boston college center for work & family family-friendly companies / flexible work options

Boston College Center for Work & Family

Family-Friendly Companies / Flexible Work Options

Boston College Center for Work & Family, ©2004

CWF Mission

“Freud was once asked what he thought a normal person should be able to do well. The questioner probably expected a complicated “deep” answer. But Freud simply said, “Lieben und arbeiten” (to love and to work). It pays to ponder on this simple formula; it grows deeper as you think about it.”

Erik Erikson Identity, Youth and

Crisis


CWF Mission

The Boston College Center for Work & Family is committed to enhancing the success of organizations and the quality of life of today's workforce by providing leadership for the integration of work and life, an essential for business and community success.

Our key differentiator is the ability to bridge the world of research with the world of practice.


CWF Members include …

• IBM

• Merck

• Intel

• Price Waterhouse-Coopers

• KPMG

• Eli Lilly

• Kraft

• Booz-Allen Hamilton

• Boeing

• Marriott

• BP

• Prudential Securities

• Hewlett-Packard

• Abbott Laboratories

• Dell

• Bristol-Myers


Today’s HR management issues

• The new employment relationship (or lack of)• Increased flexibility for company and the workforce• More women in professional / managerial positions• Globalization and diversity (race, gender, culture)• Aging workforce and generational diversity• Changing career patterns

These are areas of interest for CWF


Work / Life Definition

Actions taken by both the employer and employee to help the workforce effectively handle the growing pressures and responsibilities of work and personal lives, live and work up to their full potential, and achieve life balance and increased productivity


A Work / Life Case Study Standard career (‘77-87) International assignment / dual-career (‘88-91) Repatriation process / Annie’s transition (‘91) Father’s Alzheimer's: elder care (‘91-95)

Diagnosed immediately after we returned Geneva opportunity – not even considered

Second career transition process (‘94-00) Doctoral program, part-time, sabbatical (‘94-97) Part-time role, wrote dissertation (‘97-98)


A Work / Life Case Study

• Kids (Maggie ‘95, Hannah ’97, Dillon ’00)• Working virtually and remote (‘98-00)

• Global roles, the long commute, work from home• The critical event• Major milestones

• Career change to Academia (‘00)• Enormous change in “lifestyle” • Brought positives but also new challenges

• On-going today (‘03)• Annie’s decision to work or not


The Case for Flexibility

The desire of companies / organizations to have greater flexibility

The desire of individuals to have more flexibility The rising number of working parents Changing demographics (workforce) and ways of

working (jobs and technologies) More prosperity of some leading to greater push

for more “leisure time”


End of the Zero-Sum Game

• For well-off, increased desire to spend time with family but often both spouses work

• Low-wage employees need to work more to keep up, but large concern about “How are my children?”

• Elder care a growing issue for all of us (parents live longer, even with chronic illnesses)

• Dislocation and migration of families has led to lack of support system


Flexibility Work Arrangements:Where, when, & how much you work

• Flexible work hours• Part-time jobs / job

sharing• Compressed workweek

• Paid or unpaid time off• Telecommuting• Job redesign can make

these options work for many roles


Telecommuting works when …

• Job is information based and portable • Role requires high degree of concentration• Role offers high degree of autonomy • Work can be planned in advance and performed at

varying times and places• Involves minimal amount of oversight and access to

physical resources


Telecommuting: For Employees

Advantages Greater autonomy More flexibility of work schedule No commute time (can save 2+ hours a day in New

York, Silicon Valley, London, etc.) Less money spent on commuting, parking, attire Can lead to higher morale Avoid office politics


Telecommuting: For Employees

Disadvantages Blurring between work and home Isolation from workgroup Equipment issues Lack of visibility with management Co-worker resentment


Telecommuting: For Employers

Advantages Increased productivity Lower absenteeism Increases recruiting pool Increased retention Reduction in facility costs


Telecommuting: For Employer

Disadvantages Harder to monitor employees Need to measure output vs. activity, not many

organizations are great at this Can diminish teamwork, networking Can slow cultural assimilation Coordination of activities and meetings can more

difficult


End of the Zero-Sum Game• Companies cope through policies and programs• Managers who don’t equate work / life with work less

and trying new approaches• Clarify what is important

• Establish business priorities • Have employees clarify their priorities

• Recognize and support the whole person. Celebrate person’s roles outside of work (paradigm shift)

• Experiment with the way works gets done (IBM)• Leads to a virtuous cycle – employees feel greater

loyalty, commitment, more productive use of time.

boston college center for work & family family-friendly companies / flexible work options

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