PIHRA Scope - Spring 2008 - (Page 9) In addition to providing other benefits, flexibility can be your company’s secret weapon to reducing costs and saving money. • Women: A half a million professional high-earning women who leave do not return because of lack of flexibility. (Harvard Business Review, 2006) • Next Generation: 85 percent of employees under 30 years old want flexibility. (Family & Work Institute, 2002) • College Graduates: 80 percent of college-educated employees of all ages want it. (Piktialis, 2005) The savvy employer realizes that incorporating flexibility into recruiting, talent management and diversity efforts, as well as employment branding, in a deliberate way, will strengthen the organization’s ability to attract, retain and engage the best talent, and compete in today’s global market. CREATING THE FLEX FUTURE STATE As companies become more focused on sustainability—of planet, profits and people—the role of flexibility becomes even more critical. Sustainability means a business that’s resilient. One that can withstand not only predictable challenges, but also those challenges that can’t be anticipated, yet can and do occur. How will your business survive if your talent hasn’t learned to work flexibly? If dispersed teams don’t have an effective way of functioning? If all your resources are in one place at the same time? If you don’t understand and value different career and life paths as part of the diversity and inclusion? We create back up systems for information, but we are just beginning to realize that it is really true that our most important asset is the talent. And we need to protect, nurture and invest in that irreplaceable resource if our organizations are going to survive and thrive. The research is in. There are plenty of studies documenting the incredible power of flexibility. But, it’s also common sense. As one senior leader said, “It’s what our employees want, it’s the way we need to operate our business, and it’s what our customers want. Seems like a no-brainer to me!” Add to that the reality that flexibility isn’t costly. In fact, it’s a great low cost, highly visible way to address not just personal needs, but also business needs. Why not make your organization stand out? Why not create a culture of flexibility that can support your business needs? One that acknowledges diversity of career and life style, that recognizes that each person’s need for flexibility is fundamentally a diversity issue, and that if we trust our employees and treat them with respect, they will give back to the organization many times more than what they receive. It’s time to take flex into the future. It’s good for the talent, it’s good for business, and it’s good for customers—it’s a win/win/win. ■ Karol Rose, chief marketing officer, FlexPaths, has worked at the forefront of the work-life strategy field for over 25 years, has helped hundreds of companies develop flex initiatives, and is the author of five books, including Work-Life Effectiveness: BottomLine Strategies for Today’s Workplace (WorldatWork, 2006). Dr. Sandy Burud, chief strategy officer, FlexPaths, is the former president of Alliance for Work-Life Progress, a visiting scholar at the Peter F. Drucker School of Management, and co-author of AHRD’s Book of the Year, Leveraging the New Human Capital (Davies-Black, 2004). Spring 2008 PIHRAScope 9 THE SECRET WEAPON FOR BIG COST SAVINGS In addition to providing other benefits, flexibility can be your company’s secret weapon to reducing costs and saving money. There is abundant research that shows how flexibility positively impacts productivity, morale, commitment, job satisfaction, etc., as well as a company’s ability to attract and retain talent, thus reducing turnover costs and retaining the relationship capital that makes business work. But, add to these benefits other tangible, bottom-line heavy hitters like health and wellness. We have just begun to understand the connection between having the flexibility needed to manage work and personal life and the impact on overall health although, according to TIME magazine (4/96), “Researchers find that people who have little control over their WORK LIFE have a whopping 70 percent higher risk of dying from heart disease than those who can decide what they will do and when.” The companies that catch on and leverage the power of flex are going to be big winners in terms of major cost savings from many sources. DO YOU KNOW WHO WANTS FLEXIBILITY? Everyone! Highly diverse talent groups are expecting, and in some cases actively demanding, flexibility. Today, nearly everyone—regardless of their age, gender, or position—wants more flexibility… • Professionals: 87 percent of full time professionals; 39 percent would trade 10 percent of salary for flexibility. (Lee Hecht Harrison, 2004) • Baby boomers approaching retirement: 47 percent would delay retirement if they could work more flexibly. (Conference Board, 2004)
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