| Work + Life: That Delicate Balance
By Anne Stuart
Mark Twain is credited with having observed that everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it. The same might be said about work-life balance.
Put another way: Most successful executives and managers now understand the importance of encouraging employees to reach the right job-to-personal-life ratio. Until recently, though, many companies did little to formally support the concept. The prevailing attitude in many organizations was that establishing the perfect equilibrium was ultimately a matter of personal responsibility.
For a variety of reasons, that's changing. Businesses of all sizes now actively promote the idea that an exciting career and a rewarding personal life aren't mutually exclusive. Leaders routinely land on the prestigious annual “best places to work” lists; other companies follow suit by developing similar programs that emphasize employees' overall quality of life.
Some even use their balance-oriented corporate cultures as competitive differentiators. For instance, one large East Coast software company, bucking that industry's 1990s trend of running 24/7 workplaces, now bills itself to prospective employees as the place where they can have a job and a life.
Why the balance shift?
The primary force driving that shift is an increasingly tight job market. Thanks to the continuing economic recovery, the nation's unemployment rate has hovered around 4.6 percent for several months--the lowest levels since mid-2001. And, the U.S. Department of Labor projects that U.S. companies will experience nearly 55 million job openings by 2014, including new opportunities as well as vacancies created as the Baby Boomer generation reaches retirement age.
In short, it's a job-seeker's market. Nowhere is that more the case than in the accounting and finance profession, which is experiencing a shortage of highly qualified candidates at a time when they're more in demand than ever.
“In the finance and accounting space, the volume of work that needs to be done has increased exponentially,” says Mary Schoen, an account executive for the SALO Project division of SALO LLC, the Minneapolis-based accounting and finance staffing firm. “But the number of people who can do that work hasn't increased proportionately."
Demand for skilled accountants has jumped sharply in recent years due to the increasingly stringent financial-reporting requirements established by the federal Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and other corporate-reform measures. Corporate acquisitions, mergers and consolidations have also stimulated demand.
Meanwhile, the long hours, intensive work and increased government scrutiny have prompted many professionals to leave the accounting profession--and because the number of finance and accounting graduates dipped in the 1990s, there are fewer top candidates standing in the wings. “In short, you have a lot of requests coming into a talent pool that's shrinking,” says Peggy DeMuse, Managing Director of SALO Project.
A staffing partner like SALO can help companies meet demand by quickly finding highly qualified specialists to fill in as needed.
And, those same businesses can help retain their own employees and manage their overall staffing requirements by helping them achieve work-life balance (for selected helpful resources, see “For More Information,” below). SALO's experts sum up what most employees and consultants want in three simple phrases:
Flexible scheduling
“Companies who treat employees well and give them the flexibility to keep their lives running smoothly tend to inspire greater loyalty,” Schoen says. Many professionals want to work outside the standard 8-to-5 timeframe to meet family obligations or avoid unpleasant rush-hour commutes. For that reason, DeMuse says, “Leading-edge companies are getting more accepting of flexible scheduling. They don't care if someone starts at 6 and leaves at 3 as long as the work gets done.”
Many companies offer employees the option to telecommute from home all or part of the time. And, a growing number offer part-time hours, especially for in-demand specialties such as SEC reporting and internal audit. “In areas like that, companies don't have a choice between five qualified 40-hour-a-week candidates,” Schoen notes. “If they can get somebody good for 24 hours a week, they'll often jump on that and make it work.”
She adds that SALO's carefully screened senior-level consultants can often provide a highly cost-effective solution in that regard: “The right talent can sometimes do the work of a 40-hour person in less time,” she says.
Family-friendly policies and perks
The organizations that routinely win those coveted “best workplace” awards also tend to offer benefits enhancing employees' quality of life at home as well as on the job. According to WorkLifeBalance.com, an Atlanta-based training and consulting firm, the benefits such companies most commonly offer (in addition to telecommuting, flexible scheduling and standard medical and vacation benefits) include:
- Job-sharing
- Child care
- Elder care
- Paid paternity leave (or adoption or other family leaves)
- Concierge services
- In-house gym or subsidy for outside membership
- In-house store or services
Some offer occasional use of company vehicles for personal matters, parking or public-transportation subsidies, and subsidized college classes--even if they aren't directly related to the employee's profession.
Fun and interesting opportunities
The last tip for retaining your best employees: “Give them new and fresh experiences,” DeMuse recommends. “Putting them on new assignments where they can gain a variety of skills will help prevent them from looking elsewhere.”
Moving your top team members to interesting new jobs sounds great in theory, but who will pick up the work they've left behind? That's where SALO comes in, Schoen says: “Our consultants can step right into those roles and free up your company's own people for new initiatives.” Typically, those placements give SALO's consultants the chance to contribute not only their strong experience and specialized skills, but a fresh perspective as well.
Most organizations are deservedly selective about the roles they want to fill. But any organization that emphasizes a healthy work-life balance is likely to have an equally healthy competitive edge.
About the Author
UpSide contributor Anne Stuart writes frequently about business, workplace and career issues. A former writer and editor for Inc. and CIO magazines and The Associated Press, she is now a freelance writer based in Boston. You can reach her at Anne.S@BeTuitive.com.
Copyright © 2006 BeTuitive Publishing
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