Flexible working - A reward or just good working practice?
When I began thinking about writing my latest post (And if you hadn’t already guessed, I do write them, not some PR company) my intention was to provoke a debate about reward – “what constitutes a meaningful reward in a sales/commission led environment.
If I’m honest, it felt like a boring subject that’s probably been done to death and I wasn’t relishing putting pen to paper (or finger to keyboard). I did my research, read tons of articles and other peoples’ blogs, LinkedIn posts and it seems that the “challenge” is universal. Reward means so many different things to different people and it would seem there has been a whole industry spawned out of trying to give people extra feel good factors – from at desk massages to fruit on Friday, duvet days or even flying lessons.
What I did find interesting was the subject of flexible working. It seems that the recruitment industry (like many others) is struggling to balance the idea or ideal of giving people flexibility whilst expecting a target to be hit. Some companies seem to offer flexible working as a reward; it’s normally listed as early finishes or later starts. Of course some do more than this but it isn’t easy to find hard evidence, my research mostly involved speaking to recruiters who work for different organisations.
This had led me to conclude that the “reward” of flexible working is often given to the high performers. People who hit their sales targets are given the most flexibility and have more freedom.Of course, I’m generalising and I’m sure there are lots of brilliant recruitment companies that just don’t give flexible working to an elite few, but let me pose this question to you all:
Should we give flexible working to everybody who wants it and what exactly does that mean?
If one presumes that most recruitment businesses that have a new business arm or division manages its people through a sales target (I appreciate there is clearly more to it than just that) and that a mathematical formula is applied to basic salary and commission vs. target e.g:
Target of 200k NFI per annum
Base salary 40k
Commission 20% of everything billed
And that the employee has passed the “does he or she know how to do the job, lives by the company values, can hit a sales target” test, then why should I, as business owner, care how many hours, minutes or days somebody has to put in per week to achieve it.
More to the point, should I care if the recruiter comes into the office, works from home, sits in Starbucks or on the back of a boat? I understand the arguments of sales environments needing people, but I know that’s not for everybody. I married an amazing recruiter who is twice as productive from the comfort of her own private study with nothing to distract her apart from the cat.
I think flexible working should or could mean more than an early finish or a late start, it could be about empowering sales people to dictate their own flexibility and be measured by which side of a 100% sales target they stand on.
Is that a step too far or is it time to see flexible working as “just working”?
Senior Technical/Digital Recruiter at MAP "Success is a journey, we create the MAP"
9 年Perfect!! Ross Markall AIRP will agree & yourself actually, I'm very easily distracted but that's got a lot to do with the environment your in, knowing that I'm stuck in a seat seeing the same people and same objects for at least 10 hours a day 5 days a week because my contract says I have to isn't motivating for me personally! Moving to London I joined a great agency and it opened my eyes to how results can still be achieved in an organic environment that offers much more autonomy. Now I'm living in Sydney I work In a fully flexible environment where I can choose to work from, be that at home or a coffee shop that over looks the harbour or indeed the office (We have just acquired a very nice new office as you've seen so I spend a lot of my time here) Its just refreshing to have a choice. As mentioned below you need to trust the people that you grant these levels of freedom, but if the results are there why not offer flexibility, If I can be trusted anybody can :)
Recruitment Business Partner at Pegasus Homes??
9 年I enjoyed this article, I'd love to see more recruitment companies offering flexible working, the r2r industry is so competitive and companies that do offer a flexible approach often win out over hugher salaries. Of course the balance has to be right and there has to be a level of trust but I think the recruitment industry could do so much more!
Helping Recruitment Owners & Leaders get where they need to go…
9 年Hi Andy, I trust all is well with you and Rethink, congrats on your recent BGF backing to acquire Consort. I would broadly agree with you, traditionally, I've found recruitment companies to be deeply mistrustful of flexible working, possibly fearing a lack of control and having a deep rooted attachment to "old world" office life. But as you say, the industry is based around results, so wherever you are is largely irrelevant as long as you are getting the job done effectively. I think it comes down to the individual and how a firm gets the best out of them, if that's allowing them the freedom to make the choice on their place of work, then so be it. As Drew has commented earlier, clearly a recruiter at the start of their career needs to be developed and guided onsite where there is support and infrastructure on tap. But once the aptitude, experience and potential results are in evidence, then absolutely let's give people options to do what they do best in whatever location they want.
Built To Rent (BTR) Talent Acquisition Specialist
9 年I wish I could "like" Ross Markall AIRP comment!
A Board level, commercial leader with a track record of delivering successful transformation programmes in complex, international retail and FMCG environments
9 年Rather interesting article but there is a core truth that has been either missed or not articulated and that is whether a business views it's staff as trusted, grown up professional people. Any organisation that respects it's staff and trusts them will by definition respect that persons own judgement as to where they work best and when and what suits their specific requirements, sometimes even on that particular day. In return, that trust must be rewarded by delivery.