There’s been a lot of discussion this week about flexible working - including speculation as to whether employee rights to request flexible leave would be in the Queen’s speech, and there has been some discussion about our own approach at PwC.
In June, July and August, our people will be able to take half days on Friday if they can. We know not everyone will be able to do this each week - it depends on team and client needs, and there will be the option to take the half day on another day of the week if that works for the team. We hope everyone gets to take some time out, guilt-free, and that everyone benefits from less email traffic on those Friday afternoons. We piloted the approach last summer and it worked well, so this year we are doing it again but for three months.
Particularly as it’s not a new policy, I have to say I’ve been surprised by the level of interest, but what’s been fantastic has been the reaction of our staff on social media. I guess flexibility is a topic everyone can relate to, but it’s a shame that conversations have become polarised - it can appear that you’re either in the flexible camp or outside it, either pro-office or in favour of working from home, whereas I think many people are actually somewhere in between.
" We hope everyone gets to take some time out, guilt-free, and that everyone benefits from less email traffic on those Friday afternoons. We piloted the approach last summer and it worked well, so this year we are doing it again but for three months."
As a firm we are very pro people coming together face-to-face. That’s why we’re continuing to invest in great new spaces, such as our new Belfast office with outdoor terraces and a dedicated wellbeing space with meditation pods and exercise classes. It’s why we’ve asked our people to spend two to three days a week together in person, whether in an office or at a client site.
But we’re also pro-flexibility. Before the pandemic, we introduced ‘everyday flexibility’ - essentially giving people permission to adapt their day to suit them. If they want to start earlier and finish earlier they can. It perhaps sounded radical at the time, but we were always clear it was about two-way flexibility - because we operate in a culture of trust, we knew people would check what worked for their colleagues and teams, and of course their clients.
I’d say back then around 10% of people tended to work remotely at any one time. Now hybrid working is the norm, but it’s definitely still work-in-progress. It’s only by trying new approaches and testing feedback that we will learn what works best for our clients and our people, which will enable us to fulfil our ambition to be the best hybrid working firm.
