A flexible work schedule is an opportunity to come to the work and leave it at a certain time or chosen working days. For example, an employee is allowed to start the working day from 9 am to 11 am and finish from 5 am to 7 pm. Or they can work on Sunday instead of Friday.
As an employer, you can offer employees different options for cooperation: part-time work, remote work, etc.
How to switch to a flexible work schedule?
Flexible working ensures that employees are present at work during the daily “core hours”. Realizing this helps concerned managers take the first steps toward implementing alternatives. If you're ready to give it a try, here are some tips for implementing flexible work arrangements that will benefit both employers and employees.
1. Give yourself time
Don't rush to do everything at once. Try flexible Fridays first, and then introduce an alternative work week. When it comes to hours, start with the core hours, including when employees need to be present for meetings or other key events.
2. Communicate with employees
Set metrics for teams, but before you do, talk to your employees and let them decide how to improve substandard performance.
3. Recognize employee achievements
It's easier to recognize employee wins when they're sitting a few meters away or working at the same time. When you have different schedules, it requires a more focused effort. Flexible work schedules increase productivity, so make sure everyone on the team understands the benefits and recognizes the successes of each team member.
How to control the hours worked?
Regardless of the chosen schedule, the manager expects the staff to be responsible for performing work and achieving the goals set for the position.
Manually checking the quality of remote and flexible work takes a lot of time and effort, especially if there are more than 10 people in the team. That's why automatic systems are used. They provide all the necessary information in the form of convenient reports. For example, in Yaware.TimeTracker, you can customize the work schedule for each employee or department, personalize the collection of statistics as much as possible and view it not only from your computer but also from your phone. With this program, you will allow employees to start and end the day the way they want, knowing that they are productive and perform their duties to the best of their ability.
There is a chance that some employees may take advantage of alternative schedules to work less. If you don't use an employee time tracking system, it will be difficult to distinguish between flexible schedules and unfair work practices.
On the other hand, more dedicated employees may overwork themselves. This sounds good in theory, but it can directly lead to burnout.
So, automated systems are used to ensure that all the necessary data is available for analysis. This promotes a result-oriented culture and helps businesses thrive.
