Welcome to my blog. I have questions about the way we work and I put my thoughts here. I hope you have a nice stay!
The COVID-19 crisis is pushing all organisations to implement flexible working. Organisations that have invested in the right technical and cultural foundations will survive, thrive and rebound in this crisis. For those that haven’t this is an unprecedented opportunity to build the foundation skills and practices of a flexible workforce culture. Our advice to all leaders is to embrace the opportunity to build resilience for the future.
So, what does flexible work look like if it was business as usual? “It’s not a conversation where those working differently make excuses for working in different ways. It’s not a strategy for retaining talent, and it is never a conversation where a colleague says ‘enjoy your day off’ as you finish work for the week at 2:30pm on a Wednesday. There is no need to refer to it as flexible work because it is just work.” If flexible work is business as usual, it’s not even a topic of conversation”.
For organisations to adapt to a fast-changing environment fully implementing flexible work will be critical. Our experience is that despite all the great flexible working policies, procedures and workforce strategies that many organisations already have in place, successful implementation comes from investing in and supporting middle managers. We offer four propositions as a stimulus to think about redesigning work for flexibility.
There is a need to put flexible work—in all its many forms—into a clear organisational framework. One that appropriately positions the need of the organisation and the individual. There is plenty of policy and procedure to be followed. What seems to be lacking is a clear ‘first principles’ articulation of flexible work. A view that does not dictate a specific solution or response but rather provides the principles for how managers can get the best solution for the organisation and the individual.
For the individual, flexible work comes with its own stresses and strains that can be alleviated or aggravated by the way the flexible work is packaged and managed. Notwithstanding these strains and differences, those participating in flexible work are often as engaged as their full-time counterparts but they are engaged for different reasons, some which are not obvious.
Is the expression of these new forms of employment in the gig economy really something new, or is it the most recent expression of an evolving issue? Are these forms of work just new labels for work that lies somewhere between ‘employee’ and ‘independent contractor’? Ultimately, they all rest on a common foundation of a shared desire, from both employers and employees, for flexible working.
