Human Capital Essay - The Talent, Skills And Knowledge Of An... part 2 Essay - 3,012 words

... survey shows that far from seeing flexible working as burdensome, the vast majority of employers already recognise the compelling business case in favour of flexible working. "Yet in too many organisations flexible working arrangements are informal and patchwork. Firms practising flexible working should do so in the open, through formal policies which clearly explain their stance on flexibility. This will make the change to flexible working easier for employers and help to manage some of the transitional problems sometimes associated with working flexibly. "The challenge of the Work and Parent Taskforce is to develop a legal right that can be easily understood by employers and employees alike, and help shift workplaces from informality to clarity on flexible working." Christine Gowdridge, Director of Maternity Alliance added: "The Taskforce has the opportunity to establish a straightforward right which will make flexible working an everyday reality benefiting mothers, fathers, employers and children.


We hope they respond to employers' genuine concerns in a constructive way, but not to unfounded fears that flexible hours will harm business. This is a rare chance to transform working lives and must not be lost." 12 July 2001 - New research reported by the Industrial Society indicates that flexible working patterns can help to reduce absenteeism. Managing Attendance, the Industrial Society's recent survey report on absence, shows that absence rates fell from an average of eight days per employee to 6.5 days during the last 18 months among almost 300 firms surveyed. 49% of survey respondents linked this improvement to having flexible annual leave; 40% to the ability to work from home on occasions and 55% to flexible working hours. HR specialists from 292 organizations were surveyed, including Boots the Chemist, Inland Revenue, London Underground, Norfolk Probation Service, Sheffield City Council and Vauxhall. Absence reporting is becoming more common: 40% of surveyed organizations report all absences with an additional 33% reporting 9 out of 10 instances.


Overall, this is an increase of 8% since 1999 but, strangely, there has been a reduction in the number of firms who measure the cost of absenteeism from 54% of organizations in 1996 to 41% now. Reported reasons for absences have not changed with 91% of employees reporting time off for flu or colds, 74% giving stomach upsets or food poisoning as the reason for being off sick and 54% citing headaches or migraines. But employers felt that only 65% cited colds and flu as the main reason for employee absence with 43% blaming stress and emotional problems. 37% of HR specialists also thought that a proportion of sickness absence was due to the need for employees to take time off to look after a child or other family member. Motivation (64%) and return-to-work interviews (63%) were cited by employers as the most effective ways of managing attendance. According to Theo Blackwell, Policy Specialist at The Industrial Society, "Left unchecked, absenteeism hits productivity and erodes morale in organisations. Firms should regularly examine the causes of absence and take appropriate action -by promoting workplace well being or flexible working practices." He added that, "This report provides even more evidence of the business case for flexible working. According to HR professionals more flexibility seems to equal less time off sick and a healthier, happier and more loyal workforce." "Now the Government's new Taskforce on Flexible Working has yet more evidence backing up the business case behind a meaningful legal right for employees to have their request to change the terms of their contracts considered fully and fairly by the employer." So, we took up the main advantages a nd disadvantages of functional flexibility for employers and emploee.


Now we try to create a HR strategy on base of the main type of flexibilities. In the next 20 years, I believe a major challenge for leadership will lie in the human capital field. We know how to write good strategies, effect a transaction or re-engineer a supply chain, but almost without exception current research shows that is not enough. We need to know how to lead the resulting organisation to sustainable success in the longer term. This involves winning the hearts and minds of the stakeholders affected by transformational change employees, suppliers, customers, advisers, pensioners and then engaging them in the business going forward. Scientists examine at first hand the potential of HR in the 21st century, exploring the various issues that affect us all across an organisation. From optimising employee potential to cutting costs without cutting your workforce, from finding the right structure for the fi ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

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Essay Tags: flexible, industrial society, human capital, business case, resource management

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