A survey conducted last year by Time Wise found that 14.1 million UK employees want better flexibility in the workplace. It is of little surprise, as we progress through 2016, that a larger emphasis on remote working is being laid out across the country. Flexible Working Week took place last week, and for HR this provided a great opportunity to champion everything which is good about allowing the workforce greater freedom in where and how they work. It is also a time to share ideas, strategies, and thoughts on how to transition to a more flexible work environment.
Offering greater flexibility may seem a daunting concept to business leaders, but in truth, as long as the right tools are provided, it can prove an easy transition which leads to a host of benefits for both the worker and the business itself. With UK think-tank the Smith Institute having recently found that more than two-thirds of employees are spending longer at work without significantly improving their productivity, has there ever been a better time to implement flexible working initiatives?
The first and most important step to a flexible work environment is choosing the right cloud technologies. It is the cloud that enables employees to access information at anytime, from anywhere. Thanks to collaborative tools such as Google Docs and Google Hangouts, and communication apps such as Salesforce Chatter, those working outside the office are no longer at a disadvantage to those working within. Eighty-two percent of workers see technology as “necessary and inevitable” to their working conditions, so HR needs to start working very closely with their organisation’s business leaders to quickly change core technologies in order to keep workers happy.
Flexible workers are a real asset to businesses, performing all the tasks they would were they in an office setting and, thanks to their better work-life balance, come to work happier and more engaged. This quickly filters down to the customer level to ensure stronger relationships leading to greater brand loyalty, improved sales, and ultimately increasing growth.
