90% of the UK's leading businesses see
flexible working as "an established, accepted way of working".
But often its benefits are limited as it tends to be a solution for
a lucky few rather than being applied strategically across the
whole company.This is the finding of research commissioned by
Citrix in the Autumn of 2004*.
Interviews were carried out with staff at chief officer level
and also with employees, getting the view from above and the
view from below. (In this report, "flexible working" refers
to using remote and mobile technologies rather than the whole
range of flexible work options.)
The evidence is that flexible working is seen as offering
many benefits, but more often than not it is most practised by
senior staff, and does not penetrate throughout the company.
Percentage of remote workers in companies:
These findings tally with other staff surveys carried out by
HOP Associates, which find that flexible working in
organisations frequently means very limited flexibility in the
hours that staff start and finish work. Those maximising
locational flexibility through a strategic approach to using
remote and mobile technologies are still in the minority.
However, although truly flexible workers are in the minority,
familiarity with the concept is almost universal. Staff
invariably want more flexibility, although some remain sceptical
about the benefits until they actually try it.
What are the key benefits and challenges?
One of the key benefits is increased productivity. The
following chart shows how staff rated productivity improvements
from flexible working:
Productivity improvements from flexible working:
In the Citrix research, many staff found that the
improvements in productivity exceeded their expectations:
Actual v. anticipated productivity gains:
Senior staff in particular experience the benefits of
productivity improvements. The survey also showed,
however, that nearly 50% of senior staff are active flexible
workers - and accrue the productivity benefits that may not be
available to many of their employees.
In the view of senior managers, the most significant benefits
are improved employee efficiency and productivity, mentioned by
8 out of 10 managers. Two thirds believe flexible working
has produced faster customer response times and one half believe
it has brought better internal and external communications.
Employees responses are similar.
The most common concerns identified by senior managers relate
to company knowledge, data security and managing staff remotely.
Staff view things a little differently. Only half as
many (22%) saw data security as an issue. The biggest
drawback in their view is that flexible working could be a
barrier to effective teamwork, cited by just under a third of
employees. A quarter worry about problems in motivating
themselves.
Very few staff or managers feel that complexity of new
technology is a problem for them.
Issues for the future identified as important by senior
managers are:
- keeping costs under control
- keeping pace with technology
- education and staff training.
Messages from the research
The report concludes that flexible working is now an
established and accepted way of working that touches
approximately 255 of the workforce. And about a half of
senior managers now work remotely and use associated
technologies.
There are no really significant differences between the way
senior managers and staff view flexible working and the stage is
set for further growth. Now it is extremely important for
senior managers to take a strategic approach if they are to
maximise the identified benefits of increased productivity and
employee flexibility.
* The survey was carried out by
research agency Coleman Parkes, who conducted 200 structured
interviews with companies drawn at random form the FTSE 1000
list of top of UK organisations. 100 were at chief officer
level, and 100 at employee level.
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