Friday, June 04, 2004

The Seven Day Weekend (Book Review)

If you've ever wondered why you can take work home but can't take home to work, if you've ever wondered why things can't be different at work, if you've ever wanted to be treated (at work) like the adult that you are, then read The Seven Day Weekend by Ricardo Semler. It's a book that will show you how people can be successful even with the most radical ideas about management or lack of it.

Semler writes about the company that he revolutionised, Semco. Semco doesn't write business plans, doesn't have a written policy (they have a series of cartoons) and shares all its information with its employees, even the janitors. You don't get a permanent desk or a permanent office. Meetings are not documented. There are no quality processes and employees are encouraged to think.

Yes, they make money and they are pretty big (3000 employees). The company has been the subject of case studies, PhD and Masters dissertations and visitors line up to learn how Semco works.

The book will tell you how, but it's so unbelievable that it's, well, unbelievable.

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