Flexible working has traditionally been seen as a solution for workers who have other commitments such as family. There’s a general perception that it’s women that tend to work part time, whereas men, or women without children, can put in a full working week. Whilst part time workers are often invaluable to a company, the perception is that they’re not as committed as their full-time counterparts. After all, if more hours need to be worked, full-time staff are more likely to be able to fill the gap than people with other responsibilities outside work.

Flexible working doesn’t have to be about working less hours however. Mobile technology means that people can work on the move, or at home, or wherever else they might be. It’s possible to put in a full day’s work without being in the office. Intranets, cloud computing, mobile phones and video conferencing allow people to interact with each other, keep shared calendars and share documents remotely. It just isn’t the case that you have to physically go to work nowadays to be a part of an office team.

Flexible working in this way could actually increase productivity. If staff aren’t constrained to set hours they can work when they’re at their most awake, their most motivated and their most efficient. If they’re in an environment of their choosing they can have downtime when they need it and start work refreshed, instead of being stuck in an office that might not have many facilities. It’s been suggested that allowing staff this sort of flexibility actually improves efficiency and increases staff loyalty to the company.

Flexible working can be beneficial to the company too. For one thing, allowing staff to work wherever they want means that you have fewer overheads such as costs for office space. Some companies may rent meeting rooms, but their employees only come into the office when they have to use them.

The way that companies measure staff performance changes for the better once flexible working is introduced. It’s no longer about how many hours you put in at the office, it’s about the results you get. This results-based system means that staff are rewarded for good work and not just for showing up on time. It also means that staff can better meet these targets – they can work at the best times for getting a sale or generating a lead, so their time is used more effectively.

During the credit crunch flexible working is especially beneficial. Lower office costs obviously help to cut expenditure. Staff that want to take fewer hours through flexible working are encouraged to do so, as this means there’s less outlay on wages. It may be that struggling companies could afford to keep all their employees if they introduced flexi-time and cut costs in this way.

Flexible working then needs to be seen as a benefit to a company, and not just something available to people who have families or who aren’t the main breadwinner in their home. Opportunities like this that are open to the whole workforce make for more efficient, committed employees and employers can reap the benefits. It’s a change in perception, but with more and more new technology making flexible working possible in practice more people are justified in requesting it, and employers should start to say yes.