Leading by Example: Workplace Flexibility Lessons from State and Local Governments December 1, 2010 New America Foundation Presented by Patricia Kempthorne Founder, President, & CEO Twiga Foundation, Inc.

In conjunction with Center for Aging and Work at Boston College and funded by Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, we worked with state agencies to provide information and assistance about effective workplace practices to help RECRUIT, ENGAGE, RETAIN the best talent possible We worked to show states the current opportunity to adopt and expand workplace flexibility and effectiveness to counter the impact that arises as the public sector workforce ages

The Project Consists of Four Key Elements: 1.Surveys (gather information) 2.Webinars (share experiences) 3.Fact-finding visits in the states 4.Technical Assistance – including Toolkit

Why workplace flexibility? Workplace flexibility is an effective practice that can help employers retain their older workforce and create an environment that attracts new generations of workers to the public sector workplace

What is workplace flexibility? Workplace flexibility is a dynamic partnership between employers and employees that defines how, when and where work gets done and how careers are organized in ways that work for both.

It is NO COST / LOW COST WIN …. For the Employer Increased Productivity – Decreased Overtime and Leave Costs WIN …. For the Employee Increased Job Satisfaction – Reduced Travel Time to Work Balance Family/Work – More Opportunities for People with Disabilities WIN …. For the Community Improved Services to Citizens like extended service hours and reduced wait time Environmental Benefits like less energy used, reduced greenhouse emissions, and reduced gas consumption

The win win win in UTAH—4/10 EXTENDED SERVICE HOURS Customer Satisfaction ◦ DMV wait ↓ from 11.4 to 7.3 mins ◦ Friday calls ↓ from 70+ to under 10 REDUCTIONS IN ◦ Paid Overtime ↓ from 30.31% to 22.04% ◦ Comp/Excess time ↓7.43% ◦ Overall leave usage ↓ 3.60% ENERGY ◦ 13% ↓ in energy usage ◦ 744,000 gallons of gasoline saved

An employer-of-choice has the following characteristics: TRUST TEAMWORK EMPLOYEE FIRST RENEWAL DUAL-CENTRIC EMPLOYEES

ASSESSMENT Demographic Shift Matters There are FOUR GENERATIONS WORKING SIDE BY SIDE for the FIRST TIME in America. Project data showed the following demographics for state employees : ◦ 24.1% are between ages ◦ 42.6% are between ages of ◦ 26.1% is between ages ◦ 3.8% is under age 24

The aging workforce is significant for state agencies Distribution of the State Government and Private Sector Workforces by Age, 2008

AWARENESS Older State Workers are Valued Survey respondents associated positive attributes with late career workers – contrary to the stereotypes of older workers Survey respondents valued Older Workers for: *Experience and Ability *Loyalty and Reliability *Strong Work Ethic *Taking Initiative *Low Turnover Rate

ACTION States have been a laboratory of trying, but one size does not fit all Wide variety of flexibility options are used successfully. Regardless of the reason states tried flex (address an aging population, energy conservation, budget, leadership initiative), state personnel reported that workplace flexibility is a WIN.

Rhode Island Housing Rhode Island Housing created workplace flexibility as a business strategy to meet the needs of our staff while also increasing employee commitment and productivity. …and won the Alfred P. Sloan Award for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility

ICMA—Knowledge Network ICMA’s Next Generation Initiatives were created to attract and develop a wide and diverse group of people into the local government management profession, including students, early and mid-career professionals, and individuals from other fields.

Twiga Foundation, Inc. 816 W. Bannock Street, Suite 306 Boise, ID Phone Fax In conjunction with Center for Aging and Work at Boston College and Funded by Alfred P. Sloan Foundation fChoice.html