Expert Opinion

What Constitutes Flexible Work Arrangements?  

Both employees and employers alike can benefit through the utilisation of flexible work practices. Flexible work arrangements can help to improve recruitment and retention, assist in managing workloads and in boosting employee satisfaction. The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), U.K. guidelines for employers and employees [1] state that flexible working opportunities benefit everyone: employers, employees and their families. It is understood that it makes good business sense to provide flexible working opportunities for staff. Flexible working arrangements enable employers to:

• Retain skilled staff and reduce recruitment costs;

• Raise staff morale and decrease absenteeism; and

• React to changing market conditions more effectively.

For individuals, the opportunity to work flexibly can greatly improve the ability to balance home and work responsibilities. The DTI guidelines provide examples of the following flexible working schemes:

• Annualised hours describes working time organised on the basis of the number of hours to be worked over a year rather than a week; usually to fit in with peaks and troughs of work. Pay will depend on the hours worked each pay period.

• Compressed hours allow individuals to work their total number of agreed hours over a shorter period. For example, employees might work their full weekly hours over four, rather than five, days. They would be paid for a full-time job but would not receive overtime payments for any agreed extra hours worked during a day.

• Flexitime gives employees choice about their actual working hours, usually outside certain agreed core times. Individuals are paid for the hours that they work.

• Home-working doesn’t have to be on a full-time basis and it may suit an employee to divide their time between home and office. Individuals are paid according to the hours that they work. Employers are required to carry out a risk assessment of the activities undertaken by home-workers, identifying any hazards and deciding whether enough steps have been taken to prevent harm to them or anyone else who may be affected by the work.

• Job-sharing typically involves two people employed on a part-time basis while working together to cover a full-time job. Both receive pay for the hours they work.

• Shift working gives employers the scope to have their business open for longer periods than an eight-hour day. Agreed flexible working arrangements may lead to a shift premium payment not being required.

• Staggered hours allow employees to start and finish their day at different times. Pay depends on hours worked in total rather than the time at which they were worked.

The Families and Work Institute report, "When Work Works", [2] states that employees who are provided with flexibility in their work are more likely to:

The following list published anonymously in the Design Firm Management & Administration Report [3] summarises some of the possible flexible work options that were covered in detail in the "When Work Works" paper:

• Flex time; ranging from selecting starting and quitting times, daily changeable working hours, to compressed workweeks.

• Part-time work; including working parts of a week, job-sharing with pro-rated salary and benefits, and part-year work.

• Flex-leaves; paid time off for personal/family reasons, parental leave, and family leave to care for a sick or elderly relative.

• Flex-careers; making it possible to exit and re-enter the work force, taking sabbaticals etc.

• Flex-place; working partially or totally at alternative locations including at home.

Brian Wall from Works Management journal writes [4] that the move towards a better work-life balance in the UK is gathering momentum. The key drivers for change include:

• Organisational volatility issues e.g. technological change; globalisation; mergers, acquisitions, strategic alliances; restructuring and downsizing. This has put added pressure upon employees, increased workloads, and forced the need to develop new skills.

• The combination of competitive business environments and changing labour markets which affect employers and employees alike.

• The growth of the 'sandwich' generation who face both childcare and eldercare responsibilities.

• The transformation in the way families organise their affairs and work life.

Employers are increasingly recognising the advantages associated with implementing policies that accommodate the shifting needs of their employees. Wall cites Rebecca Clake from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development as stating that "Flexible working practices can be advantageous to both organisations and employees. They give people more control over when and where they work, and this appears to mean more focused and motivated employees. The introduction of flexible working allows employees to have greater control over their work-life balance, and can act as an important tool in the organisation's recruitment and retention process. Flexible working is one device that employers can use to attract a more diverse workforce, allowing them to compete in the war for talent."

Selecting Flexi-workers 

Flexible work arrangements offer the means of achieving a better work/life balance; however Deena Knight [5] a journalist based in North Carolina, writes that not everyone possesses the ability to work effectively in a flexible situation, and provides the following list of traits to look for in an employee when considering offering offsite work:

• Demonstrated trustworthiness

• Reliability in work production and work attendance

• The ability to work independently

• A cooperative attitude toward supervisors/co-workers

• The ability to separate home/personal life from work life

• Initiative and problem solving skills

• Good organisational skills

• Thorough knowledge of the job

• Self-discipline.

• Job Sharing Pros and Cons

Job sharing is a useful flexible working arrangement and various practitioners' viewpoints have been recorded in an anonymous article [6] by IOMA. The article noted that when two employees share one job, splitting duties and working half the workweek, organisations can reap dividends including:

• Improved job performance,

• Retention of valued employees,

• Maintaining institutional knowledge,

• Boosting morale/loyalty,

• Retaining the expertise of older workers wishing to cut back hours worked and having a phased retirement, and

• Transitioning to new career paths.

