A flexible future of work is here

Today is Flexible Working Day, a day to celebrate and showcase the benefits of flexible work for people and organisations.

In recent months we've seen more people than ever before working flexible arrangements, mainly working from home. What's been great to see and hear is how well it's worked for individuals and workplaces, with productivity being one of the common benefits mentioned.

Research shows a flexible work culture increases profit, talent retention, workforce diversity and innovation as well as productivity. It reduces business costs, staff turnover and absenteeism.

Listen to this video of Job Pair's founder, Ness Stonnill, talking about flexible work in 2020 and what you can do.

Video transcript:

Hi it’s Ness here. I’m founder of Job Pair & a Flex Work Coach.

Today is Flexible Working Day, which is about celebrating and showcasing the benefits of flexible work for people & organisations.

So firstly, happy Flexible Working Day. Today is a great day to reflect on what flexible work means to you, how it’s working for you, and how to make it work for you moving forward.

This year Flexible Working Day is appropriately timed. In the past few months we’ve see more people and workforces access flexible working arrangements, mainly working from home.

COVID19 has been undoubtly tough for everyone in many ways and whilst rethinking the way we work has been a change for many, one the positives from these recent months has been lots of people having had access to flexible working for the first time, and proving to themselves and their organisations it works. It’s a fantastic accomplishment and a big step forward for flexible work so congrats to everyone who has embraced or given flexible work a go.

As people start to go back to the office or contemplating it, individuals and organisations are thinking about what does this mean for the future of flexible work and how people & teams work moving forward. There’s a few key things you can do:

1. Realise there’s a new ‘normal’ in the way we work. Thinking about your normal workplace pre-Coronavirus won’t be helpful in you succeeding and thriving in your work from here on in.

2. Flexible working is about balancing the needs of the individual with the needs of the business in order to create an effective workplace.

Working from home is just one type of flexible work arrangement. Other types include working non-traditional hours, part-time hours and job sharing.

So think about what will work for you and your org, and ask for it.

Now is a great time with lots of organisations seeking feedback and really open to what their employees want.

3. Think more broadly about flexible work.

What does it mean to you? What are the benefits of it to you and your workplace?

What are the skills required to successfully work flexibly as an individual, team and organisation?

There are a number of soft skills needed. To name a few: having trust & respect in relationships, good communication skills, open-mindedness, resilience and flexible thinking.

We know people and organisations need help in bringing flexible work to life to work successfully for them. That’s why Job Pair exists – to help provide real solutions for real people in making flexible work work in all sorts of positions and professions.

If you are seeking help in working flexibly head to jobpair.com.au for resources, real stories and Flex Work Coaching.

We’re soon launching our training platform to help educate, equip and empower individuals and organisations in thriving in flexible work so stay tuned.

I’d love to hear your flexible work stories, what’s working for you and any help you need so please reach out to me via our website.