We juggle a lot more than a 9 to 5 nowadays, and you as an employer need to accommodate this as best as you can.
Giving your employees more of a say over their working life can be a great way to do this. So long as they are prepared to continue delivering the fantastic results you expect from them, there are several things that you can allow them to do.
1. Set Their Own Working Hours
The 9 to 5 model does not work for everyone. It has been in play for many years certainly, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that it is ideal. Many people have to juggle other parts of their life around it, and this can make it much more difficult when it comes to other arrangements and commitments.
Allowing employees to set their own working hours can be more beneficial here. Now, this does not mean that they can just work any hours they might choose. Rather, it means that they will be able to shift their working day backward or forwards if they prefer.
Late risers might work better with a 10 to 6 working day. Others might prefer an 8 to 4, or even a 7 to 3.
Arranging meetings around midday will help to avoid any potential mismatch, and you can make it clear to your employees that they might have to work more traditional hours if they ask.
2. Choosing Benefits
You might decide that you wish to offer your employees certain benefits. They might be allowed to claim discounted travel, or they could be able to claim mental health days if they need a little bit of a break. There are lots of benefits that you could offer your employees.
However, the choice of what they accept should be theirs, and theirs alone. If they have no interest in the gym, why would they want a discounted gym membership? Likewise, if they walk to work then they are never going to accept help buying a season rail pass.
Using a platform like zestbenefits.com’s employee benefits portal allows you to put all of their potential benefits in one place. They are then able to go through them and pick and choose the ones that speak most to them.
3. Equipment
People can have a very strong preference over the types of equipment that they use in their day-to-day lives. As an employer, you should want them to be as comfortable as possible. This can, therefore, mean that you let them choose the types of equipment that they are working off.
For example, you might have an employee who prefers Apple products over brands that make PCs or Android devices. The nature of their job might actually mean that it is easier for them to use these types of devices too.
Therefore, it might be worth you providing them with the right equipment. Trying to use tools that we are not suited to be difficult, time-consuming, and can result in a massive loss of productivity overall.
By listening to the concerns of your employees and giving them a chance to voice their preferences, you will help them to feel like a valued part of your business. The more you can offer them, the happier they will likely be.
Something as simple as allowing them to change the hours in which they work can truly make all of the difference in their productivity. If you want to offer your employees a little more flexibility, one of the above points might be a great way to do it.
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