Book review: Fun Works

I was sent a copy of Fun Works: creating places where people love to work, by Leslie Yerkes, back in the summer. It has taken me a long while to dedicate the time required to the book – I was reading chapters on and off throughout the latter part of last year. Finally, I’ve made it to the end. That’s not to say the book is hard going. On the contrary, each chapter stands alone, so you don’t need to read the whole thing in one go. In fact, if you want to put some of Yerkes’ principles into action, it is a lot to take in all together, so this book is something to go back to over time.

Fun Works is about having fun at work, but in a professional way that respects the contributions of each employee and encourages greater productivity. After all, we spend more time at work than doing any other activity, so we might as well enjoy it while we are there. Yerkes sets out eleven principles for integrating fun and work:

1. Give permission to perform
2. Challenge your bias
3. Capitalise on the spontaneous
4. Trust the process
5. Value a diversity of fun styles
6. Expand the boundaries
7. Be authentic
8. Be choiceful
9. Hire good people and get out of the way
10. Embrace expansive thinking and risk taking
11. Celebrate

Each of these principles is illustrated by a case study: a company that forms a ‘living lab’ demonstrating the theory in action. The first principle is illustrated by the classic example of Pike Place Fish. This was the only company I have come across previously that embodies the idea of fun at work, and I was almost disappointed to see it included here. Fortunately, Yerkes goes on to draw from insurance, e-commerce, travel and design studios to show that her research goes deeper.

The second edition has been updated with ‘newsflashes’ about the progress of each company since the first edition was published. It is incredibly interesting to see the development of organisations: mergers, rapid growth, and for Isle of Capri Casinos, dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

The book ends with a series of tests you can complete to establish whether you have a fun relationship with work. Yerkes stresses that it is more about ‘being’ fun than ‘doing’ fun things. Creating a work place (or a project team) that people want to be part of is more about attitude than enforced team-building exercises.

In summary, this updated edition has plenty of examples of how organisations are making it fun for their employees to come to work, and it is clear that the results of this are profitable. However, it is less clear about how you can use these principles in your own workplace, and that is because, as Yerkes makes clear, it really is about cultural change. And that is hard to implement on your own.

• Leslie Yerkes: Fun Works: creating places where people love to work (2nd Edition)
• Berrett Koehler, 235pp, softbound, $19.95

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