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Building a business case for a flexible workplace
By Barbara Poole
Career Coach
It’s certainly not a new issue. As long as there have been dual-career families, the issue of how to juggle it all has been a dilemma for employers and workers alike.
On the surface, the problem is obvious: Businesses need to get maximum value from their employees and cannot afford to have employees who are distracted by family matters. Working mothers and fathers alike are plagued by the very real demands of trying to be both an effective work associate and a responsible parent.
As the number of women in the workplace has increased, the issue has become magnified. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, between 1970 and 2004 women increased their labor force participation rate from 43% to 59%. Working moms have become the norm rather than the exception.
To some extent, the workplace has responded. In May 2004, more than 27 million full-time workers had flexible work schedules. However, that figure was down from 28.6 million in May 2001. If these statistics reflect the reality of how the challenge of working parents is being addressed, we still have a long way to go.
When accommodating families first began to be addressed in the 1980s, it was largely positioned as an employee benefit. Companies began to look at how to make it easier for working parents because it was a “nice thing to do.” But it has become evident that there is a very bottom-line rationale for finding ways to create a flexible workplace. The cost of the talent drain associated with gifted professionals leaving the workplace has skyrocketed.
Historically, women’s leadership programs were borne out of diversity initiatives; it was important to see women promoted into senior positions to make sure that the numbers worked out to ensure an adequate representation of women in key positions.
More and more companies are starting to realize that being able to demonstrate appropriate numbers is not really the point.
The larger issue is that when a woman walks out the door because she feels that she has to choose between career and family, along with her goes a huge knowledge base and repository of key corporate talent.
Clearly, the companies that will be able to retain the best talent in the future are those that grasp the importance of getting creative and holistic with respect to how they approach this challenge and those that are willing to embrace the realities of working families.
What are some of the strategies a business can use to create a flexible workplace for its valued professionals?
1. Flex hours. Nowhere is it written that good business can only be conducted between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Many families balance work and family by ensuring that one parent is always at home to see the kids off to school in the morning and the other is always there when they return in the afternoon. This often means that both parents are working non-traditional hours. It may be outside the box, but it’s an arrangement that can be a huge perk when it comes to retaining key people.
2. Telecommuting. Many organizations fear that if they allow their employees to work from home, they will not be as productive due to the distractions of home. In fact, recent studies demonstrate just the opposite: Most people can achieve a greater level of focus when they are in their home offices, undistracted by the hordes of co-workers they are surrounded by when they work onsite. In fact, some progressive companies are actually encouraging their employees to set up offices at home.
3. Reduced work weeks. In those organizations where it is feasible to have employees work four 10-hour days instead of a standard Monday-through-Friday schedule, it can be a huge advantage to allow employees the option to have a three-day weekend. Having Friday off means that doctors appointments, teacher meetings, miscellaneous errands, etc., can be handled on that day rather than being a constant drain on the workweek.
4. Job sharing. Many professional men and women with young children are highly motivated to remain in the workforce, but simply don’t want to work full-time and miss the significant milestones that being at home can offer. Allowing people in these circumstances to job share can prove to be a seamless and creative way to keep employees from having to choose between work and family.
What is your business doing to provide flexible working arrangements for its employees? How can you get creative in establishing arrangements that would accommodate your valuable employees’ personal lives, rather than viewing them as an imposition?
It’s not just a nice thing to do. It’s a strategically smart move for your organization’s bottom line.
Barbara Poole is a leadership and career development coach with Success Builders Inc. E-mail her at coachbarbara@successbuildersinc.com.
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