1. The Future of Flexibility
Companies, such as Yahoo and Best Buy have decided to re-centralize but research shows that they are in the minority among organizations today.
81 percent of respondents in a Catalyst survey reported that their current firm offers FWAs of some kind
Experts predict that within the next few years, 1.3 billion people worldwide will be working virtually (Catalyst)

2. Flexibility as a Business Strategy
A 2010 SHRM survey of HR professionals found that the best tactic to attract and retain talent is to provide flexible work arrangements (Families and Work Institute /SHRM, 2012).
IBM employees with workplace flexibility are able to work 19 longer hours (often equivalent to one or two 8-hr days more per week) before reporting work-life conflict (Hill et al, 2010).
Research from Deloitte shows that addressing concerns about work-life fit through workplace flexibility would have six times the impact on voluntary turnover than addressing concerns about fair pay (Deloitte, 2013).

3. Defining Workplace Flexibility
Day-to-Day Scheduling
Time Off
Career Flexibility
scheduling of hours
amount of hours worked
place of work
Examples:
Flexible Work Hours
Compressed Workweeks
Shift Flexibility
Part-time
Part-year
Reduced-hours schedules
Job Sharing
Telecommuting
Hotelling
Snowbirding
Short-term
Episodic
Extended
Sick leave
Vacation
FMLA
Sabbatical
Leave of Absence
Short Term Disability
Parental Leave
Career Exits
Career Maintenance
Career Re-entry
On-Boarding
On-ramp from leave
Off-ramp to leave
Phased retirement
Education Leave
Alumni Program
“Full Circle”
The three most frequently reported obstacles were suitability of jobs
for flexible work (41%), business needs that do not allow for FWAs (29%)
and inconsistency in policy/practice/program implementation (27%).

4. Virtual Work is the Future
Source: Deloitte

5. Leading a Virtual Workforce
Whether an employee is working in the office, from his or her home, from a client location across town, or from a company facility in another state, managers today need to learn new ways of supervising regardless of “place.”
Define the work that has to be done
Assign the work to the right people
Communicate a clear vision and performance goals
Hold people accountable for getting it done
Foster collaboration
Host regularly scheduled phone calls or video conferences and ask for virtual feedback from members to ensure engagement
Build trust among team members by assigning specific tasks, helping them to address conflicts, and encouraging follow-through
and goals
Encourage constant sharing of information, ex: create a knowledge sharing repository
Establish communication guidelines
Develop a formal training program for virtual team members
Encourage employee pairing and mentoring
Signal your accessibility for informal and formal conversations

6. Best practices State Street: Manager-Initiated Flex
American Express: BlueWork
IBM: Work-Life Guidelines
Deloitte: Mass Career Customization
Marriott International: Flex Options for Hourly Workers
Eli Lilly and Company: Model of Workplace Flexibility (video, 3:58)

7. Resources The Virtual Workforce: A Shifting Paradigm
The Great Debate: Flexibility versus Face Time
Deloitte: Making Virtual Work “Business as Usual”
Managing a Remote Workforce: Proven Practices from Successful Leaders
Set Up Remote Workers to Thrive
The Challenges of Working in Virtual Teams
Workplace Flexibility in the 21st Century