The evolution of flexible work: part one

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I'm obsessed with time, in particular, the distinct lack of it. So much so that it's possible I think about it too frequently. A procrastinator who's determined to improve the way we think about and use our time — the irony.

Which is a long way of saying, "I ran out of time to write the newsletter last week but will share two this week, instead."

I speak to many people who are passionate about self-improvement and are committed to achieving the right balance between their work and personal lives. While a vital part of reimagining work, this alone, isn't enough. Organisations have to play their role in not just allowing flexible work but facilitating it.

If you consider the first stage of flexible work to be pre-pandemic, it was scattergun for most organisations, handed out as a 'benefit' to the lucky few who, in turn, were often looked down upon by their peers as part-timers. I exaggerate, of course, but research by flexible work experts like Zoe Young bears this generalisation out.

We're in the midst of stage two right now. We now have a distributed workforce and with that, have flexibility out of necessity. Our understanding that for many jobs location can be flexible is now accepted. Allowances are also now made in some places for when people work, taking into account caring responsibilities, for example. 

The next, critical stage is for flexible time to not only be accepted but encouraged for the business reasons I'll outline shortly.

Now, achieving this isn't just a matter of extending the working day for people to catch-up on the hours they missed while teaching their kids some maths, popping out for a Covid test, or squeezing in some exercise. 

Businesses that strive for innovation and long-term growth must create a culture in which flexible work/life design is a business imperative.

In the last edition of Future Work/Life, I promised to share a framework with you that will help any business achieve these three things:

1. Greater flexibility

2. Better mental health

3. Enhanced performance

Here are the five essential components of a successful flexible work strategy, presented using a handy acronym - I call it the JOINT framework. I'll start with job crafting and outcomes today, with part two coming up later this week.

Job Crafting

Outcomes

Insights

Nudges

Time

Job Crafting:

Some companies thrived in the early days of the first lockdown, and others folded; literally and metaphorically. I've spoken with hundreds of entrepreneurs, business leaders, managers, and employees since then. There's a common trait that exists within the successful businesses - our old friend, autonomy. 

Responding rapidly to a fast-moving situation requires people to be able to make decisions quickly. This contrasts with companies with a command-and-control structure, with multiple layers of approval needed for even the smallest decision, exacerbated by reduced proximity and accessibility to 'management'. 

Job crafting enables individuals to bring their unique skills to the fore and in so doing, personalise their approach to work. Therefore, no two account managers, customer service advisors, or human resource coordinators can and will ever do exactly the 'same' job.

It undoubtedly requires trust and emphasises the need for exceptional recruitment, which prioritises how people approach critical thinking and problem-solving; however, as Jennifer Moss, workplace expert and author of the upcoming book Rethinking Burnout, writes:

"For organizations looking to retain their top talent, it's important to understand that boredom is kryptonite for high-performers and inspiration-seeking millennials. Leaders would benefit from giving employees the autonomy to increase purpose and meaning in their roles and reduce the repetitive tasks that fuel chronic stress and burnout. Not only does this prevent the potential for burnout; it increases productivity, engagement, and retention."

While this is a proven approach to improving business performance, how should you approach it in your organisation? The first step is ensuring that you can measure performance effectively by defining the desired outcomes for success.

Outcomes:

As Peter Drucker famously said:

"What gets measured gets managed — even when it's pointless to measure and manage it, and even if it harms the purpose of the organization to do so." 

In other words, just because you measure something doesn't mean that it has any material effect on business success.

There is a misguided logic that goal-setting alone - whether sales targets, campaign metrics or increasing headcount - is enough to measure success. 2020 put paid to that idea. Does the fact that you missed the revenue and profit targets set a year ago mean that your people have done a poor job, for example?

That's not to say financial metrics aren't important. If you don't make the numbers add up, the business will not last for very long, irrespective of whatever positive outcomes arise. 

The classic case of Factory Records springs to mind here. I won't go into detail but plenty of people - let's call them employees and customers - had great 'experiences' on Factory's dime. Yet, the demise of the record label and their nightclub, The Hacienda, was inevitable. As co-founder, Tony Wilson put it:

"All that was valuable was the history we made, not the money we made."

(Tony Wilson and Peter Drucker)

No, we should aim for both - purpose and longevity.

However, while financial outcomes will, ultimately, be the determinant factor of growth, the critical question is how to get there. To understand what drives this, you should focus on metrics that offer leading indicators to two desired outcomes, aligning these with team and individual goals:

Employee engagement and retention - Ensuring that people are healthy, motivated and doing their best work, all of which means they're more likely to stick around and contribute towards delivering... 

Customer loyalty and retention - Ensuring that clients are happy with the product or service and are not only more likely to continue buying it, but prepared to spend more.

Once every individual understands the few key outcomes for which they're responsible, you can create a platform for a dynamic, open culture of positive accountability (in contrast to one which relies on unproductive measurements like the number of hours worked or the number of emails sent).

People feel empowered to take on responsibility and have the confidence to try new things, without fear of failure. 

Later this week, I'll outline how to approach the measurement and tracking of these outcomes. I'll then explain the importance of creating a supportive culture that encourages positive wellbeing and accountability, before focusing on my favourite subject - time, specifically, why flexible work/life design can start a flywheel to drive individual performance and business results.

Have a good week,

Ollie

Any Other Business:

Here’s some more on how job crafting can make work more satisfying, from MIT Sloan Management Review.

Good Judgement has a panel of ‘superforecasters’ making a wide range of predictions, including the percentage of working people who will work ‘exclusively from home’ in the UK as of 1st July 2021. 75% believe that this will be between 10% and 20%, with a further 17% between 20% and 30% of workers. I’m not sure whether this seems too high or too low, but it’s certainly significantly higher than a year ago.

I’ve read and written about Carol Dweck’s Growth Mindset in the past. Is it all bollocks? Tom Chivers suggests in his Buzzfeed article that, at the very least, some of the research contains worrying errors.

There’s some nice stuff in here - 15 Hacks to Get You Through Lockdown shared by Daniele Fiandaca.

And finally, we all know about the link physical exercise and positive mental health. Well, Factory Records and Hacienda alumnus, Bez from Happy Mondays is the unlikely creator of a new YouTube fitness class, which you can watch every weekend. Enjoy!