Smarter (flexible) Working and Travel Reduction
Web Conferencing (meetings) is just one example of how Smarter-Working, utilising increasingly affordable technologies, like web-conferencing, are increasingly being applied by the more far-sighted business leaders in companies of all sizes and across all industry sectors. as a means to:
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Improve business efficiency and competitiveness
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Raise productivity
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Reduce both carbon and office accommodation footprints
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Lower business travel mileage
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Introduce cost saving smarter working practices like home, local work-centre and mobile working
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Reduce the cost and the need for employee commuting
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Reduce telephony costs through employing VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol
Smarter-working also include more flexible working practices (like term time, job-share, flexitime and compressed hours) which are also helping to reduce staff recruitment and staff retention problems. Smarter Working businesses are also learning that even costly sickness absence and stress levels reduce because staff will feel more valued and reduce the amount of time and money they spend in peak-time commuting.
The Supporting Evidence
It is all around us but with rising fuel costs coupled with an economic slow down there has never been a more opportune time to take act on facts like these:
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BT has seen travel costs reduce by £9.7 million over a ten year period
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The CBI estimates that congestion is costing the UK economy £20 billion per annum
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Sickness absence is costing the UK economy £12.2 billion or 187 million working days (CBI) per annum
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Each Office space (workstation) in the SE costs in the order of £5,500 per annum.
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Average office accommodation occupancy is less than 50%! (Actium Consult)
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70% of graduates (NB Generation ‘Y’ grew up with the Internet) will only consider employers who offer smarter working
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20% of company-car drivers lose more than 5 hours to congestion each week
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The average SE worker will typically spend between three and up to five years of their life commuting
The Flexible forms of Smarter Working
Annualised hours; compressed hours; term-time hours; flexitime and job share are just a few of the definitions used. Essentially, flexitime does what it says on the tin and allows a form of work which allows employees to start and finish work between a flexible range of agreed hours, so long as they work a set amount of hours each day or week. For example, an employee may be required to work eight hours a day, but may start work at any time between 7 am and 9 am and finish work eight worked hours later, between say 3 pm and 7 PM.
There are a dozen approaches at least, but perhaps one or more of the following examples might appeal to you or your staff:
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The Five Minute Change - even a five minute change in start or finish time can avoid or at least reduce journey times. Herald Group Newspapers - they produce titles like the Alton, Bordon and Petersfield Herald - but their HQ is in the busy town of Farnham in Surrey. A five minute shift is exactly what they did to alleviate especially the evening rush hour exit from the Town
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The Nine Day Fortnight - Hampshire County Council is one of the employers offering this form of 'compressed hours' working known as the nine day fortnight. Working a longer number of hours over four days is another variation. The advantage to the employee is that it enables him or her to undertake activities during a weekday. It may be a family commitment or simply a leisure pursuit but whatever it is, it helps the employee achieve a better balance between work and life. Employers benefit because staff morale and motivation are improved.
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Annualised hours - enable employees to work a specified number of hours, and a pattern of working, over a 12 month period, again as determined by the (possibly seasonal) needs of the business. This type of contract enables the employer to vary the number of hours worked in a defined period (daily, weekly, quarterly, yearly) within the context of the agreed working hours for the year. Annualised hours can be linked in with term-time working
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Variable Holidays - WSP Group PLC is one of an increasing number of employers that is seeing the benefits of allowing staff - in line with business needs - to sell or purchase extra holiday days. Other employers have also included a benefits package (membership of a gym perhaps). Such schemes reduce costs for employers and benefit employees who can tailor their benefits to suit their specific needs. Some schemes allow employees to forego benefits in return for extra salary.
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Job Share - an arrangement where two or more employees share the duties and responsibilities of a single full time job. Each job sharer has broadly the same responsibilities, although their contractual terms and conditions of employment may differ. This is an option that the older employee might value as will women seeing it as a more acceptable (phased) way way of returning to work after maternity leave. The employer benefits as it retains valuable skills within the organisation, encourages retention and often results in greater productivity.
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Part-time - Part-time, phased retirement and Twilight Shifts can be particularly attractive in the context of Work-Life Balance. It can broaden the options for employees, help with the adjustement between full time work and retirement and aid retention and like job-share, encourages an earlier return to work after maternity leave for women.
It helps organisations achieve flexibility of cover for, say, peak workloads or when the work needs to be done only at particular times and can help overcome skills shortages.
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Term-Time Working - allows employees to remain on a permanent full-time or part-time contract but to take unpaid leave during some or all of the school holidays. This obviously benefits employees who are parents and could not otherwise work. It benefits employers as it encourages staff retention and keeps valuable skills within the organisation.
Flexitime benefits the employer as working hours can be matched with peaks and troughs of business demand and can extend opening hours. Flexitime is popular with employees as it provides time to deal with personal matters, such as dental visits or taking children to school, within the working day. It helps employees feel more valued and businesses normally see benefits in the form of reduced absenteeism and elimination of punctuality problems.
