Have you ever wondered what it would be like to adjust your working week to suit your life’s needs?

How would you like to:

• Start and finish work early so that you can pick up your children from school?
• Have your lunch-break at 11.30 so that you can go to your spin class on a Wednesday?
• Leave at 3 pm in July and August so that you can enjoy a long weekend during the summer?
• Work a three-day week, allowing you time for you, your family and friends?

A couple of decades ago, if you had suggested some of these, people would have looked at you as if you were a deluded fool. However, as life balance becomes increasingly important and companies begin to realise that to keep their best employees they have to try to accommodate the needs of the individual, the idea of either flexible or part-time hours has become more of a reality.

It is still an area to address with considerable preparation, as employers need to see the intrinsic benefits to them of changing the system. You also have to be clearheaded about both the up- and the down-sides of altering the amount of work you do, or the way you work. However, once you have decided you want to go for a change, the important thing is to come up with solutions rather than problems, as if an employer can see the value to both you and the company, they are much more likely to agree to your proposition.

This chapter does not debate the complex issue of what’s legally required, as this is likely to change over time, with governments and pressure groups continuing to push for more quality of life for families, couples and individuals. Procedure and etiquette need to be considered, and these matters are well covered in specialist brochures and websites, or they can be discussed with dedicated advisers – they will not be covered in this book. Nor do I take into consideration what employers can or cannot say to you as these are also things that are governed by legislation that can change (and indeed just because they can’t say it, it doesn’t mean they are not thinking it). Nor is it designed to lead you to believe that there is a fool-proof system for success in persuading employers of the merits of giving you what you want, because quite frankly there isn’t. This chapter is designed to allow you to think effectively about how to create the life balance you want.

What you do have to do is make sure that your relationship with your boss is at its best when you approach them to talk about flexible hours. Good communication has proved to be a key element to successful companies, and for a boss to agree to a change in working hours often takes time, effort, trust and faith. Bear this in mind when you decide upon the time-frame you set yourself to ‘communicate’ your wish to work more flexibly.

DOWN TO BUSINESS

There are two areas that we will discuss. Firstly, flexible hours: adjusting the timings of your working day to suit both your own and your company’s needs, while working the same number of hours over a year; secondly, changing from full-time to part-time.

The examples set out in this chapter all involve families and children. This does not necessarily have to be the case: details and working terms can be adapted to suit anyone wishing to benefit from part-time or flexible hours.

FLEXIBLE HOURS

It is really important to think of approaching flexible hours from two perspectives: your own and your employer’s. Firstly, you need to know what you want to achieve: a late start, an early finish or perhaps leaving two hours early in the summer. Let’s assume that you want to start at 7.30 am and finish at 3.30 pm; and, as a second example, we will use an early finish in the summer with the same details.

Look at the company you work for and its make-up, the type of work it does, whether it already adopts a flexible-hours system or employs part-time staff (both the business as a whole and your department). Detail anything that gives you a feel for what may be possible and any areas that you can show (within the knowledge you have of the firm) where flexible hours could improve the working of the company.

Having a detailed understanding of both your company and department allows you to judge better the feasibility of your request, and also perhaps to glean some useful ideas of how you can show the benefits to your employer of your flexible working.

AN EARLIER START TIME

In this case, you want to finish earlier than the allotted time to enable you to pick your children up from school in the afternoons and do the household chores, allowing leisure time at the weekend to dedicate to the family. This you need to balance with the needs of the company.

Matching the information you have about what the company wants with what you want, you can begin to put a justifiable case together.

