Manage boundaries, not time
I was recently in Australia delivering Flexperts workshops to some wonderful people leaders.
One of very few stand-out differences between Australia and New Zealand, when it comes to flex, is that Australia has ‘Right to Disconnect’ legislation and New Zealand doesn’t.
I noticed that some organisations in Australia are now managing the risk of invading people’s time at home by putting in place work hours that must not vary beyond 7.30am and 6pm. While well intentioned, this has created a new problem. People who can’t manage their work hours within those boundaries are stressed and, in some instances, resort to hiding when they’re working.
We know that people appreciate being able to work from home, if that forms part of what’s possible in their flexible work arrangements. We also know that people want more flexibility and autonomy over their work schedule. If we use the blunt instrument of managing boundaries between work and home with tough restrictions on work hours, we’re actually cutting off schedule options that people would love to access.
An example of this came up a few years ago when I was running a workshop. A manager in the room proudly told us that he tells his team off if any of them work past 6pm or answer emails at the weekend. He felt that it was part of his duty of care to make sure that people switched off and didn’t feel obliged to work more than their agreed hours. I opened up the discussion to the rest of the room when I noticed some uncomfortable shifting in chairs from some of his colleagues. Another manager said there were people in his team who preferred to work later in the evening – to catch up on their emails when most people have finished for the day. This also meant they could take a couple of hours in the late afternoon to pick up their children from school and make the family dinner without the need for childcare or a feeling of guilt. A couple of others in the room agreed, some preferring to work later sometimes, or to clear emails on a Sunday night so they could start later on Monday mornings. The first manager thought about it and realised that his “6pm cut off” rule might not work well for everyone. When I asked him what he’d prefer to try instead, he decided to talk to his team about the rules after the workshop, and let them inform his next step.
Whether or not we have the ‘right to disconnect’ we all need healthy boundaries between work and home if we want to avoid burn out. Getting more sophisticated with how we manage those boundaries has to be the way forward, so we enable legitimate flexible work options, rather than cut them off.
I’ve worked with hundreds, if not thousands, of teams to support them to better manage those boundaries. With a simple tool to explore your boundary preferences along a continuum of ‘integrator to segmenter’, you can have a shared language and more empathy in your team to help you all manage your boundaries in a way that works.
If we want flexible work benefits, access to legitimate choices is absolutely crucial. We need to access options that help each of us live a life we value and have reason to value if we want the wellbeing benefits associated with flexible work. Cutting off choices will ironically create more of the stress we’re trying to reduce within our workforce. If you’re leading flex in your team, my advice is to manage boundaries, not time.
Australia’s Right to Disconnect legislation aims to protect employees' time, but strict work-hour boundaries can sometimes create unintended stress for those who need more work flexibility. A one-size-fits-all approach may not fit everyone, as some prefer working late to accommodate their responsibilities. Instead of firm restrictions, organisations should adopt a more nuanced approach to employees' work-life boundaries, encouraging open conversations within teams.
Alongside the ‘boundaries’ tool, you will also benefit from managing the complexity of a fully flexible team while driving high performance and collaboration with my 'Me & We’ tool. It’s a free download for you and your team to try out together. Let me know what it does for you!