Strategic Flexible Work In Action
Strategic flexible work in action simultaneously solves many of the challenges that business and people grapple with every day. For example:
- Disengaged employees? Give them greater work flexibility.
- Cover global clients without burning your people out? Flexibly coordinate their schedules.
- Manage costs related to health care, real estate and turnover? Target telework, flexible hours and reduced schedules.
- Attract and retain valuable talent throughout all phases of their life and career? Flexibly reset the fit between their work and lives.
- Ensure business continuity in the face of unforeseen disasters? Build telework and flexible hours contingency plans.
But it must be a part of the way the business and employees operate day-to-day. Not a stand-alone policy or program that may sound good, may even win awards, but has no real impact.
Strategic work flexibility is a partnership between an organization and its people. Unfortunately, most leaders and employees still don’t understand the power of telework, flexible hours, compressed work schedules and part-time:
- While 50% of employees believe work flexibility is a business strategy, 36% think it is a perk or benefit, and 14% are not sure what it is. (2011 Work+Life Fit Reality Check)
- 62% of top CFOs in organizations with a formal approach to work flexibility in place said their peers believe it is a perk or benefit, not a strategy. (2009 Top 100 CFO Study –Work+Life Fit/BDO USA)
As a result, problems continue, opportunities are lost, and money is unnecessarily left on the table.
It's time for leaders, managers and people to partner for award-winning flexible work success.
Related Articles from FSG/WLF:
- The 10 Keys to Building the Flexible Workplace of the Future
- 3 Signs Flexible Work is Strategic--Not Just Window Dressing
- The Strategic Use of Flexibility
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