FLEXIBLE WORK SCHEDULES CAN CREATE PRODUCTIVE WORK ENVIRONMENTS

S a n d r a A . S u l l i v a n

magine a scenario in which employees and managers were asked to justify why a work schedule of nine to five, in a central I office location, is the best choice for increasing productivity.

Some responses might include, "It is good for teamwork'' and "I have access to everyone all the time."

Is having everyone together all the time conducive to maxi- mum productivity levels? There is a basic assumption in the workplace that nine to five is the only work schedule that yields maximum productivity. Further, there is an assumption that if a person is in the office longer-providing more "face time"-he or she is more productive than someone who is in the office fewer hours. Are these assumptions valid?

In today's turbulent business environment, where staff levels are at an all-time low and work loads are at an all-time high, many managers and employees are looking for ways to increase produc- tivity. The traditional approach to increasing productivity is to simply work harder. Many employees are working harder but are doing little to increase productivity. Organizations need to con- sider taking a different approach to productivity, encouraging flexibility and working smarter rather than working harder.

Working smarter entails looking at employees' roles and re- sponsibilities and creating the most productive work environment to accomplish tasks. In many instances, working smarter includes the strategic use of flexible work options (e.g., telecommuting, job sharing, flextime, and compressed workweek). For example, Deloitte & Touche examined customer needs and the cost of re- cruiting the best talent in the labor pool and decided to promote the use of flexible work arrangements. Deloitte & Touche saw the payback in retention of their best talent and customer satisfaction due to continuity of customer relationships.

Xerox Corporation also examined employees' roles and re- sponsibilities as they relate to the customer. Xerox wanted to get its sales force closer to the customer. An in-depth analysis of telecommuting showed that off-site work arrangements could meet the needs of the corporation, its customers, as well as its

Sandra A. Sullivan is the manager of diversity and development at General Electric Company (f/ectronjc Distribution and Control), basedin P/ainvi//e, Connecticut. employees.

~. Employment Relations Today Autumn 1996 71 CCC 0745-7790/96/230371-04 Q 1996 John Wiley 8 Sons, Inc.

Sandra A. Sullivan

Managers who recognize that there is a difference between working and getting the job done will gain the productivity increases to stay competitive.

Just as tennis players are asked which racquets suit their styles of play, or technical gurus are asked which computers they prefer, employees should be asked what work schedules will help create the most productive environment.

According to the Conference Board, over 90 percent of Fortune 500 companies have flexible work-option policy statements, yet use of flexible work options has historically been low due, in part, to a management style that questions employees’ motives for requesting flexible schedules. For example, the Bank of Montreal distributed a detailed guide outlining the bank’s flexible work arrangements. The guide was expected to encourage employees’ use of flexible work arrangements, but that expectation was not met. An analysis of the situation disclosed that some of the managers were not convinced that flexible work arrangements could benefit the bank. Some managers equate working a flexible schedule with working less or being less dedicated to an organi- zation. However, in studies conducted by American Express, AT&T, and IBM, flexible work schedules have actually increased productivity by as much as 40 percent.

Managers who recognize that there is a difference between working (putting in long hours) and getting the job done (accom- plishing tasks) will gain the productivity increases to stay com- petitive. Working is tracked by hours, and getting the job done is tracked by achievement. The focus should be on the goal, which is to get the job done.

Tracking work and production by hours spent was a necessary function during the industrial age. The machines were running and employees needed to be present at certain times, in specific locations, so that the production line would continue to run. However, the information age necessitates tracking achievement. New technology has created the more complex and demanding 24-hour global customer. There is no longer a standard customer asking for a standard product during standard business hours. Technology also allows employees to serve this new customer need, and they can achieve their assigned tasks by working anytime and anywhere.

