Four ways to supercharge

Flexible working is in high need. Indeed the study from Apollo Technical found that 72 percent of workers would prefer working in flexible environments rather than the traditional office environment.

And organizations are seeing measurable advantages. Improved productivity of 47% and higher performance of employees ( 40% fewer defects in the quality of work), and profitability (with the average of 11,000 dollars saved per halftime remote employee) This makes flexible working look more like a requirement as opposed to a benefit for employees.

If you're considering how to create flexible working options or improve how you can get your team to work remotely, you're in the right location.

In this article, we'll look at some of the most important aspects of flexible working, the shifting expectations of employees, as well as some suggestions on how to ensure your business is ready for the future by using tools powered by video.

What is flexible work?

A flexible work arrangement allows employees to choose where and how they work. Research from SHRM suggests that increased flexibility for employees provides a host of benefits such as higher engagement and retention, reduced overhead, and more time for family and work.
There are two types of flexibility in the workplace:

Flexible location

The flexibility of location allows employees to work from an office, or a specific working location. The most common forms of location flexibility include remote work, hybrid work, and telecommuting. The 2021 SHRM survey reported that 30% of employed Americans prefer the option of doing some form of remote work or hybrid work, and if the current employer doesn't have that option would search for an employer that does.

Flexible scheduling

Schedule flexibility is based on the ability of employees to arrange their working hours in a way that is not the standard five days per week 9-5 work schedule. Some of the most popular types of flexibility in schedules include:

• Workweeks compressed
• Shift work
• Flextime
• Job sharing
• Part-time schedules

The way we do business is evolving

According to the US Labor Department reported over 47 million Americans left their jobs in 2021 as part of an unprecedented huge labor exodus.

From dentists' offices to fuel stations, shortages of workers are prompting employers to rethink the way we see the work environment. 64 percent of employees in an earlier Pew survey said they felt uncomfortable returning to work and 57% decided to work from the comfort of their homes due to concerns about COVID. In the Harvard Business Review reported that 36 percent of the workers who were surveyed would search for an alternative to work if given a hybrid or remote option, and 6% decided to walk away in the absence of a job secured.

Uncertainty in the economic climate, a competitive labor market and shifting employee expectations are forcing businesses to reconsider how and where people work.

Recent research shows that flexibility at work boosts employee recruitment, retention, satisfaction, and productivity. Gartner found 43 percent of the respondents to their Digital Worker Experience Survey said flexibility in working hours helped them be more productive. Thirty percent of respondents said saving time from commuting boosted productivity.

4 ways to create an environment that is flexible

As the workplace evolves the onboarding process, training management teams, as well as enablement require virtual communication, training, and engagement technology to support their organization.

These are the four steps to help you create a successful flexible work environment to your employees. They will also set your team up to be successful.

1. Engage employees

As your workers don't gather frequently as they would in the traditional office environment, you need to find other ways to increase employee engagement. 70% of staff report that they're more productive working in a workplace where they feel valued. 88% of employees at industry-leading companies feel heard, but only 62% employees in financially struggling companies are heard.

Everything you should be aware of about town halls

Learn how to live stream your next town hall.

The boring town halls can be a problem and shaky live streams are worse. A decision to invest in video of high quality can yield enormous benefits on team alignment, employee engagement, productivity, and connection to help establish a cohesion and flexible workplace.

"We won't return to how it was. Video isn't COVID-19-based It's a more modern approach to the changing workplace."  
 Peter Strella, Director, Communications & Creative Media Services at Rite Aid

2. Create a virtual onboarding process and learning process

As work transitions away from the office, training is transitioning along as well. Despite remote working or maybe because of it - onboarding and learning are becoming more important. The majority of workers are onboarding by virtual meetings, and it's up to the organization to create streamlined and effective training programs.

"Technicians aren't the only ones who don't want to make the trip to our learning centers, it's not a "one-size-fits all" for our varied group of learners...What we started to do was take the same great educational content from the classroom and put it online."   Steve Hamaday, Virtual Training Manager at Axalta

A must-read guide for online trainings

Increase the size of your remote team with ease by following this comprehensive instruction.

3. Communication both external and internal

"With  the help of weekly live stream for our global clients, in the midst of a pandemic, in just weeks, not months. We handled the entire operation through the platform, co-operating online with our team members as well as our agency. We went live multiple times a week, across multiple languages."   Alvin Mudun, Senior Web Product Manager for Zendesk in EMEA

4. Make investments in remote collaboration

When your workers are scattered across multiple regions and time zones your tools will determine team productivity and motivation.

Introducing more ways to use video could have an measurable effect on your team. 's State of Workplace Communication report revealed that employees who are video-oriented benefit from a 75% greater percent of employees who report excellent engagement as well as better team collaboration. Collaboration is the ability to communicate with colleagues, and using video can make communication more effective and more inclusive.

• Better employee engagement
• Improved productivity
• Anytime, anywhere.
• Greater transparency
• Training libraries that can be used for any purpose and resource

  Originally written by Clara Wang and updated by Bianca Galvez on July 26, 2022.