THE BENEFITS OF FLEXIBILITY AT WORK
Carol Savage, MD of The Resource Connection, a consultancy specialising in flexible
working makes the case for a new way of working
None of us will go to our grave regretting that we didn’t spend enough
time in the office. Our epitaph is much more likely to be: we failed to improve
the quality of our lives.
Perhaps now is the time to rethink the work-life balance issue, and really
put it into practice.
Flexibility is the new buzzword in the 21st century workplace. And it’s
not just for women with children. Flexibility is fast becoming the ‘in’
way of working for people of all ages, regardless of their life stage and gender.
What is flexibility?
There is a common misconception that flexibility is just about ‘part
time’. But there are many other forms of flexibility too.
- Full-time flexibility – this is where you perform a full-time role
but you spread the hours across the week to suit your needs, dividing your
time, if required, between the office and home.
- Job-share – where you dovetail your work role with a partner or colleague.
- Short-term or interim roles – working full-time but a month here
and a month there, depending on the individual contract.
What’s in it for you?
Controlling your working hours allows you time to develop other areas of your
life outside of the work place.
If you have kids, you may choose to work around their routine. Going full time
flexibly could allow you hours say 9am to 3pm and then from 6 to 8pm, leaving
you plenty of time in the afternoon to pick up the children and give them their
supper before resuming work in the evening to make up a full day.
It may be that you can negotiate spending part of your week working from home.
The time you would normally spend battling through the commuter crowds could
be invested in something more beneficial to you, like going to the gym or catching
up with a friend or even learning a new skill.
Getting started
So you want to get flexible in your current job. How do you go about convincing
your boss?
There is a lot of press at the moment about the benefits of flexibility in
the workplace, not only for the individual employee, but also for business.
This press is based on hard evidence from research commissioned by leading
lights in the employment industry including The Resource Connection in conjunction
with the Industrial Society – so it simply can’t be ignored.
Some persuasive statistics you might use in discussion with your line manager
are as follows:
- Absenteeism costs British industry £5 billion per annum
- The current NHS bill for stress-related illness is £2 billion
A recent study revealed that:
- 70% of senior executives in job-share were found to generate 30% more output
than one person performing the same role
Another study amongst HR Managers reveals that:
- 85% believe that flexible work generates improved morale and motivation
amongst staff
- 66% of HR Managers agreed that the introduction of flexible work practice
reduces absenteeism due to lower stress levels and appointments made out of
office time
Finding yourself a flexible role
With the huge increase in flexible work in the UK, there are a number of companies
providing flexible employment opportunities.
The Resource Connection specialises in the provision of flexible employment
and has developed the first professional job-share register supported by a psychometric
test to help you find your most suitable jobshare partner. You can contact them
on 020 7636 6744 or alternatively, visit the the website to find out who is
the best match for you.
Will I be taken seriously?
The more flexibility becomes the norm, the more your new role will be accepted
by your colleagues. If you do it, you may be surprised how many of your friends
will follow suit.
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