The concept of a “work-life balance” has been buzzing around for years and now, it’s evolved to include more of an “integrated” approach that is being reinforced and instilled in modern workplaces in big cities around the world. A business that provides its employees with a harmonization between working and living positions organizations as forward-thinking and mindful with thoughtful attention to the mental bandwidth and retention of its people.
To acquire this integrated lifestyle, the philosophy of flexibility is applied. Flex working offers employees options to work that are still productive but more customized. Rather than the 9 to 5 model we’ve all grown accustomed to, flex working offers a different construct. What was once an employee perk is now turning in to the norm to include working arrangements like:
Job Sharing: Breaking down one job to be completed by two people- Remote Working: Clocking in hours remotely via telecommuting and meeting software
- Annualized Work Hours: Employee hours are broken down by the year rather than per week or month, therefore, as long as the year’s hours are worked, there is completed
- Compressed Hours: Hours worked are agreed upon but spread out over multiple days
- Staggered Hours: Different start, break and finish times for employees or departments in the same workplace
This is all very beneficial for hardworking employees who have a family; want to go back to school or who are simply looking to steer clear from burnout, but how does flex working drive forth a company’s vision, progress, and overall health? What’s in it for businesses, and why should you bend with the current trend?
When a workplace endorses flex working, it’s likely to attract candidates who want to partake in that specific work environment. Therefore, recruitment is enhanced as well as retention. Plus, you’re able to increase the candidate pool. Flexible work options mean you can pick the best talent from any geographic location rather than just those who are in the area or who are willing to be relocated.
It makes your business more desirable. With technology at our fingertips, employees don’t have to physically be in the office to be high-performing. Meetings, syncs, catch ups, these can all be done via meeting software, empowering employees to become more motivated and driven to put out work because they are in the driver’s seat of their work schedule and life. If they are in charge of their own time commitments, then they are expected to show up and get work done when agreed upon. It’s mutually beneficial and, in the long run, reduces stress and fatigue, and promotes a more focused strategy to enable a better balance overall.
Flex working means employees can choose when they want to start and finish, and they can work uninterrupted at the time they feel most creative. Encouraging personal work styles within reasonable limits improves company satisfaction and morale, plus absenteeism is reduced and tardiness becomes less of a factor. Depending on your business, this means improved work coverage and less of a daunting scheduling structure for the department. Furthermore, scheduling can be done in line with business demands, saving costs while accommodating high and low periods.
Implementing flexible working scenarios means costs can be cut down in other areas like transportation, parking, and desk sharing. Reducing travel time and physical office space lowers your carbon footprint by cutting down on fuel consumption, paper, utilities, and equipment. To put it into numbers, on average, businesses can save around $2,000 per employee per year working from home.
Flex work offers business and employees the benefit of producing good work without missing out on life. With Callbridge, high-caliber productivity is experienced through high-quality connections. You can rest assured knowing the communications needs of your employees are met while your client’s expectations are exceeded. Callbridge’s software provides high definition web and video meetings, conference calling and SIP meeting rooms for reliable connectivity and collaboration.
