Flexible Workforce has seen a widespread popularity today. Technology and education have made people and company realize its importance and valuable benefits in achieving productivity. This presentation gives you insights about its need, benefits and tips to make it to your advantage.

1. By StreamOn Technologies Pvt. Ltd.

2. Worldwide Trends
 Netflix is allowing its employees to take unlimited parental leaves.
 Ted has majority of its people working from the comfort of their homes.
 These companies are disruptive leaders in their respective industries.
 So, what makes them take this decision on Flexible Workforce (FW) and allowing its
employees so much freedom?
The answer is simple: 9-5 timing is so passé.

3.  Employees are no longer interested in working in
mundane routine.
 Creativity and passion have become more than
just words.
 Technology and smartphones have made it
possible for them to work from anywhere, so
what’s the need to come every day to office?
Majority of organizations have realized this issue
and are quickly adapting to give their people a
flexible environment.
Favorable to Flexible Workforce

4. Let’s take a look why flexible
workforce has become a NEED
today.

5. Technology
 The biggest factor is of course technology.
Mobile has become the core of whatever we
do.
 Improved internet infrastructure and so many
devices we are surrounded with, working daily
from office is really not a logical choice today.
 Virtual collaboration tools enable the
companies and employees to connect quickly,
regardless of the location. It’s like a virtual
office.

6. Millennials are more aware
 Millennials are highly educated and
technologically advanced.
 So, they think they have a right to work from
home as long as they are delivering the project
allotted to them.
 Everyone has smartphones at their fingertips
and laptop, tab or a desktop at their home.
This further reduces the need to come daily to
office.

7. Legislations
 In 2014, UK govt. issued a flexible
workforce policy under which employees
can demand to work from home or at their
own comfort, provided they have
completed minimum 26 weeks in the
organization.
 Of course, not every country has
formulated the same policy yet but you can
sense the seriousness of this topic in
business world.

8. Avoiding unnecessary travel
 Not everyone’s office is close from their
residence.
 Travelling at office hours in metro cities is a
stressful and tiring activity. Therefore,
employees think they can work more
productively by working from home and
utilizing their energy & focus better.

9. Social life matters
 Philosophies and education have made
people realize that money is not the
primary essential to human happiness.
 Today’s generation knows that a job is not
worth doing if you cannot take out time to
meet your friends & family and do things
you love.

10. Work-life balance?
 It’s not one of those days when we used to
strive for work-life balance.
 Employees are passionate about their job
and enjoy working even extra hours from
home when required.
 They are not reluctant to be available 24x7
for the project. So, if they are available
round the clock, they expect to get the
reward for it.

11. Choice of employment
 Employees give preference to companies
giving such flexibility.
 They are even ready to compromise on
salary if they get this option.

12. Numbers don’t lie
Here are some good numbers eliciting the impact of flexible workforce
implementation in organizations:

13. Flexible Workforce is a way ahead
 Online meetings and conferencing tools
have made it easier to meet with your team
from anywhere, eliminating the need to be
present physically every time.
 In a nutshell, the concept of ‘Flexible
Workforce’ is not a future but the PRESENT.

14. Benefits
Once embraced the concept, the
benefits of FW are limitless. Let’s see
some of those.

15. Increased productivity
 People are motivated when given the
freedom to work from anywhere.
 To return the favor, they work with more
focus and give extra efforts to complete the
project with flying stars. Eventually,
increased productivity.
What else does the organization need?

16. Truly global hiring
Preferred work location? What’s that?
 One of the best things about FW is that
employers no longer need to hire according
to the location as you can connect with them
daily, regardless of their region or a country.
 This enables HR to hire a true talent and help
the company grow with their outstanding
contribution. A truly global world.

17. Reduced office cost and BYOD policies
 Office cost is reduced to considerable
amount as employees are mostly working
from their home.
 Many companies and startups have
formulated the BYOD policies to cut down
on the resources cost.
 Even employees are cool with it as they
prefer to have their own laptop for work.

18. Happy and contributing employees
 Today’s world is not just about working and
getting paid in monetary terms. Employees
want a job which makes them happy, like
stated in Maslow’s theory about human
needs.
 Giving such freedom makes them feel their
company cares for their values and in turn
they contribute in every way they can.

19. Increased retention rate
 Why would a person think about shifting his
job when he is happy doing what he loves
and from wherever he wants?
 HR is also happy as the attrition rate
reduces and productivity flourishes.

20. Disadvantages
All the good and great has been told about Flexible
Workforce but at the end it’s the people who are
going to implement and utilize this concept. So, there
are going to be some issues and it’s not fully
avoidable.
Let’s see some of the disadvantages.

21. If not properly monitored, it can create
chaos and distrust
 If company is not able to properly monitor
its employees virtually, there are often
differences and reporting problems in the
structure.
 Sometimes, it is also possible that team
members and mangers don’t trust each
other on this accord.
 It leads to chaos and affect the
organizational performance.

22. Security issues
 Working from office is very much secure as
you can monitor your people from the
premises.
 But, you really don’t have the control when
employees work from their home desktop
or smartphone.
 The security in such cases might be
compromised if they don’t have an
optimum firewall settings.

