Fuel Your Flexpertise!
I’m working with a lot of organisations and teams at the moment that I’d describe as being in a ‘fragile’ stage of their flexible work practice.
They’re not frozen-rigid and saying no to every flexible work request. Teams and leaders have started to see some benefits from flexible work, but not every time. Some managers want to go faster than the organisation is ready for and other managers already feel pushed too far outside their comfort zone. There’s no clear or consistent story about why flexible work is a good thing. This all leads to a series of disconnected, ad hoc, decisions about flexible work.
Team members see this inconsistency of appetite and practice in flexible work. They feel grateful if their manager has given them flexibility, but they don’t know if they can trust that their next manager will have the same view. They don’t always feel comfortable talking about it, in case it builds resentment amongst their colleagues. I call this ‘flexibility gratitude’. I’m sure you’ve seen it too.
This is a fragile state because it’s unsustainable. There are two ways to go from here:
Freeze! I’ve seen organisations decide to clamp down on flexibility because, at least it is consistent. The lost opportunity for productivity gains is huge when this happens. People look elsewhere for a more flexible employer, they disconnect from their work and discretionary effort becomes a thing of the past.
Fuel it up! The alternative is to accept that flexible work hasn’t yet matured to get the full benefits on offer and take action.
Take a look at this flexible work maturity model and think about which zone your organisation or team is in.
Where do you see your team or organisation?
Are you in the fragile zone?
How can you fuel-up your flexible work maturity and get more of the benefits you’re looking for?
Fuelled flexible workplaces are energised and exciting places to be. Here are my top tips to get there faster:
Get strategic about it
Explore, with your senior leaders, how flexibility can support you to achieve your business goals faster. Then tell that story to everyone and do it frequently.
Give managers a toolkit
We all know that managers carry a lot. What I’ve learnt is they are open to being more flexible when they’re given a toolkit that works. It takes the complexity of managing a flexible team and breaks it down into manageable pieces of a puzzle. They facilitate team-based discussions that lead to more creative flexible work decisions, achieving more of the benefits everyone is looking for.
Build your flexpertise
If you’re responsible for building flexible work practice in your organisation you almost certainly do that on top of an already-busy day-job! You are not alone. Join the online flexpert community. You’ll connect with other people faced with the same challenges as you and have access to tools, resources and practice that has been tried and tested. You’ll deliver the flexible work project credibly and successfully and still have space for the other work that demands your attention.
Shape the Online Flexpert Programme
If you’d like to find out more about the six-week Online Flexpert Programme, let me know what you’re looking for and register your interest here.
Photo by Joshua Newton on Unsplash