Ten2Two Research: Flexible Working in Business 2015

Ten2Two Research Whitepaper
Practical Business: Flexible Working
Introduction
Adoption of flexible working by UK businesses has been on a steady increase in the past
decade, accelerating when many found part-time an affordable and cautious solution to
their resourcing needs during the financial crisis and recession.
Whilst adoption is higher, understanding of how to make flexible working work remains
patchy with many business owners and line managers unsure of its benefits and how to
put them to best use.
Our survey describes the benefits from both an employer and employee perspective and
the most popular working patterns. If the needs of both parties can be met a good and
productive relationship develops. The survey also describes the most important
characteristics of a flexible worker something employers can use when recruiting or
assessing people for flexible work.
We would like to thank the 120+ businesses and 650+ professionals from the Ten2Two
community who contributed to the project.
Our Survey
Flexible Working Formats
Every day at Ten2Two we work with businesses adopting

flexible working to make their organisations better. They
tell us about their business, the challenges they face and
the resources they need to grow and improve.
There are many variations of flexible working. The

where, when and how a role is carried out can be
broken down into a number of patterns that suit the
employer, the role and the employee. We asked
businesses what formats they use most frequently.
To share some of that insight, we asked over 120

businesses in May 2015 about their practical use of
flexible working and the learning theyve gained from
their experiences.
Respondents were broadly
SMEs with a flavour from corporates
75% Business owners/Directors

75% Limited Companies
75% Established more than 5 years
50% with in-house or consulting HR
SE England locations
Adoption of Flexible
Working
Over 70% of businesses had granted flexible working to
an existing employee or employees.
Of those, around half had added flexibility within the
existing full-time hours and the other half had agreed a
reduction to part-time hours. Well see this reflected in the
most popular flexible working formats later in the paper
as well as reflected in employers views on the key
benefits of flexible working.
The two formats that emerged most popular were:

Part-time week
Several full days per week from just one up to four
was the most popular format. Its straightforward and we
know employers see the benefit of the focus working a
full day offers. Its also the most familiar format to
businesses and people new to flexible working.
Homeworking
Working some or all of the time from home was the
second most popular format. Frequently offered to
existing employees seeking more flexibility, homeworking
can work for many but not all - roles. Reduced
commuting time offers real lifestyle and wellbeing
benefits to the employee and improved productivity to the
employer.
Following closely behind, reduced daily hours, every day
and reduced daily hours, part-week were also popular,
reflecting the variety of options employers and
employees can use to make flexible working work
effectively without compromising the demands of the job.
Part-time week
Homeworking
Reduced hrs day/part-week
Reduced hrs day/full-week
70%
Additionally, 70% of respondents had also employed a
new employee on flexible terms, 50% of those were
formal flexible working contracts with the other 50%
offering some informal flexibility as part of the new job.
Jobshare
In a parallel survey amongst over 650 professionals from

the Ten2Two member community, their preferences were
broadly similar to our business respondents.
Jobshare was by far the least popular flexible working
format - particularly amongst SMEs. Whilst this format
offers a number of benefits, particularly as a solution to
retain valued employees seeking reduced hours, the
format is seen as difficult to set up and a challenge to
manage.
Working a full day two or three days a week allows people to

focus and build momentum in their role. But if a job involves
working with clients then reducing daily hours over five days a
week delivers daily presence and continuity but still provides my
business with the economy part-time offers.
Business Benefits
Employee Benefits
A wide range of benefits were recognised by businesses

but those that stood out from the crowd were:
We also asked the Ten2Two member community what

benefits flexible working offered them (in addition to
flexible hours of course). They placed a high level of
importance on the following:
Flexible
working
Benefits
Flexible
working
Benefits
1
Employee wellbeing
Rewarding work that uses skills
Employee retention
& experience
Employee productivity
Interaction with other
professionals
Business flexibility
Convenient workplace location
Recruit talented people

