
company office, typically from their homes. These alternate
work arrangements have multiple purposes, ranging from
reducing expenditures for office space to enhancing the
worker’s quality of life. All result in profound alterations to
how and when employees and supervisors interact with one
another.
Flexible work schedules.
Another alternate work arrangements is flexible work schedules
that may include undefined work schedules, schedules that
require attendance only during core hours, and flex-time in
terms of specific working days and/or starting and ending times.
Similar to remote work arrangements, flexible schedules are
often intended primarily to enhance the worker’s quality of life.
The benefits to the employer may be less clear but probably
include the ability to attract and retain capable workers.
Regardless of the benefits, flexible work schedules can decrease
the amount of time supervisor and direct report (as well as team
members) spend with each other, changing how performance is

4. managed and evaluated.
Job sharing.
Job sharing allows two or more people to hold the same job.
Typically, one person is available during normal work hours for
part of the week and the other for the remaining time. For
example, one person may work mornings and the other
afternoons. Often, each person’s schedule allows some overlap
time to share information and transfer responsibilities. Although
a worker may be physically present, the supervisor has new
challenges in evaluating each individual’s performance of the
job. The amount of observation time for each individual may be
cut in half, and there may be some lack of clarity as to which
employee is responsible for what work outcome. In addition, the
organization may need to redefine commitment to the job and
reassess the importance of full-time work for career
progression.
Flat organizational structure.
A growing trend in many American corporations is the removal
of layers of management, which usually results in increased
numbers of direct reports for the remaining supervisors. The
rationale behind the flattening of the organization varies. One
reason is to move upper-level managers closer to their
customers by eliminating middle managers. Another is that, by
eliminating superfluous layers of management, the latter
hierarchy results in significant cost savings and efficiencies.
Implementing performance management processes can be
challenging when a manager supervises large numbers of people
who perform diverse functions. In addition, flatter organizations
may provide fewer promotional opportunities. Those who are
promoted may find that the reduction in the layers of
management results in a substantial increase in the scope of the
job and the commensurate skill requirements.
Matrix management.

5. Matrix management, in which individual workers have multiple
reporting relationships, has been used by organizations for
many years. However, recent focus on cost efficiencies in many
businesses may have increased the number of such
relationships. One person often has multiple responsibilities and
reports to multiple supervisors, each of whom must evaluate the
individual on a subset of all the work performed. Therefore, no
one supervisor has a complete picture of an individual’s
performance. Often, there is no one supervisor totally
responsible for helping the individual with all the aspects of
performance management and career development. The diffused
responsibility can lead to conflicting developmental advice or
no direction whatsoever. From the supervisor ‘s perspective,
matrix management can often confuse the responsibilities of
performance management and lead to inconsistent messages
being communicated to the employee.
Multi-media communication modes.
Many of the alternative work arrangements discussed above are
successful because communications are facilitated by different
kinds of technologically enhanced media. Although some of
these modes of communication (such as telephone service) have
high fidelity, the face-to-face aspect is lost completely. Other
modes (such as videoconferencing) are almost as good as being
physically present but may involve technical problems that
inhibit clear communications. Supervisors who communicate
through these tools have to consider carefully the effect of the
communication mode on the quality of the performance
management discussions and decide whether anything is an
acceptable substitute for a face-to-face performance discussion.
Global business.
Another significant trend of recent years is the growth of
international business in which an organization conducts its
business around the globe and has employees from many
different countries and cultures working together. Although

6. cultural differences may be more difficult to recognize than
language differences, the cultural differences may significantly
shape what is considered acceptable performance and what is
not. Supervisors and employees must attend to the effect
cultural differences have on how work is accomplished and the
implications for how individuals interact with one another. In
addition, job requirements must be carefully differentiated from
local customs that are followed despite actual job needs. For
example, developing a relationship with a customer may be a
requirement of the job; taking the customer to lunch may be a
cultural expectation.
Technology.
It is difficult to write anything concerning business in the 21st
century without acknowledging the role of technology.
Technology has significantly changed how many jobs are
performed. Workers entering the workforce since the mid-1980s
when the Internet became widely available have grown up with
technology and are comfortable using it not only to perform
their work but also to communicate with their colleagues,
supervisors, and customers.
Change.
Similarly, the workforce today has experienced radical changes
in the workplace. These changes include what work is
performed, how it is performed, and who (or what) performs it.
Although employees may not be entirely comfortable with the
nature and pace of change, most have adapted to it. In many
cases, these workers have come to expect change in their work
as a natural course of events.
The likelihood of change in the worker’s career is also very
high. It seems rare today for someone to retire from a company
with forty years of service. Although workers today may not
expect to make a great many personal career changes, the reality
is that many will have large numbers of jobs and several careers

7. in their lifetimes. In some cases, these changes will be forced
upon them; in others, they may be seeking different kinds of
work and rewards or attempting to develop new skills.
reference book
Performance Management: Putting Research into Action
James W. Smither, Manuel London