{"id":458390,"date":"2022-08-24T09:21:30","date_gmt":"2022-08-24T08:21:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/welovesalt.com\/news\/2022\/08\/flexible-work-energy-crisis-3\/"},"modified":"2023-08-25T12:38:25","modified_gmt":"2023-08-25T11:38:25","slug":"flexible-work-energy-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/welovesalt.com\/news\/contracting-advice\/flexible-work-energy-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"Flexible work models provide crucial choices for employees in uncertain times"},"content":{"rendered":"

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We summarize our own survey data along with other insights from firms around the globe to provide a balanced perspective of how the pandemic and economic circumstances are reshaping the flexible working debate. Employees value choice and flexibility, and employers competing to attract and retain talent will need to redefine work styles and working culture to adapt to the new landscape. <\/strong><\/p>

“If you’re just sitting in your pajamas in your bedroom, is that the work life you want to live?”<\/strong><\/p>

The above is a quote from Malcom Gladwell, author of The Tipping Point, Outliers and Blink. It sparked outrage on social media after the podcast episode of ‘Diary of a CEO’ was released, in which Gladwell explained that feelings of belonging and being perceived as necessary are important to employee work life. As he put it: “If you’re not here, it’s really hard to do that.”<\/p>

The author and now CEO was accused of hypocrisy<\/a> given his own past work practices as an author and journalist for the New York Times – where flexible and remote working practices were part of this creative habits – but his comments and the resulting backlash to his recent comments do illustrate the next phase of the working from home debate.<\/p>

Pandemic times forced employers and employees to embrace remote and flexible working – because in lockdowns there was no other choice. Prior to that, flexible working was a benefit that was dependent on company culture and employee benefits, which in turn are dependent on the views and behaviours of leadership.<\/p>

Remote work, working from home or anywhere off-site, and flexible work, whereby employees have more flexibility over their hours, challenge traditional approaches to workplace productivity. An almost Hobbesian approach to productivity has been standard: with the belief that employees working best and most productively when they are present and on-site, as they’re supervised. Ultimately, this boils down to trust. Can you trust your employees to work when not directly supervised?<\/p>

As Colby Cosh writing for the National Post<\/a> put this, in covering the Malcolm Gladwell controversy:<\/p>

“The topic of remote work has, as an aftereffect of the COVID pandemic, created a bizarre moral divide, an almost religious debate.<\/strong>“<\/p>

Now, as both employers and employees are defining ‘the new normal’ and what work looks like post-pandemic. Employers are competing for the best talent in The Great Resignation, and for many workplace culture and employee benefits are the weapons of choice.<\/p>

The candidate driven market and rising cost of living is reframing the narrative around flexible and remote working. CEOs and leaders, including Gladwell, will need to address creating a sense of belonging at work in this new reality. The question remains – how?<\/p>

We’ve summarised our own survey findings – along with some of the most interesting future of work data available – to give you an insight into the discussion around post-pandemic work styles.<\/p>

What is hybrid working?<\/h2>

Hybrid work is a flexible working model. Employees work both in the physical workplace, on-site, and remotely, at home or another workspace.<\/p>

Employees prefer hybrid work schedules<\/h2>

Data from Gallup<\/a> shows that hybrid work schedules are preferred by ‘remote-capable’ employees – by which the firm means employees who can do their work off-site at least some of the time.<\/p>

Nearly 60% of those they surveyed said that hybrid is their preferred arrangement, nearly double the 32% who said they’d prefer to work remotely all the time. Just 9% would want to work fully on-site if they’re in a remote-capable role.<\/p>

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Data visualization from Gallup’s report<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>

Both ‘hybrid’ and ‘flexible’ work are umbrella terms<\/h2>

Every workplace is different, and employers are now faced with the task of defining and managing hybrid and flexible work in the post-pandemic workplace.<\/p>

Hybrid workstyles can be formal – with clear expectations set for days in the office or hours online – or informal – which allows employees more freedom of choice, or at least, freedom from formal limitations on where and when they work.<\/p>

Our survey on this subject shows that the work life balance is a big reason employees value flexible working in their current job or future job hunt:<\/p>

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Results of our LinkedIn survey<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>

Both informal and formal hybrid work models allow employees more time for self-care and wellness, and caring responsibilities and family, though informal hybrid work styles allow for more spontaneity in most cases. Even outside of lockdowns, with schools open, this spontaneity can be key for those balancing work and home responsibilities. Lots of things, from illness to bereavement, are unexpected and difficult to plan for, inside or outside of a pandemic.<\/p>

Software company Qualtrics International conducted a survey<\/a> which found workers viewed flexibility more as a matter of “when” than “where”:<\/p>