LOOKING AT IT FROM THEIR PERSPECTIVE

List the benefits that you see the company will gain from you changing your working hours to suit your daily routine. Examples could be:

• 1.The time difference is generally one hour ahead for France, Spain, Germany, and two hours ahead in Cyprus. I will be available from 7.30 am GMT/BST (8.30 am in three of the countries and 9.30 am in one – all local time); this will give them valuable additional customer service, rather than having to wait for someone to return their voicemail. At the moment Cyprus does not have any cover until 11 am (local time) and the other European countries 10 am – well into their working day.
• 2.Providing extra customer service may help to improve the company’s position in Spain and Cyprus, and maintain or strengthen France and Germany.
• 3.Working between 7.30 am and 9.00 am will allow me to be more productive, as there will be no day-to-day distractions with people, and I will be on my own in the department.
• 4.I can help with other team members’ European accounts at this time – my colleagues will be safe in the knowledge that their clients are being looked after. This will help to give the office a feel that it’s open nine and a half hours a day as opposed to eight. Equally, there may be someone who wants to start and finish late, therefore increasing the opening hours further, potentially allowing us to branch out to the USA (which is between five and eight hours behind).
• 5.I will feel more motivated as an employee, as my personal needs have been taken into consideration by my employer.
• 6.I will still be in the office for the peak hours (9 am – 3 pm).
• 7.My lunch break will be 1.5 hours earlier and will allow me to cover the office (fielding calls, etc.) when everyone else is at lunch.

Once you have listed all the benefits, think of any potential reservations that your employer may have about your request (whether they air them or not is neither here nor there, as the important thing is to answer any underlying thoughts that may stop you from getting the flexible hours). Examples are as follows:

• 1.If you get flexible hours, we would have to rethink the structure of the department, as others will potentially want them too.
• 2.It complicates matters too much.
• 3.There is no-one here to open the office that early in the morning, and we have sensitive information in here.
• 4.Who will cover your calls between 3.30 pm and 5.00 pm?

Alongside these objections, think of your answers. In cases where you feel that the reservations are what your employer is probably thinking but hasn’t actually said, you need to consider whether to include solutions within your conversation. Potential answers could be:

• 1.If other people did want similar opportunities, perhaps a system could be considered that allows for this: some working late, some working early (note, it’s looking at it from their perspective, i.e. not saying some starting late and some leaving early). To the clients, this will look as if we have increased our operation from an eight-hour day to an 11-hour day, listening to the needs of our European partners and potentially expanding to the USA. I am more than happy to work on a rota to allow this, if required.
• 2.It’s a simple and effective method of getting more out of a day. There will be one and a half hours’ extra cover, and more work will get done (with me working smarter and faster during the periods when the office is quiet, i.e. during other lunch breaks and the period before 9 am).
• 3.I am more than happy to take on the responsibility of opening the office in the morning.
• 4.I will inform my clients of an alternative contact for the late afternoon period. But it is worth bearing in mind that that is a quiet time. Over the last month I have analysed the incoming calls: we come into the office with about 35 voicemails from European partners; the vast majority of calls (over 160), were between 9 am and 3 pm, when I will be in the office; the calls between 3 pm and 5 pm reduce to around 20. It is also worth noting that I will be covering other people’s calls from 7.30 am. I am also more than happy to move my lunch-break so it doesn’t clash with everyone else’s. By doing this, I can deal with clients’ requests that have previously been left on voicemail for people when they return from lunch.

Now you have all the benefits and answers to potential objections, it is time to pick an appropriate time to approach your employer, ensuring you have followed the correct procedure.

LEAVING TWO HOURS EARLY IN JULY AND AUGUST

A tangible reason for this may help: in this instance, it’s the summer holidays and you would like to spend more time with the children.

Calculate the amount of time that you want from the company in that period. In this case, assume it’s 90 hours over two months (nine weeks at ten hours per week – leaving work at 3 pm every day during July and August). Therefore this time needs to be made up elsewhere. You need to show that the redistributed 90 hours will be beneficial to the company/department.

The benefits that the company gain from being flexible, in this instance, could include:

• 1.During peak periods (Jan/Feb, May/June, Sep/Oct – 24 weeks) I am happy to work until 5.45 pm (a total of an additional 90 hours). This will enable the office to be open a further 45 minutes during peak periods, allowing for fielding calls, invoices to be sent out on time and payments chased.
• 2.Providing that extra customer service (extended office hours) puts us in line with our competitors, many of whom are open until 6 pm.
• 3.Working between 5 and 5.45 pm will allow me to be more productive. There will be no day-to-day distractions with people as I will be on my own in the department, enabling me to field calls and complete any paperwork.
• 4.I can help with other team members’ accounts at this time, allowing individuals to go home at 5 pm safe in the knowledge that their clients will be looked after for a further 45 minutes during the peak period.
• 5.I will feel more motivated as an employee, as my personal needs are being considered alongside the working requirements.

