Radical flexibility – meet the companies who know exactly where they stand

It’s time for a shift in the flexible working conversation. We catch up with leaders reacting radically to our changing world of work.

How do you know when something is worth the effort? It feels radical, with a hint of uncharted territory about it. A fundamental change in beliefs, actions and behaviours is one way of defining something radical. As the Oxford English Dictionary puts it, being radical means affecting our roots, origins and foundations.

Since 2020 (and arguably before, but most definitely since), our LinkedIn wall space has been taken up by many an opinion, experience or recommendation around flexibility. Love it or loathe it, it’s an almost-normal part of life now, and given the seemingly endless conversations around it – is going nowhere. There is certainly a future for flexible working, but what this looks like exactly, remains to be seen.

What’s already clear is that we need fresh ways of thinking about it. 4+ years is a long time for one hot (now tepid) topic of corporate conversation to last, and it’s time for an approach that involves more than a binary, employer ⇔ employee dynamic.

Contented’s founder, Harriette, started her story long before lockdowns forever altered work time and spaces.  Building her team primarily with freelancers and consultants, Harriette set up the content and copywriting agency to allow excellent professionals to do their best work, while keeping precious time and space to prioritise their passions and commitments elsewhere.

“For five years, we’ve built a business that is consistently growing in turnover and profit. We’re fully flexible, fully remote, and we’re able to work with the world’s best talent by trusting, making space for people’s lives and insisting on honesty and transparency. Nobody works full time for Contented; yet the same team has worked together for several years. Thanks to our total honesty about the way we work, and our insistence on excellence, they stay around; and so do our clients.”

But how to ensure that everyone reaps the benefits of truly flexible working within more ‘traditional’ workplaces? Levelling up parity and the ability to be radically transparent are key – and it’s the mission that Ryan Tanna, founder of Blinktime.io, is currently executing:

“We make flexitime explicit”, Ryan tells us of Blinktime’s purpose. And why on earth shouldn’t they; isn’t it about time? Blinktime’s technology empowers companies to encourage transparent flexibility and accountability amongst employees, making it easy to see who is available at what times – and where. Let’s be honest: It’s all going off in our WhatsApp chats as friend after friend tells of new office mandates every week. For Ryan, “companies are mandating days because they don’t yet have the means of streamlining flexible working processes. That’s where Blinktime’s coordination tool steps in. Ending the frustration from wasted commutes for the sake of just being there.”

The real beauty of this software though? The insights into employee needs and interests. Employees can set goals for areas where they want to flex more by utilising their allocated flexitime. This provides a host of wellbeing-related data, helping teams build business cases for investment in areas their employees care about. Exercise, education, childcare and learning & development are but a few of these.

So setting the tone for open, clear communications as a cornerstone of flexible working practices is essential. But so is adaptability, right?

Take Celine Normann-Dyer, who looks after strategic partnerships for fraud prevention experts Forter. After 2 years in the role based in London, including 2-3 days in the office each week, she relocated back to her native Oslo. This meant a transition to a fully remote setup, too.

Even if the process took a little time due to external support, Celine cites strong support from managers as a huge help during the move. The outcome? She keeps the role she loves, and Forter keep her talent on board!

Parity. Adaptability. Trust. Think of this as our checklist for ensuring a truly radical implementation of flexible working, and one that’ll likely get you through most organisational changes. There’s no doubt that embracing flexible practices requires relinquishing a significant degree of control. But if you can’t rely on your employees to remain accountable, then perhaps there’s more to evaluate within your workforce than just where and when your people are working each week.

Tanya Alden-Zeter