More or less pushed by the pandemic, work flexibility has become a “must-have” for most employees when looking for a new job. Everyone got a taste of what flexibility brings and very few are willing to go back to a 9 to 5 at the office setup, statistics showing that in 2022, when choosing an employer, flexibility is a top priority.
Another study reports that inflexible leadership is the main reason for the great resignation.
There are many debates around the topic, and most companies mistake flexible work policies for just providing remote or hybrid work options. But what is in reality flexibility of the working environment and why did we decide to make flexibility one of the most important work principles in IT Smart Systems?
Work Flexibility is much more than having one benefit or another, like starting work at 10 instead of 9, or spending more time with family. Flexibility is most of all being given the power to choose. To choose the best way of working for you!
IT Smart Systems opened the door to a more flexible work environment a year before the pandemic started, and had 3 years of experimenting and finding the best formula for giving more and more autonomy to its teams. It started with offering the option of hybrid work to all employees and supporting the need for flexible hours and continued with the development of new areas of flexibility in terms of job rotation, part-time roles and improving the work-life balance.
What are the benefits of riding the flexibility wave?
1. Flexibility increases autonomy & autonomy increases ownership
One of the first effects we observed in our teams after adopting flexibility as our way of working was the increase in ownership. Once we gave more autonomy to our employees and the possibility to choose how they want to work, the message we sent was: ”We trust & respect you.”
We noticed in time how our teams were more empowered and in control of their work, having more responsibility and more initiative.
2. Happier and more balanced employees
Having the possibility to adapt their work schedule according to the productivity and demands of home and family reduces stress and avoids burnout.
Some of our colleagues prefer to wake up very early and they are more productive in the first part of the day, while others are much more focused and efficient in the afternoons.
Our community has 150 team members, with different personalities and needs, and we know that “a one size fits all” is not the best formula for us.
3. A more flexible mindset in the work culture
Employees are not the only ones benefiting from implementing flexibility as a way of working. Communicating more about flexibility as an important principle in IT Smart Systems and always giving more options created a different mindset in the company culture.
The return was in more flexible solutions for the business, more innovative and creative ideas, and overall more out-of-the-box thinking.
4. A more diverse team of specialists
In terms of recruitment, work flexibility helped us reach a new pool of professionals from all over the country and have a location-independent remote team. Not being bound by hiring only for our local office in Bucharest, we now have many skillful colleagues from cities like Cluj, Brasov, Timisoara and other locations in Romania and Moldova.
5. The development of our employees means better professionals in our future teams
A pillar of work flexibility that is often neglected by companies is job rotation, the option of changing your position in the company, the department or the technology you work on.
We already have a few colleagues in IT Smart Systems that are part of the job rotation program and we have noticed an increase in their enthusiasm and better integration into the team. By supporting and investing in their development we contribute to a more innovative and multi-faced input from them in future projects.
Of course, some challenges come with a more flexible work environment, like the decrease of identification with the company culture and a more distant and more isolated way of working for many employees, due to the “zoom effect”, but is our job to find solutions to each and every of these challenges.
Statistics say that flexible work is here to stay, as it has many benefits both for the employees and for the employers. Our advice? #keepITflexible
At IT Smart Systems we made it our mission to always improve, innovate and be flexible, in a community of very enthusiastic professionals. We are confident now that providing options is the right approach for our community to grow healthier and stronger than ever. If you are flexible enough, check out our CAREER PAGE and let’s meet!