Barriers to flexible working

Could there be barriers to flexible working in your organisation?

If barriers exist, where could you start in terms of finding solutions?

• Does stigma exit and people are perceived as less committed if they work fewer than full time hours?
• Are there perceived barriers to career progression for flexible workers?
• Is there a culture of presenteeism - either across the organisation or in certain pockets?
• Could there be a lack of trust in the organisation?
• Do some managers need to 'see' people to know they are working?
• Is there clear and proactive communication encouraging flexible working in the organisation?
• Is there enough visibility of flexibile working in practice at all levels of the organisation?
• Could flexibility be perceived as something only for more senior roles with junior colleagues hesitant to ask about working differently

• Ensure organisational understanding of the benefits of flexibility
• Gain endorsement right at the top
• Enlist Senior Leader Champions
• Provide line Manager support to help them understand and support flexible working
• Create an informal framework for working flexibly as well as formal policies (if desired)
• Use case studies to showcase flexible working
• Proactively use role modelling and ensure visibility of flexible working in action at all levels / roles
• Encourage all colleagues to use their email signatures to show their working patterns
• Consult with colleagues to find what it feels like 'on the 'ground', to help establish what they want and ‘what good looks like’
• Communicate, communicate!

• Does everyone have the technology they need (and know how to use it) to make a success of flexible working?
• Do people in the organisation fear they could be forgotten about if not in full time/not in the office?

• Invest in the right 'kit'
• Develop a smart working policy
• Provide support and training for home workers
• Schedule key meetings and socials at times everyone available

• Are jobs 'too big' for the hours?
• Do you know what flexibility is possible for different roles in the organisation?
• Do your team structures lend themselves to flexibility
• Could there be a worry about lack of parity across departments?
• Do you recruit flexibly?
• Is flexible working seen as having cost to the business?

• Re-shape roles to make them more realistic for the job in hand
• Look at each role individually.
• Support a ‘multi-skilled’ approach to roles so one person can do various tasks
• Look seriously at part time/ job share roles which could offer greater productivity
• Use trial periods for new working patterns
• Test out flexible recruitment
• Manage clients’ expectations about response times and be clear about alternative contacts

• Are managers skilled in having open conversations about flexible working?
• Does everyone feel comfortable 'asking' for flexible working?
• Could any of your managers have a closed mindset?

• Encourage and support more ‘human’ conversations in teams
• Encourage weekly check ins
• Provide line manager support, coaching or trainin

• Is it believed that it is not possible to do flexible working in non office roles?

• Re-visit current shift patterns, etc in teams and talk to colleagues about their needs.
• Give employees autonomy for team/self scheduling
• Think about the operating model and hours and consider if more people be recruited to cover a longer operational period (which may be attractive to a greater number of people)