Commentary: Want flexible work arrangements but afraid to ask? Here’s how

HYBRID FUNCTION A WIN-WIN WITH REGARD TO EMPLOYERS AND PERSONNEL

When done right, crossbreed work is a win-win for employers and their staff .

Since workers make decisions based on what will make them most comfortable, efficient and happy, the freedom to select whether to work at home or on-site, and which days, is empowering.

More flexibility leads to balanced workload, participation within team activities plus higher work-life satisfaction. According to Gallup research, engaged employees produce better business outcomes and can lead to a 23 percent increase in profitability. They also tend to stick around their workplaces more.

It is thus within companies’ interest to give workers the flexibility to generate their own schedules.

CONCERNS CONCERNING THE STIGMA OF FLEXI-WORK

There are, however , legitimate concerns from workers about flexi-work. The resulting reduction in facetime along with bosses, for instance, can have an unfavourable effect on their career.

Academics call this phenomenon “proximity bias”: An unconscious tendency to give preferential treatment to those in our instant vicinity.

This prejudice can be unwise whenever remote workers can achieve just as much, if not more, than patients on-site . The 2015 study by Stanford economists showed that remote workers at a Chinese language travel agency had higher performance levels but lost in order to in-house staff upon performance-based promotions.