As the world evolves in exciting new ways, so is the way that many institutions function. From reducing workweeks to offering remote options, flexible work scheduling is becoming a normalized part of the working landscape.
For some, the idea that workers are beginning to have more freedom spells trouble. However, in stark contrast to these sentiments, more and more companies are beginning to find a number of benefits coming from increased work flexibility. Understanding the ways in which giving employees more freedom can benefit your company will give you a deeper perspective on ways in which the job landscape is evolving in positive ways.
Here is why giving your employees flexible scheduling boosts productivity.
Shorter Schedules Incentivizes Employees to Get Work Done
Believe it or not, studies have shown that the typical employee spends around three hours of each workday not actually doing work. Instead, employees often engage in distracting tasks such as checking social media and attending meetings.
Thankfully, a key solution has presented itself over the last several years. Namely, shorter work weeks have been shown to boost productivity significantly. While this may seem counterintuitive at first, the truth is it actually makes sense. When employees have less time to finish their tasks, they’re more incentivized to power through the workday and finish as much as they can rather than engage in mindless distractions.
So, though it may seem odd, shortening work weeks actually gives you the chance to make your employees more productive. This being the case, if you’re intent on improving productivity levels in your company, shortened work weeks is a potent strategy to explore.
Flexible Options Increase Employee Satisfaction
When employees are given flexible options, such as being able to work remotely or choose their own hours, they become more satisfied in their professional roles. While this may seem inconsequential to some, it can actually have a profound effect on the ways employees work and their levels of productivity.
If employees are more satisfied in their roles, they’re more likely to work harder for their company and produce more output. In addition, companies that have engaged in practices that allow more flexible work options have found that they’ve been able to improve their rates of employee retention.
What this highlights is the fact that employees feel more loyalty to their organization when given flexible work options. This means that allowing employees to have more autonomy in the way they work can make them more likely to feel a sense of loyalty to your company and, as a result, compel them to work harder to produce more results and meaningful output.
The Best Employees Are Eager for Flexible Work Options
While in the past employees may have typically stayed at one company for their entire career, today, that is anything but the case. These days, employees are used to bouncing around companies and searching for better options. This is especially true when it comes to top talent who know the value they can bring to companies.
For the most skilled workers, flexible work options are no longer a luxury, but a requirement for employment. Given this fact, you’ll be able to both attract and retain more high-quality employees by prioritizing flexible work options in your business.
Top employees are the ones most likely to be the most productive at your company. As such, you’ll have a better chance of boosting productivity and locking down high-quality employees if you begin offering flexible work options to your employees.
Flexible Work Options
If you believe that flexible work options have the power to help you boost productivity in your company and improve output, you may be wondering how exactly you should implement them. Having some guidance around flexible work options can make it easier for you to take the leap and start implementing alternative work options in your company.
Here are some of the most common flexible work options that employers offer to their employees.
Remote Work
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, many organizations were enlightened to the fact that the same amount of work could be done when allowing employees to work remotely. As a result, remote work has become far more common in a variety of industries as well as in education with many now viewing remote learning as the future of education.
If you’re interested in getting your feet wet with flexible work options, allowing employees to work remotely can be a great place to start. This is because remote work doesn’t necessarily call for reduced hours, but instead just means that meetings and other previously in-person processes will have to become digital.
Given the low risk of this option along with the fact that it has the potential to greatly increase employee satisfaction and productivity, remote options are a great place to start offering flexible work options.
Shortened Work Weeks
If you’re convinced of the power of flexible work options to increase productivity and are ready to take a significant step, shortened work weeks are a great option to make available to workers. Though your employees will be working a shorter amount of time, they’ll likely be more productive during the hours that they’re working.
Shorter work weeks can come in different forms depending on which schedule you believe will suit your company best. You can shorten the number of days employees work, shorten the number of hours they work, or both. However you choose to go about it, shortening work weeks offers you the chance to greatly increase your employees’ output during working hours.
Flexible Scheduling Is the Future
While there are still many companies who refuse to offer their employees flexible work options, this is likely to change in the near future. Employee preferences have altered significantly over the last several years and this alteration doesn’t seem likely to stop anytime soon.
As such, if you’re intent on boosting productivity in a sustainable fashion, incorporating flexible work options into your company is a great way to do so.
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