六级考前冲刺

６级考前冲刺试题二

Dogs Make Employees More Productive At Work

Leib Lurie never intended for his company, message delivery service One Call Now, to be pet-friendly. But his dog, Ivy, had other ideas.

Five years ago, the German shepherd showed up unannounced at One Call Now‟s Troy, Ohio-based office—a 1.5-mile trek from Lurie‟s home. When he continued to make the trip each day he wasn‟t brought to the office, Lurie realized it was time for a change in company policy. Today, four or five employee‟s dogs, as well as a variety of fish, birds, and other caged animals join Ivy in the office daily to make One Call Now a workingman‟s menagerie (动物园).

“They‟re not very good at sending voice messages,” Lurie jokes of the pets in his office. “But we‟ve gotten them down with using the computer, at least the point part.”

One Call Now joins a growing force of companies across the United States to welcome pets in the workplace. While only 17 percent of U.S. employers currently allow animals in the workplace, according to a survey from the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association, pet-friendly, often specifically dog-friendly, environments are building steam. From major companies like Google, Zynga, and to growing start-ups, more and more canine companions are showing up to work.

For many entrepreneurs, the inception of a dog-friendly environment begins long before offices enter the picture. “My dog, Blueberry, was the founding dog,” explains Randy Hetrik, founder of TRX Training. “Literally, it was him and me before any other people came in, so he takes great pride in what we‟ve accomplished.” As Hetrik built his company, he never forgot his first partner. Today, up to ten dogs wander with Blueberry through the four floors of TRX‟s San Francisco office.

Many pet-friendly work environments develop as a part of the company‟s larger mission or company culture. After spending years in uptight corporate climates, Nancy Squires founded her own consulting firm, The Squires Group, with a distinctly homey atmosphere, which included her two Italian greyhounds.

Marketing software company G5‟s dog-friendliness fits into the animal-friendly climate of their mountain town Bend, Oregon, as well as the company‟s own cultural backbone. “We try to have a culture that promotes freedom for the employees and helps them thrive,” says G5 CEO Dan Hobin. “If that involves bringing your dog to work, bring your dog to work.”

Having dogs underfoot might seem to some like a distraction, but advocates of animals in the workplace see quite the opposite. Dogs in the office foster friendlier, more collaborative work environments. At G5, this includes dogs posing as mascots for the company‟s various divisions. “Everyone rallies around the dogs,” Hobin says.

Employees surrounded by dogs also have a tendency to rally around their jobs. According to a survey of 50 small and large companies by the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association in 2008, companies that allow pets in the workplace see a lower rate of employee absenteeism (旷工) and more willingness to work longer hours.

“There are a lot of people who know they have to spend extra hours at work, particularly in this economic climate,”says Debrah Schnackenberg, vice president of emergency services for the American Humane Association. “People feel comfortable spending that extra hour or two at the office when they know their dog is right there with them.”

Dog-friendliness may generate more loyalty for the company as a whole. In the last two years, One Call Now has seen a two or three percent turnover rate. Lurie attributes this small number in part to the office pets. “You ask someone who is in a $12-an-hour job, …W ould you work anywhere else?‟And they say, …No way.‟ Where else could I bring my dog to work?” he says.

This sense of loyalty stems from a simple concept: Dogs make people happy. “They‟re always happy to see you, they‟re happy for the smallest things, and they‟re ever optimistic,”says Hetrik. “Having a dog wandering around just seems to make people smile.”