IOMA recommended that:

• Employees wishing to job share should find their own co-worker;

• The position be compensated rather than individuals;

• Prospective job sharers should be interviewed as a team.

• Job partners should usually be on the same career level.

Teleworking or Telecommuting

Yolanda Ruiz and Annette Walling [7] from the UK Office for National Statistics define Teleworkers as, "people who work mainly in their own home or mainly in different places using home as a base, who use both a telephone and a computer to carry out their work at home." In the UK, opportunities for teleworking were being enhanced by laws which require employers to give serious consideration to requests for flexible working arrangements.

In a recent comprehensive study Richard Croucher and Tim Mills from the Cranfield School of Management found [8] that there had been a decline in most forms of flexible working practices by organisations in the UK over the last decade. An exception to this trend was home-based working and teleworking which had continued to grow.

Teleworking Benefits and Limitations 

Telework consultant Gil Gordon, president of Gil Gordon Associates in Monmouth Junction, NJ advised [9] that organisations with teleworkers can save from US $2,000 to $6,000 per year, per employee, in real estate costs.

William Crandall and Longge Gao [10] of the University of North Carolina have examined the potential benefits and limitations associated with teleworking in relation to individuals, organisations, and society. There are a number of significant benefits that can be gained by individuals undertaking telework which range from greater job/life satisfaction through to enabling house-bound or disabled persons to carry out full-time work. In connection with saving travel time and costs Potter [14], using data from the 2000 American Community Survey, showed that the "average" teleworker could save 57.6 minutes per day by remaining at home and teleworking. For conceptual thinking, or assignments requiring long periods of concentration, teleworking environments are most beneficial. On the other hand isolation can be a problem for some teleworkers who may feel that they are being overlooked; Home life concerns may become a distraction and affect the teleworkers productivity.

From an organisational point of view the key benefits of teleworking include increased productivity, the tendency for teleworkers to have a stronger focus on achieving results, and the reduction of operating costs. Offsetting these benefits are possible concerns by management regarding (a) the supervision of telecommuters, (b) measuring performance, (c) creating a sense of teamwork, and (d) workplace safety.

Telecommuting's positive effects upon society include:

• Reducing the number of vehicles on the road, and also therefore, pollution, oil consumption,

• Less potential for accidents,

• Less strain on public transportation systems, and

• An increased ability for organisations to hire employees with special needs.

On the negative side of the ledger are the creation of an individualistic class of workers and a reduction of social interaction and friendships.

Crandall and Gao additionally underlined the following implications for management associated with the introduction of telecommuting to an organisation:

• Not all employees are suited for telecommuting work hence management should take care to identify desirable traits and characteristics when selecting teleworkers.

• Certain jobs are better suited to telecommuting with those that incorporate technology being prime prospects.

• The implementation and operation of successful telecommuting functions requires the total support of management, including a willingness to supervise remote workers.

• The impact that telecommuting may have upon organisational culture needs to be understood by management and this may involve creating a different mindset to that found in traditional organisations.

• A Decentralised organisation structure may be more suitable for the introduction of telecommuting initiatives.

Tips for working from home

Phil Montero [11], the owner of an organisation providing resources for remote workers, gave the following tips to help home-based workers find balance in their daily activities:

• Treat the study like a real office.  A regular routine can help to create a boundary between work and home life.

• Seek to be involved in non-work related activites or volunteer work to provide socialisation opportunities.

• Take short breaks to refresh the mind and body and schedule time for personal things in the same manner that work activities are scheduled. 

For the effective management of teleworkers Montero offered the following keys suggestions:

• Manage by results not by perceived activity levels.
  Managers should provide specific, measurable, and attainable goals for the teleworker e.g. reports completed, number of calls/support issues resolved, or any other appropriate measure of job productivity. The employee and manager should have an agreed definition of the expected deliverables and timetable. The mentor/coach relationship that managers tend to develop with teleworkers may in fact contribute to the higher productivity levels experienced in these arrangements.

•  Ensure proper communication with teleworkers by having defined working hours. Clearly set expectations concerning the hours that the remote worker needs to be available. Set up regular communication protocols for voice/email contact. Include the remote worker in staff lunches, social events, and send general information articles from time to time.

• Use creative time management and available technology tools to keep track of schedules. Meetings are an important organisational tool for information sharing, brainstorming, and developing ideas. Web based groupware can be used to efficiently manage complex schedules and for sharing calendars.

Technology 

Technology of course is an impotent factor associated with teleworking and in this regard Richard Oppenheim [12] describes the following technology groupings which may be employed in providing services and support to remote workers:

• Communications technology used for messaging, files, data or documents e.g. e-mail, faxing, voice messaging and Web publishing.

• Electronic conferencing for information sharing purposes e.g. data conference, Web-based presentations, voice conference, chat rooms and bulletin boards.

• Collaborative software including calendars, Blogs, Web-based management systems, and common software packages.

• Enterprise-wide computer resources including office networks, home-based networks, and Web-based access.

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