As a legal recruiter, I meet my fair share of clients and candidates and company benefits are often discussed with flexible working policies being a hot topic.
For example, recently I went for lunch with the HR Director of a large commercial law firm who was at the latter stages of rolling out their flexible working benefits and the following day I met a solicitor employed by a firm with 100% flexible working, if transparent targets are achieved.
Regardless of the individual policy on offer it’s essential that it’s bought into and encouraged by management. The major obstacle to flexible working going the distance is the employers trusting their staff not to take advantage of the policy. If it’s not ingrained into the culture (which takes time and effort) then there is a strong possibility it will be mothballed.
Cary Cooper, professor of organisational psychology and health at Lancaster University Management School says “managers want people in the office because they want to see their little empires in front of them. It's totally about trust, and the incompetence of managers who don't know how to manage people remotely."
There needs to be a shift in focus to the end result, rather than the process of getting there, which can change from employee to employee. After all, delivery is what it’s all about and what does it matter if the work to get there is done from the office or at home?
To back this up Phil Flaxton, chief executive of Work Wise UK states "the fear factor for many managers is 'if I can't see you how do I know you are working?' Managers need training on how to assess a home-worker on their output, not their input."
From a practical perspective, businesses need to have the technology in place that allows employees to work to their full potential at home. There are numerous cloud-based working and video conferencing options available, so there really is no excuse for home working not to 100% reflect what is possible from the office.
At Thornton Legal, flexible working is a fundamental part of the business.
We have a policy that will allow employees to work from home regularly, safe in the knowledge that they have the full trust of the Directors. Everything that can be accessed in the office can be accessed from their home and it’s a brilliant system (we would say that of course!).
Recruitment is a results-based business and, as long as fees are coming in, we don’t give two hoots where the work is being done. If the fees aren’t coming in then, well…. that’s a story for another day….
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Thornton Legal is a leading legal recruitment company, recruiting for legal jobs in Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Chester and Preston. We are passionate about providing a professional, innovative and reliable legal recruitment service that is focused on quality and ensures our clients are matched with the strongest legal talent available. Contact one of our legal recruitment consultants today on 0151 307 5757 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to see what we can do for your law firm or legal career.