The Flexible Workforce - part 1

Things have changed and things are different now in the way we work and live. The new now has begun. Most organizations are planning for return to office and getting ready to go back to work. As we move into the new now lets get one thing clear our resume will be our skills and not the long list of pages of your good deeds. Technology and operational skills will govern for the next few years to come for large part of the workforce here in India. With this change also comes the change in the way we work. We have often in the last two years been visioning a work environment offering the choice of where and when you want to work and how you want to work. You want to work flexibly. I will try and share a series of writeups to help folks steer in the right direction to make irresistible organizations as Bersin calls them.

Evolution of the flexible workforce:

Well the good news is its now actually happening, organizations are at least thinking about flexibility. Large organizations now boldly proclaiming that they are willing to offer "flex" as a part of work. Studies and research show that the last two years have changed the way we see "Life" and "Work" and this has pushed talent to seek more flex in the way they work and live. Earlier there was "work" and then there was "life" they were two separate paradigms for many workers. For most workforces across the globe, work many-a-times over shadowed life. We used to meet too often, email too much and never get a break. Like Josh Bersin puts it - We are not working from home but living at work. Over the last two years this has changed. Life now has a new meaning for everyone, there is a different purpose of life for each of us and I am confident the tilt towards life will keep increasing in the time to come. Technology has grown exponentially and it has proved that work and life can co-exist. Yes there are challenges, there are teething issues and the most complex of all is the "mindset issue". The mindset that "This does not work", "Its too much of a hassle to continue this long term" , "the customers/client don't like this form of working" etc. Many Leaders and Organizations are slowly and steadily dealing with this and making the changes required in their strategy and operating model. Technology and automation have proved that work can actually happen from anywhere without productivity loss. Would you believe if I say that most organizations have actually grown through the pandemic, yes more work was done and accomplished in the last two years by the workforce with the ability to work remote and work from home. However the ability to work "flexibly" from home was still not a reality and this caused a lot of pain and grief leading to the "great resignation". A large part of the great resignation is caused by stress, burnout and lack of balance in work and life. A study by the IBM Institute of Business Value shows 1 in 4 employees are planning to switch employers in 2021, and as many intend to switch occupations. Mental health, care, safety, belonging saw increase in demand and are proving to be the pathways to pave the talent road map in the new flexible now. Take a look at some data that proves this point.

We have a new term now that's trending and a mindset that is now shaping around what I call as "worklife" where work and life have now come together for a large part of the global workforce. Work and Life are no longer separate paradigms they are now part of the same conundrum. Its essential for organizations and leaders to address this "worklife" and define your strategy and roadmaps and make attempts to balance it evenly. This is where Flexibility steps in as a gamechanger. Organization and leaders need to let go of the ridgid policies and practices that dictate when to come to office. Instead they should look at possibilities of giving people choices that fit their work and personal needs. Looking at flexible work schedules, rotations, work from home/anywhere options, part time work, gig work, mobile working and so much more can be thought through in two parts. Part one is designing the flexibility offering based on active listening of your people needs. Second part is the experience the design provides which helps people decide on their future with you and create that sense of belonging.

What is being communicated and what is actually being "experienced" by your people on the ground are the key deciders on how smoothly your talent strategy will work out. Only creating policies and process around flex will not help in the new now, you also need to constantly build the experiences for your people to be able to be educated, to experiment and evolve through the various stages of your implementation. Experience will drive what we now call as the "great opportunity", why a talent looks at joining your organization, his/her perception about your organization and its ways of working. Most importantly your commitments to make it come alive. There are other factors that will inform your talent strategy but flex will be at the core of each of the factors. Such a human centered design is the need of the hour and as leaders we need to actively upgrade ourselves and constantly evolve the experiences we intend to delver.

Last but not the least always remember (something I have always told my clients) "its not what your competitor is doing that should shape your thinking, yes its important to be aware, but the main competition is always with yourself, how you as an organization as a leader are listening (to your people), evolving and growing that matters in the long run".