Again, think of objections that may arise and possible solutions. Some could be similar to the ones above, but there could potentially be others as well. For example:

• 1.If we allow you to finish early in the summer, then everyone will want it.
  Possibly this is true. Perhaps you could offer it to the others as well, and, if it proves popular then we could create a rota that allows up to five people to leave early for those weeks. The volume of business is more than 25% down during the summer. Having people covering the office in the peak months until 5.45 pm will benefit the business, with more traffic during this time.
• 2.But what if it doesn’t work?
  Then trial it and we review it after the first year.

NEGOTIATION IS A TWO-WAY THING

It may be that the boss is happy to agree with your requests if you present them well, showing the benefits they will receive. But in some cases, there may be the need to compromise in order to get some of what you want: for example, three early finishes instead of five. In which case, if you are happy to do this, then your calculations of times reduce accordingly.

A compromise could be offered, or an objection to your request may be given. But an objection does not necessarily mean no to any type of flexible working. Always listen out for signals that may indicate an alternative could be an option.

LISTENING FOR WHAT IS NOT SAID

Often what is not said is as important as what is actually said. For example, if when asking for earlier start times, an answer comes back:

‘No, 3.00 pm is too early to finish work because calls do come through between 3 and 3.30 pm.’

What this is not saying is that ‘only a 5 pm finish is acceptable.’ Perhaps 3.30 pm may be OK, as this has been brought up as a reason for not allowing 3.00 pm. Consider asking;

‘What time is acceptable?’

Or

‘Is 3.30 pm acceptable?’

WORKING PART-TIME

As with flexible hours, it’s important that you look at a proposal to work part-time from two perspectives: your own and the company’s/department’s. In doing this, you are likely to examine it in a way that takes into account their potential reservations about the idea (if any) and also look at ways in which part-time hours can genuinely work for both parties.

There is no point in listing the personal benefits of changing from full-time to part-time work, as I am sure anyone reading this chapter has already done this in massive detail already! However, it is worth understanding how important changing to part-time is to you, and considering alternatives you may have if the employer says no.

As an example, you are a salesperson who wants to go from a five-day week to a three-day week. In this case, you ideally want a three-day week, although if needed, you would accept a four-day week. You have just returned from maternity leave and have a daughter, Emily, who is now 9 months old, and you want to spend more time with her. Your motivation to work is still high, and you enjoy your job (and the independence and ‘adult company’), but don’t want to continue full-time.

As with flexible hours, look at the company as a whole and your own department, detailing its function. Does it currently embrace part-time hours? If not, is there potential for it to do so? Could it benefit from part-time staff? Do your competitors offer such benefits? If so, how successful are they? If they are successful, what makes it work effectively?

Look at your specific role; an overview version is given opposite. In order to help you understand the concept, I have kept the description brief, but when you do it for your own role, you will need to put more detail here. Alongside the role, put your ideal and acceptable (if you are prepared to have an alternative) outcomes with an idea of your solution (based on knowledge of your department and its business).

Potential questions to ask yourself include:

A version of a job description with two part-time solutions.

The ideal and acceptable solutions, with the benefits to the employer.

As with flexible working, remember to think of possible objections that your employer could have – and their solutions.

ALTERNATIVES TO STANDARD FLEXI- OR PART-TIME

Below are a couple of other ideas and questions to ask yourself when preparing your case for creating the life balance you want.

THE BENEFITS TO EMPLOYER AND EMPLOYEE

In a lot of companies, flexible hours and part-time working have led to positive outcomes for the employer as well as the employee, and many case studies have been written as testimony to this. Listed below are a few benefits that can be seen for both sides. The list is still growing. Getting the system right can often take time, flexibility and patience; but ultimately if an employer can keep their highly trained, most effective employees, and employ new and fresh ones as the company grows, surely it’s worth the effort!