Work/Life Balance

Work/life issues are an important 'bottom line' concern

Effective work/life strategies that meet the needs of an organisation and its employees are vital in maintaining a competitive edge in today's rapidly changing business environment. Organisations with a corporate culture that values the diversity within its workforce and offers a range of flexible work/ life options achieve increased productivity through:

• Attracting talented and skilled employees
• Increased staff retention
• Better management of stress, health and wellbeing issues
• A reduction in sick leave and absenteeism
• Increased staff motivation
• Retention of mature aged workers
• Being an employer of choice
• Compliance with current legislation.

In a recent article published by CCH Australia, Barbara Holmes, Director of Managing Work|Life Balance International, notes that many organisations who came through the Global Financial Crisis in a relatively strong position already had a range of flexible work arrangements and an integrated work/life strategy that allowed them to build on the trust and commitment of employees and better manage their resources during difficult times.

Research from the Managing Work|Life Balance National Work/Life Benchmarking Study which ran for ten years (1997-2007) clearly demonstrated that work/life strategies have a positive impact on the bottom line. In 2010 the Flexible Work 2010 Pulse Survey showed that over a third of respondents had seen an increase in employee engagement of 0-5 per cent and a further 15 per cent had observed a 6-10 per cent increase.

Our consulting team led by Barbara Holmes has extensive experience in a broad range of work/life/flexibility consulting assignments. They range from leading research assignments for Federal and State Governments in Australia, Singapore and New Zealand, to facilitating workshops for Executive Teams who needed to develop and support a flexible work arrangement strategy within their business. For further information about the types of projects undertaken by the team please review some of our Case Studies.