“Workforce Flexibility” is becoming a popular phrase in corporate discussions. Contrary to what many perceive it to be, workforce flexibility is not limited to only working remotely. It encompasses strategies & work culture, that help provide employees with the ability to decide when, how and from where do they want to perform work related tasks.
Until 2020, workforce flexibility was perceived as a ‘nice to have’ option in an organisation. This was more relevant for the Gen-Y and millennials, for whom work-life balance was an important factor while deciding on the company they want to work for. With the workforce getting younger and more selective, organisations are now trying to build in flexibility into their workspace strategies.
The benefits that flexible workforce offers are now becoming more obvious, especially after companies were forced to implement remote working to follow the social distancing norms due to the pandemic.
For the employees, apart from cutting down on the commute time, it allows more time with family or self & also increases their productivity since now they work at their most productive hours of the day.
Employers are benefited from the improved productivity, higher employee satisfaction & well-being and huge reduction in the cost towards office space and costs linked to day to day functioning of the office.
Now that you understand the many ways in which flexible workforce is beneficial, let us look at ways in which you can improve your workforce flexibility in 2021.
Focus on employee happiness
To begin the shift towards workforce flexibility, Employee Happiness should be at the forefront of your agenda. Organisations that are successful are now focussing on “Employee Happiness” as a crucial HR strategy. More and more companies are realising that a happy employee is not only more efficient but also brings in fresh & creative ideas. Such organisations are not only able to attract the best talent but are also able to retain them. Start your workforce flexibility strategy with Employee Happiness as the objective.
Frances Russell, VP Amazon Fashion, credits Amazon’s approach to flexible and part-time working as a key difference from other employers: “I think the agility and support here is one of the factors that retains great talent. People need flexibility throughout their careers and companies that can offer this will retain their top talent.” *
Encourage life outside of work
Gone are the days where employees were bound to the workspace every single day of the week for 5-6 days. Leaving from work, early or on time, to fulfil your non work-related responsibilities or interests meant getting scornful looks from everyone. Not anymore. New age organisations are not only tolerating life outside of work but encouraging it. What it means is that managers proactively grant their employees the much-needed time to balance work & life and, also encourage discussion & activities around them. For eg. For employees passionate about fitness, companies can look at sponsoring them for marathons, hikes. Employees feel valued and it motivates them to work better to achieve the company objectives.
Netflix believes in Work-life integration over work-life balance. Reed Hastings, CEO of Netflix, emphasises that flexibility is key and is willing to sacrifice efficiency for more flexibility as it will benefit the business more in the long term.**
Create a work culture of trust and empowerment
One of the biggest hurdles that companies face while implementing workforce flexibility is the absence of trust. Taking away the structure of work timings and replacing that with a more casual, flexible approach requires the managers to trust and empower the employees to perform their tasks at their own time without constant monitoring. Create opportunities for the employees working remotely or part-time to share their experiences, ideas, concerns with the team. Employees working in an open culture feel engaged and invested in achieving the organisation’ goals.
“At Amazon, they value employees for their overall contribution, not just for the number of hours they work. That gives you a fantastic sense that your contribution is worthwhile and recognised.” Eloise Smith, Group Creative Director, Amazon EU*
Work out a strategy for uniform opportunities of flexibility for everyone
Flexible workforce does not mean that every employee should work remotely or from home. It requires finding the right work arrangement that suits your business and the employees. there are various ways in which you can bring in flexibility into the workforce.
- Employees can schedule their work hours in discussion with the team and the managers
- Remote working or working from home for a few days in a week
- Unlimited holidays or sabbaticals – maternity/paternity, ailing family members, studies, upskilling, etc
- Compressed work hours or flexible work hours – 40 hours a week can be achieved by working 8 hours for 5 days or 10 hours for 4 days.
One formula of flexible workforce may not work for all businesses or employees. Work out that works best for your organisation.
“4 days a week has a potential to become the new normal as people start giving more importance to work-life balance”- Unilever COO Nitin Paranjpe
Improve collaborations using technology
This year of remote work forced by the pandemic has taught us that we have an immense ability to adapt to changes. A few companies were already prepared, and the rest quickly shifted to remote working with the use of technology.
Investing in technology helps bring in agility and the ability to scale operations seamlessly. It also enhances your company image which is crucial to attract and retain talent.
There are various communications, project management & time tracking solutions available. While implementing flexible workforce, choose the solutions that are easy to use and can be customised as per your needs.
“Work is what you do and not a place you go. Our value proposition is clear and simple: To enable our team members to do their best work regardless of where and when.” – Mohammed Chahdi, Director of Global Human Resources at Dell.
