http://www.articlesnatch.com/rss2/myspace layouts.xml Search our collection of over 310,000 articles and use them on your site, blog or newsletter. Have Articles? Submit them and get published on our site for free. en-us http://www.articlesnatch.com/rss2/myspace layouts PHP/ http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-7/372474 Benefits of flextime work arrangements: (continued from part 6 in this article series.) Lower traffic congestion during peak hours: If more and more companies adopt the flextime work arrangement, the peak hour traffic which happens around 8:00 AM – 10:00 AM and 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM will get distributed to other parts of the day. This could lead to less traffic on the roads and less commuting time for employees. Who wouldn't like an hour less on the road, every day? This will also lead to less cases of road rage among the employees and cause stress level due to commuting to reduce. Decrease in tardiness: Usually people tend to reach office late due to traffic problems or they sometimes leave earlier due to family commitments and other reasons. When employees have flexibility with their work timings, they can adjust their work hours around these other issues in life and devote the required full time in office. This will reduce wastage of time and hence result in less tardiness. This is an obvious benefit of flextime. Wed, 27 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-7/372474 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-8/372475 Benefits of flextime work arrangements: (continued from part 7 in this article series.) We discussed many benefits of flextime in the previous two articles. Lets discuss two more important benefits of this alternative work arrangement. Lower attrition rate or higher employee retention: Organizations can lower their attrition rate and hence increase their employee retention figures with flextime programs. Satisfied employees are less likely to leave the company. An employee may not be sure if he will get the same flexibility with work timings in a new company and hence will be reluctant to leave the organization. As per an article by Kimberly Weisul (2000, www.businessweek.com), in a recent survey of 667 working Americans, stock options and a more flexible work schedule were both chosen by 12% of respondents as the most important retention factor. In the same article, it has been mentioned: "In a similar survey conducted in 1999, only 43% of respondents chose "a raise." Non-monetary factors, including flextime and benefits, were cited by 51% of the respondents. Wed, 27 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-8/372475 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-9/372476 Benefits of flextime work arrangements: (continued from part 8 in this article series.) We discussed the following benefits in previous articles: Increased productivity, Higher employee morale & enthusiasm, Better balance between work-life & family-life, Lower traffic congestion during peak hours, Decrease in tardiness, Higher employee recruitment, Lower attrition rate and Reduced absenteeism. Lets see further. Decrease in overtime expenses: Flextime results in decreased overtime expenses. An employee, instead of working overtime could simply come early the next morning and complete his work. Or an employee A could handover the remaining work to a colleague B who may be working in office for 2-3 hours more after employee A has gone home. Greater job satisfaction: When employees work in a flextime environment, they tend to feel more responsibility and accountability towards their job. This leads to greater job satisfaction. Ellen Galinsky, president and co-founder of the Families and Work Institute, a New York City-based not-for-profit research organization, says that work-life initiatives such as flextime are one component of an effective modern workplace, one that is "highly correlated" with job satisfaction, loyalty, engagement, retention, and better mental health. Wed, 27 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-9/372476 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-10/372478 The last two benefits of flextime are discussed below. Extended office hours for the organization: This is a direct benefit to the organization. If a company always has some or the other employee working from 6:00 AM till 8:00 PM, it will project a positive image. The clients of the company could call at 7 in the morning or 7 in the evening and receive support or any other relevant information they desire immediately. Sharing of physical resources: When two employees work at the same desk and computer but at different times of the day, the company saves money as it does not have to allocate additional office space, furniture and hardware for two employees. Two years back, I used to work in a small Internet data-center. There, a team of fifteen employees shared five computers and desks. This was possible only because of flexible working hours. The employees worked in three shifts and hence the company could provide technical support for 24 hours with just five computers. Flextime program as an alternative work arrangement has some potential drawbacks. Wed, 27 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-10/372478 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-11/372480 Potential drawbacks of flextime work arrangements: Reluctance from employees: A report from HR Focus (2004) says that "Although flextime is more available now, many workers are dissatisfied with their work schedules, the report found. Nearly half (49%) of employees would prefer a different shift. The report also found that 39% of respondents said employees who use flexible work options are less likely to get ahead in their jobs." Another report in Law Office Management & Administration Report (2005) mentions that "According to the 2002 National Study of the Changing Workforce conducted by the Families and Work Institute (New York City; www.familiesandwork.org), although flextime is available at 68% of all the organizations polled, 79% of employees say they would like even more flexibility. This includes men, women, parents, non-parents, employees with and without elder-care responsibilities, employees at all earning levels, and workers in goods-producing and service industries. Of employees who have access to flextime (currently only 43%), 68% of men and 79% of women use it." Thus, even though companies are providing flexibility with work timings, employees are not really using them due to the above mentioned reasons. Wed, 