The way we work has changed forever – and businesses are embracing the change

A lot has changed since the outbreak of Covid more than two years ago...

For many of us, our view of the world and our individual priorities have shifted irrevocably. From the way we shop, to the way we travel, to the way we socialise – nothing is quite as it was. The way we live has been fundamentally altered.

For many of us, that includes the way we work.

Some of the changes are relatively small. Perhaps, for example, you’ve embraced new technology to reduce the number of in-person meetings you go to. Maybe the change is a little bigger, and you’ve adjusted your working hours to suit your home life or dodge peak travel congestion. Or it could be a more seismic shift, cutting down from full-time to part-time, or eschewing an office desk in favour of working from home for some – or even all – of your hours.

Whether our changes have been big or small, made by choice or necessity, virtually all of us will have modified our behaviour to some degree. But the great unknown has been whether these changes would be temporary and fade away as life returned to normal, or whether they are here to stay.

New research by Cranfield School of Management and CBI Economics goes some way to answering that question.

This data shows a marked increase in the willingness of both employees and employers to consider part-time, remote and flexible working options. Changes borne of necessity are becoming embedded through preference.

It all began, of course, with Government orders to work from home, and the shutdown of businesses and sectors ahead of a phased return from furlough to work. Workers across the East of England saw long-ingrained working patterns ripped up overnight, while firms were forced to find new ways to remain productive and connected with their teams.

Fears of a drop-off in productivity were quickly dispelled, and for many – despite the upheaval and worry of Covid itself – the changes proved positive. Reduced commuting hours, less travel expense, an improved work-life balance, all proved unexpected upsides.

It is not just workers who like the change – their bosses are getting on board too. Attitudes have changed as the new practices have proven effective, and the majority of firms are now far more open to requests for part-time working, and increasingly flexible about exactly when and where the work gets done.

Statistics show 62% of line managers surveyed said they are ‘more willing’ to allow their staff to work part-time in the wake of the pandemic, while almost all (96%) said they are more flexible about where employees work. Some 87% are equally flexible about how people schedule their working days.

Looking ahead, more than half expect remote and flexible working uptake to increase (60% and 58% respectively) over the next two years, while 46% expect part-time working to increase too. And almost half credit lessons learned during the pandemic – lessons around managing part-time working and matching resource to demand peaks – as key to this shift in perceptions.

And the benefits go both ways. In today’s fiercely competitive labour market, East of England companies open to flexible working arrangements will be able to tap into new skills pools, and have a better opportunity to attract and retain employees. The bottom line looks good too, with the majority of those surveyed saying the financial wellbeing of their company remains good or very good – and is expected to remain that way in the years ahead.

As well as protecting the livelihoods of millions of workers during the Covid crisis, the furlough scheme has shaped radical reforms to the contemporary workplace. What began essentially as a ‘forced experiment’ has yielded positive outcomes to a degree few would have predicted – and now looks here to stay.