Flexibility At Work – Limits and Benefits

In the context of the current economy, when professionals can choose from a wide range of offers available on the labor market, employers need to reinvent themselves and also learn to provide employees with other benefits than the financial ones. Most of the time, flexibility in the organization can prompt the employee to remain faithful for a long time and, most importantly, to motivate him to give his best at work and to be productive.

Extremely tight deadlines, heavy workload, a skeptical management or working with rigorous clients are things that can de-motivate the employees to the point that they will want to switch to other professional opportunities. If some things can’t be changed or negotiated, because this would jeopardize the smooth running of the organization, there are other things about which the employer could be more flexible, the aim being to increase the retention of existing talents and attracting new ones by promoting these benefits during the recruitment process.

Good results are not always born under pressure

Creativity, productivity, and innovation aren’t always things that arise under pressure. Of course, employees need to know their targets, which are the objectives to be met, and which is the ultimate goal of their work. For example, a higher number of hours spent at the office does not always mean increased productivity. Also, some people are more active in the first part of the day. On the other hand, some people who wake up very early to get to work can find this an exhausting and energy consuming feat.

So, if possible, and if the proper functioning of the business is not affected, the employer could offer employees the opportunity to have a schedule to his advantage. For example, if we are talking about a large number of commuting employees, who depend on long distance transportation, and if production does not rely on the presence of employees at work only during specified timeframes, the employer could set up the starting hour of the workday with an hour later. This way, everyone would get to work on time without making efforts in this regard.

Flexible work schedule

Another example of flexibility policy applied by some employers is when employees are allowed to choose when to begin their job schedule, with the condition to spend the number of hours established by contract at work. Thus, they can choose if they want to start at 8.00, 9.00 or 10.00 in the morning. This way, employees can avoid rush hours traffic from the major cities, those who have children can take them to school and those who prefer to finish early can come to work earlier.

Small benefits are the ones that bring the greatest satisfaction. Seemingly small things such as relaxing and game rooms, team buildings, free massage programs for those who perform office work or the possibility to work from home on days with a lower work volume enhances the wellbeing of the employees and make them appreciate their job more. A more flexible policy from the employer does not exclude recurrent performance evaluations for employees. In the long term, these things can bring good results.

If we should draw a conclusion, employer flexibility involves benefits not only for the employees but also for the organization who offers it. Rigidity keeps talent away, and in the context of a free market in continuous development, people can explore before being forced to choose.

BIA HR TEAM