Ask anyone under 33 what they look for in a job, and chances are they’ll tell you it’s flexibility. Millennials—the generation of employees born between the late 1980s and early 2000s—want to work how they want, when they want, where they want. A recent survey conducted by RingCentral found half of Millennials believe flexible work hours and the ability to work from any location would vastly improve their work-life balance, and by extension, their sense of well-being.
Of course, freedom of choice is not a new concept. (My fellow GenXers might remember the 1987 new wave Devo song and album by that name.) But with the advent of mobile personal technology, the traditional 9-5 workday is quickly becoming a dinosaur. Sixty percent of Millennials say their employers expect them to be accessible during off hours, and 70% work up to 20 hours or more outside of the office each week.
Millennial life choices are heavily influenced by workplace flexibility—89% would prefer to choose when and where they work rather than being placed in a 9-5 position, and 45% choose workplace flexibility over pay.
Global Flex Appeal
Concurrent with their preference for control over work hours and location, Millennials are highly dedicated to their jobs and commit to working well beyond normal business hours. The lines between work and life are disappearing, and it’s difficult for employees to keep work at work and personal tasks at home. As President Obama declared, “most of our days consist of work, family, and not much else, and those two spheres are constantly interacting with each other.”
It’s not just American Millennials clamoring for control of their schedules. As of a few weeks ago, 30 million workers in Britain now get the right to ask for flexible work hours. Google CEO Larry Page recently opined that people should abandon the 40-hour work-week altogether, working only enough hours to cover basics like food and housing. Around the wired world, there’s an acknowledgement that our digital devices cross boundaries between our once-separate work and home spheres. As the lines blur, businesses and policymakers grapple with questions about access, security and identity.
Striking the BYOD Balance
Mobile technology may be driving flexible and productive work habits, but it’s also creating ongoing challenges for managers. We’ve found 12% of senior decision makers of small- to medium-sized businesses said that facilitating flexible and remote work is one of their top business headaches. More than a quarter said staff productivity as a whole is a top management issue.
In addition, the technology that is driving the millennial generation to be ultra-productive also creates huge gaps in company security.
While employers didn’t drive these trends, I believe they can win a competitive edge by crafting policies to support today’s mobile workforce – thus helping recruit and retain a generation who will become our future leaders. It’s important to strike a balance between supporting flexibility while maintaining safe and secure company protocols.
Try formalizing a BYOD policy. Implement IT solutions that support a wide range of devices. Enable employees to manage their business and personal communications separately – from the same device. Give employees the flexibility to use just one phone number on a variety of business and personal devices.
For any company interested in surviving for the next generation, do your company and employees a favor, and make the concept of freedom of choice new again. We’ve come a long way since the 1990s when we were all using the same software and products, and for the first time, we have the opportunity to give people what they really want.
It’s worth granting flexibility now in exchange for higher morale, motivation and productivity over the long term.
