Flexibility in the Workplace: Balancing Employee Needs and Business Success

Employee expectations have evolved rapidly in recent years. According to LinkedIn, 93% of workers prefer flexible schedules, and in a Gallup survey, flexibility ranked among the top employee retention factors. It’s clear that workplaces offering flexibility retain talent, increase employee satisfaction, decrease employee burnout, and more.

Offering flexibility to employees helps address the many life stages and responsibilities represented in your workforce. Gen Z values mental health and is looking for a healthier relationship with work. Millennials prioritize autonomy and balance. Gen X and Boomers are often managing caregiving responsibilities or transitioning toward retirement. Flexibility can be a win for everyone!

Types of Flexibility

Flexibility doesn’t look the same for every employee or every organization. Some common types of workplace flexibility include:

• Remote work, where employees can work from home or whatever location is convenient for them
• Flextime, where employees can adjust their schedules to work at the times that work best for them (for example, 7:00 – 3:00 instead of 9:00 – 5:00)
• Compressed workweeks, where employees work the same number of hours in fewer days (for example, four 10-hour workdays)
• Job sharing, where two part-time employees share one full-time job
• Phased retirement, where employees slowly decrease hours and responsibilities on their way to retiring completely
• Hybrid models, where employees work remotely 2-3 days per week

The Challenge of Flexibility

A common concern when it comes to workplace flexibility is being unable to offer the same forms of flexibility for all roles… and the accusations of favoritism and unfairness that can bring. The key here is clarity, transparency, and documentation.

Create—and communicate—a structure with reasons behind what you do and don’t allow. There should be written guidelines with consistent criteria for how you’ll evaluate and make decisions about flexibility requests. When you make a decision about a request from an employee, explain the criteria that you look at and why you did or didn’t approve the request. If you’re not approving their request, think about whether there’s another solution that you could approve.

Do you need a hand creating policies and structure related to workplace flexibility? We can help! Send us a message here, and we’ll guide you to the right path.