Cost-related benefits including salary savings and the
reduced risk of investing in full-time salaries ranked the
lowest amongst the list of potential benefits.
Salary considerations, whilst always an important

hygiene factor, were ranked lower down the scale than
other benefits. However, given local part-time salaries are
sometimes significantly lower than their previous full-time
roles the results are understandable.
The Flexible Worker DNA

Organising and
prioritising
Work
Good communications
skills
Effective time
management
In our experience, an employee that excels in a flexible working format demonstrates skills beyond their functional
(marketing, HR etc.) abilities and experience. We asked both businesses and the Ten2Two community what they felt are
the most important characteristics of a flexible worker.
They pretty much agreed. Effective time management edged the vote as the most important amongst businesses with
Organising and prioritising work coming in a close second but scoring the highest vote amongst Ten2Two Members.
Why not include this in your job skills requirements and interview questions?
Her focus on her objectives and knack of only doing the

things that matter to the job has put us in the shade and has
made us think about how were spending our time
Flexible About Flexibility
What Goes Wrong
Sometimes our clients are anxious about choosing the

right flexible and part-time working format when they
recruit for a role. They worry about whether they have
scope to ask their employee to change their hours or
working pattern once initially agreed. If its a new role its
difficult to predict exactly first time.
When asked about what challenges employers face, no

major problems stood out in the results. Those that were
mentioned focused on the need to carefully co-ordinate
tasks and projects with the rest of the team.
We thought wed ask our Members working flexibly about

this situation. This is what they said:
60%
Nearly 60% of people had changed

their hours or working pattern in their
flexible role after the initial hours had
been agreed.
65%
Nearly two thirds of this group

changed because the job needed
more hours (29%) or their role
needed a different working pattern
(34%).
25%
A quarter increased their hours as

their personal circumstances meant
they could practically work longer or
more days. Few reduced their hours.
40%
40% of people working flexibly would

work more hours - if their job
required it (20%) and/or when school
hours allow (21%).
Changes were mostly mutually agreed but over 40%

Ten2Two Members stated they had been proactive and
suggested the change to their employer. In Only 17% of
cases did the employer suggest the change of hours or
format.
We specifically included the option to comment on the

level of commitment they receive from their flexible
workers. This proved to be the issue that caused least
concern.
What goes Right
95%
agree
Flexible
working has
been a
benefit to
my business
Whats Next?
If youre interested in finding out more about how flexible
working can improve your business or looking for support
in finding an exceptional person for your next flexible role
contact your local Ten2Two team.
The Commute
Its worth noting that we also asked Ten2Two Members
about how far they would travel for work.
70% of Members would travel up to
40 minutes to get to their place of
work, but wouldn't ideally want to
travel further an important aspect
when considering the catchment
area for candidates as well as the
retention of staff if the commute is
onerous.
www.ten2two.org/locations
or search Ten2Two

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Ten2Two Research Whitepaper

Practical Business: Flexible Working

Flexible Working Formats

Every day at Ten2Two we work with businesses adopting

There are many variations of flexible working. The

To share some of that insight, we asked over 120

SMEs with a flavour from corporates

75% Business owners/Directors

The two formats that emerged most popular were:

Reduced hrs day/part-week

Reduced hrs day/full-week

In a parallel survey amongst over 650 professionals from

Working a full day two or three days a week allows people to

A wide range of benefits were recognised by businesses

We also asked the Ten2Two member community what

Rewarding work that uses skills

Interaction with other

Convenient workplace location

Recruit talented people

Salary considerations, whilst always an important

The Flexible Worker DNA

Her focus on her objectives and knack of only doing the

Flexible About Flexibility

What Goes Wrong

Sometimes our clients are anxious about choosing the

When asked about what challenges employers face, no

We thought wed ask our Members working flexibly about

Nearly 60% of people had changed

Nearly two thirds of this group

A quarter increased their hours as

40% of people working flexibly would

Changes were mostly mutually agreed but over 40%

We specifically included the option to comment on the

What goes Right

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