Employees: Embrace the work life balance14 June 2006
Many people in the UK can no doubt see the benefits of having the option to work flexibly but may have previously been hindered by a lack of knowledge on exactly what this entails. It is difficult to imagine being able to fulfil one's working role from the living room, particularly if employers do not appear to have made the necessary facilities available. As the Inter-tel survey in yesterday's article showed, employees have also often felt that choosing a flexible working routine could actually be detrimental to their careers.
As the idea of improving work life balance to the benefit of both businesses and workers continues to grow in popularity, facilitated by broadband technology, employees are likely to be presented with more opportunities to benefit. In addition, people looking to work freelance or to set up their own business have much to gain from investigation and adopting flexible working practices.
- Working from home - whether you are an employee of an organisation or work independently, having the equipment in place to work from home can prove invaluable in a number of different ways. Wasted time is dramatically reduced, as hours spent commuting are eliminated, allowing individuals to maximise the productivity during working hours. This is also financially beneficial as travel costs are minimised and arranging an internet connection such as BT Business Broadband means that communication via email is cost effective and easy, while BT Business Broadband Voice can drastically cut phone bills.
- Working remotely - having access to a laptop or other mobile device on which one can access the internet and essential work data means that should you have to leave the office or house for any reason the time spent travelling can be used productively. It can add a competitive edge to the business too, as work data is available at the click of a button and customer queries, orders or complaints can be dealt with quickly.
- Flexible hours - the internet has made the world a 24-hour place and as a result many companies offer staff the opportunity to work less traditional hours. Whether it be following a different shift pattern, or working on a weekly or monthly hours total, working in this way can benefit the business as staff are available earlier in the morning or later in the evening and the less rigid daily routine improves employees' work life balance.
Utilising flexible working practices can offer very real benefits to employees or independent workers and the improvement of the life side of the balance needn't be at the expense of the work side.
Improving work life balance not only generates more time in which to achieve both work tasks and personal commitments, it also improves the quality of that time. For example, doctor's appointments or the school run need not cut into the working day anymore as the hours can be made up around them. Having the ability to devote more or less time to one or the other area of the work life balance is likely to improve satisfaction in both areas.
If you are thinking about setting up the equipment to work from home, it is worth considering a few points.
- Employees should check with their employer exactly what kind of internet connection, phone line and computer they will need and agree who will finance the installation and maintenance of such equipment.
- It is important to be sure that working from home is feasible, if there are children or flatmates around, for example, be realistic about how much work will actually get done.
- If working independently assess carefully what the business requires in the way of equipment - whether more than one phone line should be installed, for example, or if advanced communications like teleconferencing is needed and whether the business is likely to grow so that expandable systems may be put in place.
If you are interested in finding out about the kinds of technology and products available to implement flexible working, whether at home or at the office, check out tomorrow's article which will run through the essentials.
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