The Misconceptions of
Workplace Flexibility
Dispelling Three Leading Myths that Can Impede a Strategic Work Model
By Allison O’Kelly, CEO of Mom Corps
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There is a common misconception among business leaders that “workplace
flexibility” is just a concessionary benefit for employees that comes at a cost
to employers. But like many things, it is fear of the unknown that propagates
perception. In truth, the benefits to employees translate to strong, measurable
positive outcomes for companies. They go hand in hand, and as skilled workers
and professionals in general become more of a premium, organizations that offer
progressive workplace programs will remain highly competitive.
Under this erroneous umbrella are three leading ideas:
“If I can’t see them, they aren’t working” [read: trust is an issue]. “It’s something
managers handle individually with direct reports” [read: at best, it is a micro, not
macro issue,]. “We offer flexibility, but no one participates” [read: the culture
doesn’t support it].
Here we address these myths and explain how the opposite is actually more the reality.
The Value of Trust
Companies still foster unfounded concerns that employees will not perform at optimal levels if not
bound to a traditional office setting and schedule. In reality, managers would do best to embrace
workplace flexibility as a tool that increases productivity.
The Wall Street Journal reported on a Brigham Young University study on IBM’s workforce: In a
startling finding, researchers discovered telecommuters on flextime schedules can cram in 19
more hours of work a week, compared with people who work entirely in the office, before they
begin to report work-family conflict. And there are many studies and stories of the like. According
to the Telework Research Network: Sun Microsystems’ experience suggests that employees spend
60% of the commuting time they save performing work for the company. AT&T workers work five
more hours at home than their office workers. American Express workers produced 43% more
than their office-based counterpoints. Small and medium sized businesses (SMBs) are seeing
similar results.
Trust is a significant factor holding managers back from endorsing and allowing flexible work
options. We hear this a lot, but I think it’s more about confidence. Confidence in the employees’
ability to get the job done of their own accord. Confidence in the supervisor’s ability to managing
a team remotely. I see it time and again—once company leaders realize that different work options
can work with the team they have in place, they are accepting of the program.
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Coming from the Top
Company leaders often view workplace flexibility as “a nice-to-have perk” that individual
managers can dispense like candy at their discretion. This view has two flaws that ultimately
damage the program’s chance for success.
First, this “tactical” perspective diminishes the strategic value that flexibility can bring to the
organization. When managers are left to manage flexible options on an ad-hoc basis with no
formal policy or centralized guidelines, the potential power is diluted. Such an approach can’t be
measured or improved upon with best practices, and likely doesn’t have the funding or resources
to implement a long-term initiative.
This approach can also create disparity and division between business functions within the
organization. Imagine that the finance department head fully embraces seasonal work schedules
or teleworking options while marketing management requires a more traditional 9-to-5/
in-the-office model. Will flexibility start to be seen only as a benefit for the select few? Can these
two teams work cohesively and collaboratively with different mindsets around productivity? Will
frustration and lack of communication create conflict when there should be community? Yes, these
issues will arise if programs aren’t delivered equivalently.
Flexible work options aren’t seen as vital if stakeholders across the organization can’t see the
inherent value of improved productivity and increased employee satisfaction. Senior management
and HR can’t just create a flexible work policy, communicate it to managers and hope it sticks. The
benefits of flexibility have to be communicated as a shared vision, then measured and monitored
as a way of meeting strategic objectives. When leaders begin to view flexibility as a solution to a
broad range of business issues across functional channels, they’ll see measurable results.
Concept Becomes Cultural Reality
On the surface, flexibility is already part of the new workplace culture. WorldatWork found that,
by far, the most prevalent flexibility programs offered are part-time schedules (with or without
benefits), flex-time (flexible start/stop times) and telework on an ad-hoc basis (meet a repair
person, sick child). These programs are each offered to some or all employees in more than 80% of
companies, with more than two-thirds of organizations (68%) offering all three programs.
But offering flexible options is not enough. Encouragement and leading by example have to
be part of the formula, or employees are afraid to ask for or use these benefits. According to a
recent study by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and the Families and Work
Institute, employees are not confident that their use of flexible work options won’t have negative
implications. For flexibility programs to be effective, employees must have confidence that they
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are creating long-term alignment between work and personal/family life, not trading future
career opportunities for working a few hours at home. They will not succeed if they are not
supported both by management and the day-to-day work processes of the organization.
The widespread use of flexible work options will become part of an organization’s DNA when
leaders embrace it as corporate doctrine. At Mom Corps, our corporate team makes strategic
decisions based on our five core values, one of which is Responsible Flexibility. That value
states, “We practice what we preach by living lives with work-life synthesis. We live well, we
work hard and we never take advantage of the gift of flexibility.”
To conclude, company leaders are slowly beginning to realize bottom line
benefits to creating and sustaining a flexible work culture. Coming on the heels of
National Telework Week, studies overwhelmingly show a return on this investment in the form
of reduced attrition, absenteeism, and overhead. Enabling your employees to work responsibly,
communicating a company-wide flexibility offering and leading by example overcomes the
barriers to success. Make the concept an integral part of your company’s value proposition,
not just a required paragraph in your management handbook.
Mom Corps is a national professional placement and career development firm. Companies of all sizes trust Mom
Corps as their go-to resource for finding experienced professionals. We help these companies leverage our loyal
talent network of over 150,000 candidates, their networks of like-minded individuals, and traditional recruiting
methods to find high-caliber talent for their organizations. We attract, educate and place candidates seeking greater
work-life satisfaction. Our approach has been recognized in the news media (TODAY Show, Wall Street Journal, CNN,
Forbes) and awarded on a national level (Ernst & Young Winning Women, Working Mother, Inc. 500|5000, Conference
Board). When companies think of recruiting top talent and when candidates think of achieving work-life satisfaction,
the answer is the same: Mom Corps. Follow us at @MomCorps and @AllisonOKelly.
© Mom Corps
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