Lower attrition and absence rates and terrific individual performances are just some of the benefits of embracing flexible working, according to LifeSearch’s head of people and culture.
Yesterday, Health & Protection revealed the protection advice firm had joined 26 other financial services firms in signing up to a new Association of British Insurers’ (ABI) charter aimed at increasing flexible working to improve diversity and equality within the sector.
LifeSearch head of people and culture Andrew Parker (pictured) told Health & Protection that while the firm had been invited to join the initiative, it has actually been an advocate of flexible working since 2008 when it first experimented with allowing staff to work from home.
“Since then, all 500 people in our business have been set up to work remotely, which has been a real benefit during Covid,” he said.
“We’ve tried where we can to rip up the rule book and let our people work in ways that brings them the best results in their performance but importantly at home too. That can be about the locations they work from or the hours.
“We’ve a great track record in supporting mums back into work with part time hours or moving into alternative roles which would better suit them and our customers.”
Parker noted the firm is also a member of the Women In Finance charter and its annual results for the number of women in leadership in the business has increased in each of the three years these figures have been reported.
However being asked to become founding signatories of the ABI’s Making Flexible Work charter gave the organisation the impetus to go further.
“We’re focused on creating more job share opportunities and looking to advertise all external roles as being flexible on hours,” Parker continued.
“The fear some organisations have about flexible working meaning poorer results or lower engagement has not shown itself at LifeSearch.
“Indeed, it’s the opposite. We’ve navigated the pandemic in great financial shape thanks to people’s flexibility, our systems give people everything they need to do their jobs well from wherever they are and in a recent survey, 82% of our people now say they want to continue working flexibly even once Covid is behind us.
“Our attrition and absence measures are very low and we see terrific individual performances when people are trusted, empowered and can shape their own days.”