Chamber Chatter
Workplace flexibility

Employee turnover is expensive business. According to a Coca-Cola study, supermarkets spend $1.40 on employee turnover for very $1 of profit. Retail clothing stores would have to sell 3,000 additional pairs of khaki pants at $35 a piece to compensate for the loss of one worker. It is clear all organizations, large and small, expect to grow and prosper. But they must make talent retention a top priority.

A convincing body of research and corporate experience finds that flexibility is a critical element of an effective workplace. When employees are exposed to a flexible, effective workplace, they are more likely to be satisfied with their jobs. In addition, they are more likely to remain with their employer and thus will be more effective.

What is flexibility? Workplace flexibility is a way to define how and when work gets done and how careers are organized. While there are many forms of flexibility, a handful comprise the most common arrangements: flexible hours and scheduling, telecommuting, job sharing, team and work partner rotations, career transitions from part-time to full-time and back, and continued training and learning opportunities.

Here are some basic guiding principles for increasing the chances of sustaining these strategies:

.. See flexibility as a strategic business tool.

.. Define goals.

.. Ask employees what they need.

.. Involve top and middle management.

.. Define flexibility as mutually beneficial.

.. Communicate.

.. Recognize and reward.

For a complete copy of the US Chamber of Commerce newsletter, please e-mail Brandie at breese@lincolncountyga.org.

Source: Institute for a Competitive Workforce. U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Workplace Flexibility - Employers Respond to the Changing Workforce. (Washington, D.C.: Institute for a Competitive Workforce, Winter 2008).