Flexible work timings have become the latest organizational norms. While the entire world is heading towards a digitalized work environment, it is essential to understand that implementing the same comes with its own virtues and vices.
Bringing about a change takes courage and comes with an array of challenges. Organizations around the world are struggling to bring in such a humongous difference in their company culture at the same time trying to keep their employees actively involved and be part of the change. It is also necessary to understand if you can make a mark by implementing flexible working as an organization without impairing the organizational structure and the workflow.
Here are some of the key indicators to know if you have successfully implemented flexible working in your company.
- When your communication establishment is at an all-time high.
Communication is one of the critical factors for running a thriving work environment that happens to be flexible. Both the employees and the organization should be able to communicate openly about their work. With the uprise of virtual team collaboration programs, miscommunication should never be an excuse to be less productive.
You should insinuate new systems in your environment to ensure that your implemented flexible working is being productive. One of the biggest reasons behind enforcing flexible working is eradicating any communication gap that an employee could have with an organization. Hence, your employees should be able to trust you and increase their productivity actively.
- When your employees are happy and get to live lives of their own
One of the significant benefits of flexible working is that employees get to have a life of their own with their respective families. They get to do all their extracurricular chores rather than just working all the time. Hence, when you feel that your employees are happy and are getting to lead their personal lives with the utmost joy, implementing a flexible work environment brings positive results.
No organization can push forward with depressed employees. It is essential to keep your employees happy and satisfied if you want to achieve your organizational goals.
- Standardized work schedules
Flexible work timings have become the new reality from being a trend that many organizations would dream about but never implement. Opting for a company digitalized environment that is both convenient and flexible has an array of benefits. However, it might not be the same for every employee.
Some employees happen to be their most productive selves when placed in an office environment with regular work timings. Adapting to flexible work timings might be a massive challenge for them. There might also be situations when they get distracted with their immediate surroundings, thus failing to bring their most productive selves.
Under such circumstances, if you as an organization should implement a standardized work timing that your employees can avail. Standardized work times should also be a choice for those who are used to a specific routine. This will also ensure that these particular people are their productive selves, as change is definitely not that easy for them to adapt.
- When your employees do not feel that they are being exploited
Even under flexible work timings, some employers require their employees to be available at all times. An employee would naturally and is bound to feel exploited under these situations. It is essential to be able to implement flexible work timings in its most real sense. Your employees should not think that they are being dried out of their productivity and are exploited in the name of work.
Expecting your employees to be available at all points of time and taking advantage of flexible work timing will earn you a bad reputation. Your employees will find it hard to manage a proper work-life balance. Hence, it is imperative to ensure that your employees do not feel that they are being taken for granted. Makes sure you provide enough time to meet the deadlines to portray their skills.
- Proper management and leadership training programs
Proper management and leadership training programs are critical indicators that you can implement flexible work timings successfully in your organization. Your team leaders and management should know how to address the new situation at hand and deal with delegations. They should maintain transparency with your respective associates, thus making them feel comfortable about the new environment that the organization is heading for.
For many organizations, implementing flexible working is not an issue at all – the management is! If the administration does not track how an employee is progressing under such circumstances, the organization can fall back on its feet. As meetings in person are rarely an option for flexible working, the management should find other ways of communication. Workers should be made a part of regular check-ins and scheduled work timings to keep an update of how the company is progressing.
- Initiate a pilot plan
Before diving neck-deep into a new environment, you, as an organization, should figure out the pros and cons of implementing flexible working. It is essential to start with a proper plan, as this will help you proceed with your company goals. Set dates and trial runs to see how your company and employees at large are coping up with the given situation.
Always have a backup plan in case of uncertainties. Once you identify your challenges and the roadblocks you might be dealing with, implementing flexible working will be easier.
Conclusion
There is an array of benefits of flexible work timings. Every organization has its way of transgressing into changes and enforcing unknown parameters.
It is essential to understand what your organization is up for and implement flexible working accordingly. You also need to keep evaluating the results and see how it is shaping up for your company. There will be times when you will need to make new changes or resort to old ones.
With the points mentioned above and key factors, you should bring in a positive wave of change in your organization.