PLANNING FOR FLEXIBLE WORK OPTIONS

flexible work options, and these are described below. There are two steps managers need to take before introducing

Step 1: Examine Current Work Environment In many cases, the traditional work schedule and environment

fall painfully short of enhancing productivity. Long traffic delays, phone calls, coffee breaks, and long and frequent meetings can rob

72 Autumn 1996 Employment Relations Today

Flexible Work Schedules Can Create Productive Work Environments

The number of workers that are telecommuting has increased dramatically.

employees of the time they need to complete their work. Although it may be important for employees to be together to exchange ideas and collaborate on projects, it may not be necessary for all employees to be together all of the time. Having everyone together all of the time can be as counterproductive as having everyone disbursed all of the time. Particularly during downsizing, compa- nies may fall into the trap of requiring all employees to be at corporate offices all of the time and may react by cutting flexible work options. However, because employees who remain after downsizings are faced with more work, fewer resources, and declining motivation, strategic planning for downsizings should include promoting the use of flexible work options. Allowing surviving employees to select alternative work arrangements can yield the productivity increases that are needed after a downsizing.

Technology is the enabler of flexibility. One could argue that if organizations are not currently capitalizing on flexibility as a work style, they are not fully leveraging the money spent on technological advances. Environments in which employees are either routinely at their desks for long periods of time or, converse- ly, rarely at their desks are ripe for flexible work styles. Voice mail, electronic mail, portable computers, and fax machines all facilitate flexibility. Flexibility is not an all or nothing proposition; some flexibility for some employees can and will increase productivity.

The number of workers that are telecommuting (i.e., the work is taken to the worker rather than the worker to the work) has increased dramatically. There are approximately 9.1 million telecommuters nationwide, of whom 6.6 million are corporate telecommuters. Between 1993 and 1994, results from a survey conducted by Find/SVC, a New York telecommunicating re- search company, showed a 20-percent increase in the number of U.S. telecommuters. The U.S. Department of Transportation esti- mates that telecommuting will increase by as much as fivefold by theyear2000,whichis thesamegrowth rate thatchaseManhattan Bank forecasts for its telecommuting program by the same year. Chase Manhattan Bank implemented a telecommuting pilot pro- gram in 1993; by early 1996, Chase estimates that it had 1,000 telecommuting employees.

Step 2: Measure and Define Productivity A constant work environment will produce a constant produc-

tivity level; changing the work environment variable will change the productivity level. Some managers view flexibility as chaos: ”If we can’t control the work now, how will we do it with everyone all over the place?” Some managers assume that if they see their employees working, it means they have control over their work.

Employment Relations Today Autumn 1996 73

Sandra A. Sullivan

Effective implementation of flexible work options can create a productive work environment.

Managers should ask themselves, “Has there ever been a case of an employee looking busy but not really doing anything?” Mis- management of time and lack of technical knowledge can keep an employee looking very busy, but at the end of the day, what is accomplished? Management by watching or oversight is not a measurement of or guarantee for productivity. Progressive man- agers are looking at responsibilities, outputs, and indicators (ROI) for successful evaluation of productivity.

Responsibilities. Never mind the “where and when” of getting the job done; managers should focus on the ”what and who.” Employees should be encouraged to outline their perceptions of responsibilities and identify the people they think are critical resources in achieving various tasks. When employees and managers clearly understand respon- sibilities, managers are freed from policing employees’ schedules and have more time for coaching employees through successful completion of tasks and efficient use of resources. Outputs. Employees should be encouraged to forecast ex- pected output from their efforts. If employees are dealing with customers, do they anticipate a 98-percent, 24-hour turnaround in phone calls? If an accountant is performing an audit, does he or she have to meet an end-of-quarter deadline? Employees and managers need to look for spe- cific results achieved within a given period. Indicators. If turnaround time is the output, the indicator can be either a report showing closed issues or a customer service survey that indicates the responsibility was achieved. If a deadline is the output, the indicator can be either a sign- off on the audit or accuracy of the bottom line. Employees and managers should agree on what can be evaluated (e.g., reports, customer feedback, accuracy, timeliness) to indi- cate that tasks are accomplished in a positive way.

FINDING A NEW WAY OF WORKING To continue doing the business the same way it has always

been done can stall productivity. By simply working harder, employees and managers will not move beyond established pro- ductivity levels but will burn out instead. Effective implementa- tion of flexible work options can create a productive work envi- ronment in which employees work smarter and get tasks accom- plished. Organizations that challenge existing assumptions about work hours and location also challenge stagnating quality of work product. +

74 Autumn 1996 Employment Relations Today