Flexible working - why it should be embraced

As a business owner myself, I can fully understand why the term ‘flexible working’ doesn't sit all that comfortably when raised by a prospective employee during an interview process.

Do they just want more annual leave than our current benefits package allows? Or are they planning to work from home where they might have the TV on in the background or have a cat fighting for their attention by strolling across the keyboard? 

Whatever the immediate thoughts might be, for a lot of firms and managers, they’re often negative and focus on the lack of control over productivity levels. These are of course completely valid concerns and to be fully open to flexible working, a firm will need to carry out thorough reviews on any negative impact changes could bring and to also assess what levels of flexibility they can accommodate. Dismissing it out of hand however could be equally as negative in the long run. 

The Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) recently carried out a Flexible Working Commission, and came to the conclusion that, although the UK already has a far more flexible workforce than our European neighbours, there is still huge opportunity to be gained from further embracing flexible working options. 

The attraction and retention of top talent will be significantly enhanced if employees have more scope to influence their work/life balance without having to move jobs to secure it. The UK is facing an emerging talent crisis and, as the ‘war for talent’ intensifies, the opportunity is there for early adopters of flexible working to steal a march on their competition.

Employee productivity levels can also be positively improved. A large scale pilot scheme by telecoms giant O2 earlier this year reportedly concluded that by offering staff the opportunity to work from home they were able to significantly improve productivity. Staff were better rested from cutting out commuting time each day and were generally happier with more time to spend with their families or to pursue leisure activities.

A common misconception is that the requirement for flexible working is almost exclusively influenced by childcare logistics. Although this is and always has been a factor, the demand is being driven by the lifestyle choices of many different groups, and does not always involve a reduction in total hours worked.

So what challenges would flexible working bring for your business? There are plenty of businesses already embracing it and others that are actively looking at how they can make it work for them. Is your firm one of them or do you feel it’s not for you? Please share your comments below.

Are you missing out on talent as a result of the recession?

The recession has affected recruitment in many different ways. It has also had a huge impact on the career decisions made by individuals over the last few years, and if you don’t take this in to consideration when reviewing job applications, you could be missing out on genuine talent.

We’ve noted a few occasions recently where high calibre applicants have been overlooked for reasons that say more about market conditions lately than the individuals themselves, and this is where opportunities are missed.

With widespread redundancies, recruitment freezes and budget constraints on hiring over the last few years, it has been a very difficult period for many who’ve been directly affected by cut backs.  Even for those who’ve remained safe in their employment, it’s not been a particularly opportune time to make significant career advancements.

Those unfortunate enough to be made redundant during this period have generally not had the luxury to patiently pick and choose their next move, as they have been up against a lot of competition for very few vacancies. Meanwhile bills still have to be paid. The result is that some career decisions and moves have been made which in a better economic climate might not have happened.

There has also been notable trend over this period for employers to hire staff on fixed term contracts rather than making permanent appointments. Those already on long term temporary or rolling contract agreements have had little chance of becoming permanent, and many have been let go as a first measure of cutbacks. Maintaining career stability has simply not been possible for those in this circumstance.

We’re therefore now reaching a point where these factors need to be taken in to serious consideration when reviewing job applications. Some factors which may have raised concerns back in 2007 may now be more understandable today. Moves that might not have made sense pre-recession, should now be viewed in a different light, and individuals who may appear to have a patchy or “jumpy” CV over the last few years, aren’t necessarily unreliable or flighty – they may have just had to secure interim positions quickly due to financial commitments and a shortage of permanent opportunities available.

Are these factors taken in to consideration when you’re reviewing job applications? Or have you been affected personally by the recession and feel your career prospects have taken a knock as a result? Please add any relevant comments below.

Talent retention via extended notice periods. Surely there's a better way....?

Today, I thought I’d share some frustrations I have with the misuse of extended notice periods by some employers, and the ill-feeling it generates, which can only be counter-productive in the long run.

It’s commonly accepted that those in management, highly paid, or specialist knowledge roles will need to sign an employment contract that requires the individual to serve a three month notice period. The reasons are justifiable, and rarely cause any problems for the individual when they come to leave, as future employers would generally expect to have to wait three months to secure the services of someone at an equivalent level.

The problem is when an individual is in a position or at a career level where it is extremely rare for someone to have a notice period any longer than one month. In these circumstances, the individual will face genuine problems securing their next move and will effectively be stuck with the following options:

·         Option 1: To accept the reality of seeing good opportunities pass them by whilst they try to find an employer who considers them to be so perfect for an opportunity that they’re happy to wait a full two months longer for them to start than they would for the next best applicant.

·         Option 2: To resign before securing their next position in the hope that they will be offered something suitable within the last 5-6 weeks of their notice period.

·         Option 3: To not honour their full notice period and risk leaving their current firm under a cloud after a month.

None of the options are attractive, and all of them are to the detriment of the individual’s future career. Option 1 will inevitably mean missing out on good opportunities, which will lead to compromise on the range of opportunities they would consider. Option 2 is throwing the dice; hoping that a suitable opportunity will arise within a specific timeframe and therefore also encouraging compromise. Option 3 could well lead to real problems further down the line, and would clearly damage relationships that have taken long to build.

The reasons for these unusually long notice periods that I’ve encountered is generally due to them having been introduced during negotiations between an employer and employee when the employer is attempting to retain them with a counter offer, or whilst appeasing a restless employee who feels undervalued, with a slight change in job title and a payrise.

It will of course only happen to individuals that an employer particularly wants to retain, and can seem at the time to be a tit-for-tat compromise during negotiations. Ultimately however, the introduction of an extended notice period is not going to encourage someone to stay with a firm if they want to leave, it just makes it difficult for them to do so and limits the career options available to them. Surely there are more positive ways to retain talent within an organisation? If not, wouldn’t it just be better to wave goodbye to a star performer on good terms rather than chaining them down whilst they grow resentful?