27 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-11/372480 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-12/372481 The last two problems of flextime are discussed in this concluding article of this series. Inadequate Staffing: This problem can occur if the company or the particular department is small in size. If there are less number of employees and the flextime program is implemented, there could be a shortage of employees during some hours of the day on some days. If the management is unsure of the success of flextime program in some departments/organizations, it could do a pilot or trial program over a month or so. After knowing the results, the program could be implemented on a larger scale. Coordination challenges: This problem can occur mostly in the case of daily flextime. With flexibility in work scheduling, employees come in to work during different times of the day. As there is always uncertainty about the timings of employees, scheduling meetings is difficult. If face to face communication is required and the timings do not overlap, it will be a problem. Similarly team projects could also slow down with daily flextime as coordinating between many employees can be a tedious task. Wed, 27 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-12/372481 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-1/371729 To hire and retain very good talent is a challenge for any organization. The costs of finding and hiring new employees are very high both in terms of time and money, especially when it comes to top talent. In this scenario, alternative work arrangements like flextime are becoming very popular in today’s workplace. The advances in technology have made alternative work arrangements more possible and successful than ever before. The results from flextime work arrangements have been highly encouraging. There have been increases in productivity, employee satisfaction and job loyalty. The attrition rate is lower when flexible work scheduling is used in organizations. There are opposing views about this non-traditional work arrangement, but the benefits of flextime outweigh the criticisms. The major types of alternative work arrangements are flextime, job sharing, telecommuting and compressed work week. 1) Flextime: The term flextime is a short form of "flexible work time" or "flexible work hours". It allows employees to choose their own working hours within some limits. 2) Job sharing: It is an arrangement in which two or more employees share the responsibility of a full-time work position. This is a type of part-time work arrangement. Mon, 25 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-1/371729 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-2/371730 Alternative work arrangements are used to accommodate unique preferences and requirements of employees when they are unable to cope up with the traditional 40 hours work week. A new work arrangement is implemented after a plan is worked out between the employees and the senior management. Apart from the job sharing arrangement, the total time worked and work responsibilities remain the same in case of the other three major arrangements. Increased productivity, reduced absenteeism, lower attrition rate, better employee-management relations, lower tardiness, higher employee morale, etc., are some of the benefits to the company as a result of alternative work arrangements. Lower stress, greater job satisfaction, less traveling problems, increased energy and creativity, better balance between family life and work life, etc., are some of the benefits to the employees. A company will have a recruiting advantage over its competitors if it offers alternative work arrangements to new employees. The individual benefits, drawbacks and more information about flextime are discussed in the article ahead. Flextime: Flextime as explained earlier refers to flexible work timings. Mon, 25 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-2/371730 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-3/371731 Continuing from Part 2 in this series of articles. Flextime program has been becoming a popular option in organizations around the world. "Approximately 43 percent of the U.S. full-time workforce now has flexibility in daily arrival and departure times. And this is not just a U.S. Phenomenon. In Germany, for instance, 29 percent of businesses have flextime for their employees" (Robbins and Judge, 2008, p.95). Companies like IBM, Sun Microsystems, Ernst & Young, etc. have adopted flextime work arrangements since many years and they have been successful at it. Sometimes flextime programs are offered with a mix of telecommuting and part-time job-sharing to give more flexibility to the employees. Flextime programs are mainly of two types: 1. Rigid flextime program: In this program, an employee has fixed work timings. Example: the employee may come in to work at 6:00 AM and leave at 3:00 PM every day till changes are made to his or her schedule after a meeting with the management. 2. Daily flextime program: In this type of flextime program, the employee has more autonomy and can choose his or her daily work timings. Mon, 25 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-3/371731 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-4/371732 Questions to be answered by the organization before it can adopt the flextime program: An organization must take care of few things and ask itself some questions before and while making a decision about implementing the flextime program in the company. The most important questions that an organization must answer are listed below. 1. Is the company or department large enough in size (number of employees)? Can the problem of inadequate staffing crop up? 2. Will the flextime program improve employee job satisfaction and increase their productivity?Will it help increase the employee retention ratio? 3. Will the flextime program help the clients of the organization with the extended office hours? Will it improve the customer service? 4. Will employees be able to gain a better balance between their personal lives and professional lives? 5. Can all the jobs in the organization really be included in the flextime program? Are there any jobs where the traditional 9-5 work day schedule is required to be followed? 6. Will the flextime program reduce absenteeism and tardiness? 7. Are the managers ready to deal with the new work timings of their subordinates and associates? Mon, 25 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Flextime---An-Alternative-Work-Arrangement---Part-4/371732