The way we work is constantly changing. Workers are demanding for more flexibility. Companies are listening – embracing telecommuting, flexible schedule, and unlimited paid time off (PTO). And we are seeing more gig workers than ever.
Generally, flexible working arrangements help employees to maintain work-life balance, improving well-being and boosting productivity.
As the modern workplace continues to evolve, businesses must be alive to the pace of change to gain an edge over competitors. And to attract top talent.
On to you now–are you considering any of these popular work trends for the office?
#1 Remote Work
Also known as telecommuting. The idea is that workers are allowed to work outside the office, one or more days per week. It could be working from home, or cafes, whichever the employee prefers.
Remote work is no longer just a ‘millennial perk’. Many studies have reported an increase in overall productivity with remote work. A Stanford study found an improvement of 13% in performance of remote workers.
The same study also revealed other benefits of remote work: no more commutes and cost savings in office rental.
It’s not just about enduring the long commute to work. The reduction in amount of time spent on commute is a benefit for both you and your workers.
Employees can spend that time on things that matter to them: a morning jog, breakfast with friends or walking the dog. The result is a happier, healthier and more motivated workforce.
And if your employees are not working from the office, in theory, you get to save on office rent. The Stanford study reveals that almost $2,000 per employee was saved by adopting remote work.
But this is not always possible, especially if employees only work from home once a week.
So, before you go all in on remote work, consider its downsides too: isolation, difficult communication/accountability, and inability to unplug.
In traditional offices, most workers end their workday once they are through the office doors. With remote workers, it becomes less clear. When you are connected through technology, it gets hard to stop working.
For business owners, remote work also threatens company culture. How can you create and maintain team culture without people being in the same room? It is possible, but it’d take far more effort.
Same goes for collaboration. Remote teams need to be properly equipped with communication tools and abide by practices such as regular one-on-ones. When left unchecked, miscommunication often arises in remote teams.
Read More: How Businesses Can Use Enhanced Work-Life Grant For Happier, More Productive Employees
#2 Four-Day Work Weeks
The four-day concept is taking off across the globe. Companies like Microsoft and Shake Shack are testing the idea out, shortening workweeks without a cut in pay.
Microsoft’s trial in Japan reported a 40% improvement in productivity.
Due to the shorter workweek, meeting times are cut by half and attendance was capped at five employees. Microsoft tried to trim away all the time-suckers to let employees focus on their core tasks.
Another famous example is New Zealand-based estate management firm, Perpetual Guardian. For two months, employees tried working four days a week, instead of five. The founder theorized that shorter workweeks motivate employees to be more productive.
It was so successful that the firm implemented a four-day week permanently, on an opt-in basis.
Employees felt less stress, greater work satisfaction and a better work-life balance.
While the benefits may be clear, a four-day week can be hard to implement.
If your employees fail to meet work requirements in a four-day week, the company suffers. Or if they have to cram their work into four days and work longer hours as a result, you’d hardly get any happy employees either.
Or if they have to spend longer hours each day to complete their tasks, employees aren’t going to be much happier.
It might not fit every department too. London-based research foundation The Wellcome Trust, dropped plans for a four-day workweek trial as it was ‘too operationally complex to implement’. For employees in back office and support functions such as IT and human resources, a shorter workweek can be disrupting to operations.
#3 Shorter Workday
The eight-hour workday is increasingly being challenged.
More companies are reducing the time spent in the office. Advocates claim that if employees can be highly focused, tasks can be completed in four or five hours.
The idea of leaving office by 1 p.m. can motivate workers to prioritize effectively and operate at peak productivity for few hours a day.
And it’s not just higher productivity rates in the office.
Employees are less stressed, have more time to pursue their passions and nurture relationships.
And with shorter workdays, it exposes the time-suckers hidden in traditional eight-hour days. Your team may be focusing too much time on low-value work, such as checking emails or responding to notifications.
Shorter workdays will force your team to prioritise what’s important and choosing to automate or outsource whenever necessary.
But it brings challenges too.
Stephan Aarstol, author of The Five-Hour Workday: Live Differently, Unlock Productivity, and Find Happiness, is also the founder of Tower, a beach-lifestyle company. While five-hour workdays were an initial success, Aarstol found that recruiting and retaining talent became a problem.
When people start working out of work after lunch and have a much bigger ‘outside world’, their bonds with co-workers get weaker. Company culture took a hit for Aarstol’s start-up.
It was also harder to weed out candidates who are great fits for the five-hour workday and those who are sloth-like. Aarstol has switched to having shorter workdays only during summer.
That being said, shorter working hours are not the only way forward.
Ultimately, one of the main reasons for flexible working policies is to meet your employee’s meets. So, if a five-hour workday sounds impossible, it can be simpler arrangements, such as flexible working hours. That means allowing employees to alter start and finish times, e.g. coming in at 8 a.m. instead of 9 a.m.
#4 Unlimited Paid Time-Off (PTO)
An unlimited vacation policy sounds enticing to employees. No longer do they have to allocate their days off among family obligations, sick days and vacations. And this is a reality in companies like Hubspot, Netflix, Dropbox and Glassdoor.
Without any PTO limits, employees are able to handle personal commitments freely. It provides them the freedom of taking more frequent trips or just time off to rejuvenate, to prevent burnout and improve wellbeing.
Offering unlimited PTO also brands you as an attractive employer, helping to recruit and retain talent. While such a policy has gained traction in recent years, it is still a benefit that remains rare in most companies, giving you an edge over competitors.
It is also cost-effective–companies don’t have to pay out for unused vacation time by year end. But this comes as a double-edged sword.
Employees may feel frustrated due to the lack of common yardstick: what is the acceptable number of days to take off?
Without a stipulated number of paid time off, workers are at the mercy of their workloads and managers. They might even feel guilty or uncertain about taking time off.
That might cause some workers to take less time off instead.
It then creates an undesirable situation of employees taking less time off, yet not being paid their unused vacation time. Such scenarios can cause unhappiness and mistrust in the company, on top of employee burnout.
While unlimited PTO might sound like a win-win situation, it takes a lot more than it seems to make it work. Companies can create norms on how much vacation take can be taken, by having management to set as an example.
Alternatively, a minimum number of vacation days can be set, as social media software Buffer did when they realise their employees are not taking enough off.
The Nature Of Work Will Continue To Change
Do you have any of these flexible work trends implemented in your office?
Regardless of which arrangement you have chosen, it’s important from the get-go that you get the employees’ buy-in on this. As seen from these trends, it is often the mismatch of expectations that cause undesirable consequences from the implementation.
Run a trial period and be open to reviewing and modifying the arrangement. While flexible work arrangements are promising, they take conscious effort and patience to succeed.
Read More: 5 Employee Benefits You Can Offer Your Staff Without Giving A Pay Raise
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