Flexible working in 2024 and beyond

If there’s one positive that came out of the global pandemic, it is flexible working. Flexible approaches to work have re-shaped the way we work and shifted perspectives on what is possible. Organisations are placing more trust in their employees and in turn reaped the benefits of increased morale, inclusivity, productivity, and better work-life balance.

In Spring 2024, flexible working will become a right for employees across the UK. From April 2024, the right to request flexible working from day one will be written into UK law. Employees will no longer have to work for their employer for a minimum term before becoming eligible. The nature of how and where we work will change irreversibly - for the better.

We have written extensively about different approaches to flexible working in a previous post. For this blog, we’re focusing on our evolving work landscape by sharing some success stories of flexible working in practice.

Formal vs. Informal flexible working

Looking at the changing landscape of remote or flexible working, there are two clear approaches - one formalised and the other informal. There are no rules around choosing one approach over the other. It’s simply a case of listening to what your employees need and adopting the strategy that works best for everyone. That may be a combination of the two approaches.

Interestingly, number three in Gartner’s 9 future of work trends for 2024 is that four day working weeks will become the norm. This is one example of a formal approach to flexible working. Others include:

• Part-time contracts

• Job sharing agreements

• Term time contracts

• Committing to a regular remote or hybrid working pattern, e.g. three days remote, two in the workplace

• A requirement to be in the office for a set number of days/hours per week

• Shift rotation patterns.

More informal options include:

• The option for colleagues to swap shifts between them

• Time off in lieu (TOIL)

• Staggered hours, e.g. different start and finish times within the same workplace

• Flexi-time, e.g. choosing your own start and finish times

• Compressed hours, e.g. working longer hours on some days to finish earlier on other days.

For informal approaches to be successful usually requires a strong culture of trust in the organisation.

Flexibility to pursue your ambitions

Some organisations are ahead of the flexible working curve. Five years ago writing in his Virgin blog, Richard Branson shared how two employees had taken advantage of remote working technology to free up time to become published authors - one directly, and the second indirectly by being able to support his wife while she wrote her book. Flexible working has been around for years. These stories show flexible working isn’t something to fear. As Richard says, “It’s archaic to assume that people do their best work at a desk”.

Balancing work and family life

Flexible working brings a number of advantages for work-life balance and can be hugely helpful in attracting and retaining employees with parental responsibilities. Flexibility in terms of hours and work location allows employees to pick up their children from school, spend quality time with them, and/or share caring responsibilities with a partner. It also allows employees more time to enjoy personal interests, classes and hobbies too, whether they are parents or not.

Standard Chartered offers a choice of five working options to employees, allowing them to choose between hybrid and flexible hours at home and/or in the office or a fixed agreement. Employee engagement was at the core of its implementation with consultation taking place at every level throughout the process. The majority of employees who chose flexible working arrangements opted for a hybrid approach.

The rollout has been a huge success with employees reporting better work-life balance and stronger engagement with their employer. Since implementing flexible working, the bank also found it was attracting and retaining more diverse talent, giving them a clear competitive advantage. Take a look at the full case study

Choice and adaptability are two reasons why Standard Chartered’s approach has been so successful. Employees can choose the option that’s right for them at that time in their life. If something changes, e.g. they no longer have caring responsibilities, an employee can request a different working arrangement.

This type of flexible working arrangement may also benefit employees who are going through mental and physical health challenges, and neurodivergent thinkers who need to adapt their work environment according to the task they are working on.

Flexibility for carers

Aerospace, defence and security giant, Leonardo UK, won the Best Flexible Working Policy Award at the 2023 Investors in People Awards. Their approach, known as Custom Working, helps employees to maintain a healthy work-life balance. It allows anyone to work together as part of a team regardless of location or personal circumstances.

One employee shared that Leonardo’s flexible working policy enabled him to care for his partner and another family member during illness, stating “the support from my management team and the responsiveness to the requests I have made around flexibility in my hours and work pattern, has been exceptional”. Read more here

Time to empower your employees

It’s clear there is plenty of evidence of successful flexible working practices for us to learn from. If you are planning to implement a new approach in your organisation, here are some top tips...

1. Communication is key. Actively listen to your employees to understand their needs. Communicate regularly and consistently, ensuring to involve employees at every level.

2. Circumstances change. What works now might not be appropriate in a few months time. Consider a trial period and evaluate what worked well and not so well.

3. Training for managers leading hybrid teams is crucial. Make sure leaders have the necessary knowledge and skills so they can manage their team with confidence.

4. Tools and equipment - a point we haven’t covered in this blog, but just as important. Employees cannot achieve success working flexibly if they don’t have the right tools and systems to do their job.

Thinking differently and having an open and flexible approach to work really can improve people’s lives and enhance your organisation. If you would like support in this area, please get in touch.

Further reading

If you enjoyed this post and crave more content on this subject, take a look at our blogs on flexible working and the Future of Work, or download our free ebook People Planning for 2024.

How we can help

If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised in this blog, please get in touch with us on 0161 941 2426. We’re here to help.