Now that Christmas is well behind us, it’s that time of year where people look forward to their next holiday or time off.
For centuries, employees have been entitled to a set number of days away from work, however, on top of holiday entitlement, the introduction of flexible working is becoming an increasingly popular policy in many organisations.
There has been much kudos attached to presenteeism, but it seems that this is fast disappearing as organisations are not so much worried about when or where work is done, but what work is done and the quality thereof.
Many of us have heard about the approach taken by Richard Branson and his company Virgin. They have taken flexibility with time off one step further by allowing their people to take as much time off as they like, but employees must take on the responsibility of ensuring that the work that is needed to be done, gets done, and that their time off doesn’t impact on work done in a negative way.
Of course, this sort of approach to allowing employees time off doesn’t suit every organisation. However, those that take on a more positive approach to a work life balance could see employee engagement and productivity levels increase, less absenteeism through sickness, and better staff retention rates.
If an organisation wishes to succeed, they must recognise that ‘soft factors’, such as recognition, personal development and a generous holiday entitlement and flexible working scheme are more often than not, just as important, if not more so, than the more obvious factors such a pay levels and promotion opportunities.
Our expert team has been providing employee engagement and satisfaction surveys for over 20 years. If you would like to know more about how we can help your organisation with employee research, then give us a call on +44 (0)1255 850051 or contact us via our website.
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