Copyright (c) 2012 Alison Withers
Although there has been some evidence that the number of people unemployed has been falling slightly there is still a good deal of pessimism about the economic future and businesses are not yet confident enough to invest in growth.
While the unemployment rate reduced to 8.1% in the second quarter of 2012 according to ONS (Office for National Statistics) data businesses are increasingly looking for ways to cut costs in order to survive for the foreseeable future.
Nevertheless, they will still want to retain people with essential skills in order to be able to take advantage of an upturn when it does arrive and this means they are becoming more innovative in the way they employ people.
Increasingly, an option that is replacing making people redundant is to move to flexible working patterns. The flexible working options include allowing people flexible start and end times, asking people to job share and having more people work remotely.
The secretary or PA may find themselves looking after the administration for more than one manager and perhaps also learning new skills to be able to take on additional responsibilities.
This illustrates one of the advantages of the introduction of flexible working in that it allows employees to develop and learn, which will enhance their future career options and help them stand out as candidates when they start looking for the next step on their career path.
Flexible working can also make it easier to manage responsibilities outside work, perhaps small children or a relative who needs some daily care.
It does, however, also mean developing new behaviours for managing one's time and work flow. Employers will want to see evidence that the person they are interviewing can handle the demands of this kind of work culture when recruiting for a position that requires flexible working.
Flexible working requires the ability to keep an open mind is important s and to be able to integrate new information. It is often necessary to be able to switch between the details and the bigger picture.
It requires an ability to be receptive to change and respond positively to being asked to learn new ways for meeting targets. Workers in flexible working roles need to be creative and not afraid to improvise or experiment.
Handling a job share requires not only efficiency but also good communication skills so that tasks can be handed back and forth smoothly without disrupting the work flow.
Remote working from home needs tremendous self discipline. It is important to be able to focus and to ignore distractions. It helps to have a room set aside in which to work not only because it will make it easier to concentrate but also because it will help those with whom the remote worker lives to respect that their housemate or family member is still working even if they are at home.
The candidate being interviewed for a position that is set up to be flexible may need to give examples of their ability to cope with this work culture even if it is one they have not previously experienced. Useful examples for demonstrating flexibility include time spent out of the country on an exchange programme or gap year, studying abroad, having some work experience overseas or having done an internship. Another good example is having combined some work with voluntary activities.
Handled in the right way there are advantages in flexible working not only for employers but also for employees.
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Flexible working is becoming an increasingly popular choice for both employers and workers, not least the job share where two people work as secretary or PA for several managers. By Ali Withers. http://www.rmsrecruitment.com
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