23. Connectivity excuses from employees
 These are very common.
 When employees are enjoying with their
friends & families and don’t want to be
disturbed, they sometimes use the
connectivity excuses and can get away with
it, affecting the corporate communication
and reporting system.

24. However, all the dynamic changes
have a lot of problems in the initial
phases. If proper monitoring and
planning is set before hand, the fruits
of Flexible Workforce work wonders
for your organization.

25. Tips
 Every challenge also presents an opportunity. Things change, so does
the employee state of mind.
 All the company and employees have to do is make it a win-win
situation.
Here are some tips to make flexible workforce work to your advantage.

26. For Employers

27. Devise a plan
 FW is not a small time activity, it’s a
sustainable strategy.
 So, draft the whole plan as to how it’s
going to work and what are the processes
and best practices related to it.
 Well thought plans eliminate 99%
problems.

28. Select a good collaboration tool
 Efficient virtual collaboration tools like that of StreamOn enable
companies to conduct online meetings and all sorts of
communication with its employees anytime and from any device.
Make sure you have one.

29. Hire trustworthy and accountable employees
 Trust matters.
 If you hire people who are credible and are
accountable in nature, they will always
work in the best interest of the company,
even when working from home.
 Hence, hire such people who are high in
integrity and morale.

30. State the expectations before hand
 Have a discussion with employees and be
clear about the reporting and every
important aspect about FW.
 Little confusion remains when both the
parties are clear about their roles.

31. Explain security practices to employees
 Company security is integral to business.
 Explain the ‘Must have’ security tools in
employee devices to avoid the data
leakage and the best practices to keep the
confidential information secure.

32. Regular online and physical conversations
 There is no such thing as forever working
from home. Make it a rule to conduct a
face to face meeting every 15-20 days.
 This helps in better control and reporting.
 Whenever needed, conduct online
meetings or conferences to pump up the
work and motivation.

33. Don’t ask them to work on weekends unless it’s
urgent
 Situations arise when managers expect their
team members to work even on weekends
and holidays.
 Weekends and holidays witness maximum
social activities.
 Make sure you ask them to work only when
it’s urgent and do not do it often.

34. For Employees

35. Select a good internet plan
 Internet is the only medium which connects
you with your manager and company.
 So, it’s essential that you have a good
internet plan.
 Good means there is no buffering when
you attend online meetings, upload or
share heavy documents and video friendly
connection.

36. Always have a backup plan
 It’s a good practice to have back up plans
when your broadband connection is lost.
 In emergency, you can work through your
mobile.
 That’s the idea of ‘always connected’.

37. Have regular communication with your boss
 Every day in the morning, chat or email or
even online meet with your boss stating
what you’re going to do in the whole day.
 Anyways, it’s your duty. Complete it.

38. Be transparent in your work
 Company knows you will enjoy your life at
home.
 They don’t have any issues with that as long
as you are delivering. So, be very
transparent in your work.
 Even if you are travelling or meeting your
friends, inform your manager. As long as
the work status is complete, he won’t
disallow it.

39. Make a workstation at home
 Don’t get too comfortable at your home.
Select a place from where you will work
most of the time.
 It should be quiet and clean. If sunrays
reach there, nothing like it. Natural
inspiration always helps.
 Once you start working from that place,
your mind automatically adapts to it as the
virtual office workstation. It works great for
your productivity.

40. Understand your most productive hours
 Some people are early risers, some are
nocturnal. Suit yourself.
 Observe and understand which your most
productive hours are.
 No one works 24 hours. We are humans.
90% of your work gets completed only in
your productive hours.

41. Communicate with your team mates to enjoy the
work and avoid loneliness
 Working remotely can sometimes be lonely.
 You can start chats with your team mates to
improve communication. Casual chats
improve socialism.
 Jokes in group chats, movies or match
discussions feel like you are a part of the
team and loneliness disappears.

42. Meet regularly to bond with each other
 Make it a habit to meet your team and
manager regularly to fill the void that has
been generated through 15-20 days of
virtual reporting.
 Also, many discussions and issues are not
solvable in online meetings. Face to face
meetings solve those.

43. Enjoy your passion and life
 Not many people get to work from their
comfort place. If you have got the chance,
enjoy it.
 Complete the project assigned to you. But,
while you do that, pursue your hobbies and
passion.
 When you are happy, it shows in your
performance. That’s what your organization
wants.
It’s a vicious circle.

44. Summary
 The world has witnessed fashion, fads, and trends. Some of these aspects
stick around and become the world changing phenomena. Flexible
workforce is one those phenomenon. Sooner or later, every company has
to embrace this fact. Sooner you embrace, better it is for you.
 Flexible Workforce is a useful byproduct of technology. It is now possible
for everyone to work from anywhere. This is a true freedom to work. If
properly planned and managed, both organizations and its people can
achieve their objectives.
Happy Virtual Working!

45. Contact Us
StreamOn Technologies Pvt. Ltd.
Website:
www.streamonindia.com
Email:
sales@streamonindia.com
Tel: 022 65345084