Home Posts tagged Balance

How to Achieve Balance in the Modern Workforce

By Contributor
Features

Employment

By Nicole Polite

 

Nicole Polite

Nicole Polite

The workplace dynamic has continually evolved, influenced by shifting societal values, economic landscapes, and generational ideologies. Views on work can be broadly categorized into two philosophies: live-to-work and work-to-live. Understanding these perspectives is essential as they shape the environments and cultures that define our working lives.

 

Traditional Workplaces: the Live-to-work Ethos

Traditionally, a significant divide existed between work and personal life, marked by strict hierarchies, rigid schedules, and minimal flexibility. This structure, predominant among Baby Boomers and Generation X, is deeply rooted in a post-World War II economic boom that prized efficiency, stability, and conformity. In such settings, employees often found themselves adhering to exhaustive norms and sacrificing personal priorities for work commitments, epitomizing the live-to-work doctrine.

The typical workplace during this era was characterized by a top-down management style, where decisions were made by high-level executives and permeated downward, often ignoring the needs of lower-tier employees. These practices shaped an environment where individual creativity and innovation were stiflingly restricted, mirroring the mechanical precision of assembly-line work rather than fostering a nurturing and progressive workplace.

 

Modern Workplaces: the Work-to-live Approach

Conversely, the modern work philosophy, favored by Millennials and Generation Z, champions flexibility, autonomy, and a balanced integration of work with personal life. The 2008 Great Recession shaped the worldview of these younger workers, many of whom watched as their parents struggled with job loss, financial instability, and economic uncertainty despite the years spent working in corporate jobs and traditional career paths.

That experience left a mark on these modern employers and workers and instilled in them a strong desire for financial resilience, job security, and a skepticism toward traditional corporate structures. They realized that their parents’ career paths, work approach, and strict adherence to norms weren’t a surefire guarantee of success, security, and wealth.

Most importantly, they didn’t want to feel the pain of loss and unfulfillment they saw in their parents’ eyes as once esteemed and revered institutions, systems, and structures crumbled around them during the recession. They made it their goal to perpetuate work environments and work in jobs that satisfied their desires, met their yearnings, and fueled their passions. They forged career paths that offered some financial stability and a sense of purpose and autonomy, such as entrepreneurship, freelancing, or pursuing work in socially conscious organizations.

Some modern workers would rather not have a 9-to-5 job. They want control over their schedules, the ability to choose projects that align with their interests, and the freedom to work with like-minded colleagues. The possibility of remote work, facilitated by advancements in technology and software platforms like Zoom and Google Meet, allows these workers to enjoy the benefits of working from anywhere, at any time, and for any company.

Many modern workers are also gig workers; about 16% of American workers have earned an income from gig work such as ride sharing, food delivery, or freelance services. This type of work typically has a lower barrier to entry and offers the kind of flexibility that workers crave today. The emphasis is on working to live, where employment is a means to enjoy a preferred lifestyle rather than the sole focus of one’s existence.

 

Bridging the Generational Divide

The challenge arises when these two distinct mindsets interact within the same workplace. Conflicts can ensue when a traditional employer hires a modern-thinking employee, or vice versa. Such clashes can lead to misunderstandings, stress, and a decrease in productivity, highlighting the need for a more integrative approach to workforce management.

In an ideal workforce, employers would adopt a more inclusive and flexible mindset that accommodates diverse work philosophies. This involves creating policies that respect traditional values of structure and stability, while also embracing the flexibility and innovation that modern workers bring. Ensuring clear communication and mutual respect among employees can foster an environment where varied work values coexist harmoniously.

 

The Road to a Symbiotic Workplace

The future of work doesn’t have to be confined to a choice between living to work or working to live. Instead, it can be a blend of both philosophies, taking the robustness of traditional structures and merging them with the flexibility and innovation of modern approaches.

My experience in talent recruitment has shown me that both employers and employees seek a productive, symbiotic relationship that supports individual and collective growth. To achieve this, it’s crucial to go beyond merely matching skills and qualifications. We must understand and integrate the nuanced preferences, goals, and aspirations of the workforce.

Creating such a workplace requires an ongoing dialogue between different generations and mindsets. It needs adaptation and compromise from both sides to forge a solid partnership that withstands the tests of time and challenges of a changing world. Only through such integrative efforts can we build a workforce that not only bridges the gap between generations but also thrives on the diverse strengths each brings to the table.

With a balanced approach, we can ensure that both the live-to-work and work-to-live philosophies contribute positively to our collective professional landscape, leading to increased satisfaction and productivity across the board.

 

Nicole Polite is CEO of the MH Group, a staffing and recruiting firm in Massachusetts and Connecticut, and the author of Expectations Aligned: Forging Better Paths for Employers and Employees to Meet in the Middle, which will be released on Sept. 16.

Remote Employees Aim for a Healthy Work-life Balance

By Kayla Ebner
Technology

Mom Tech

Many people assume that working from home is less productive than spending time in the office. However, the opposite is oftentimes true. This is especially true now that technology allows for quick and easy communication between home and office, giving employees, especially moms, the ability to work efficiently from home while maintaining a healthy work-life balance.

When Tiffany Appleton looks back on raising her now-19-year-old daughter, she remembers how difficult it was to have a full-time job on top of the 24-hour job called parenting. As a single parent, she really didn’t have a choice whether to go to work or not — she had to find a way to balance the two.

And she did — but she also realizes how much easier that might have been in today’s world, where technology allows employees to work from home productively and sustain a healthy work-life balance.

Appleton, recruiter and director of the accounting and finance division at Johnson & Hill Staffing, finds more and more people are working from home, and sees benefits for both the employee and the employer.

“I’ve interviewed many people who have had a work-from-home schedule, and usually they say that they end up working more than they would if they were in the office,” she explained, adding that it is oftentimes easier to be productive at home than working in an office environment, with the myriad distractions found there.

“I think much of this desire for having flexibility to work remotely came from moms who wanted to have their hands in balancing both the career and raising a family, and not having to feel like they could only do one or the other.”

In fact, the work-from-home population has grown by 159% since 2005, and the number of employers offering a remote option has grown by 40% in the past five years. The start of this fairly new trend, Appleton said, can be attributed to the moms.

“I think much of this desire for having flexibility to work remotely came from moms who wanted to have their hands in balancing both the career and raising a family, and not having to feel like they could only do one or the other,” she said.

Mary Shea, vice president of digital strategy at GCAi, can attest to this. She’s a new mom of a 4½-month-old boy. She commutes from Sturbridge but works from home on Mondays and Fridays, a schedule she says took some getting used to but now allows her use her time more productively while helping her maintain a healthy lifestyle. Her position at GCAi includes building and managing ad campaigns for her clients, a job she says she can do very well remotely.

Between her long commute and having a new baby boy, Mary Shea says working from home twice a week makes a huge difference in her life.

“Most of the time, I don’t have to be in the office,” Shea told BusinessWest. “I’ve set it up where Mondays and Fridays are my set schedule. Those are the days I’ll work on things that I know are online, and then, the other three days, I come into the office or go on location for a video shoot.”

Working from home saves Shea three hours a day that would otherwise be spent in a car — time she spends either working more, grocery shopping, or fitting in some exercise. And she never feels disconnected from the company, knowing her team back in the Springfield office is only a phone call away.

“Technology today has enabled parents, particularly moms like me, to work remotely,” she said, adding that hard and soft technology like the cloud-based project-management system GCAi uses and applications on her phone make this possible. “Being able to work remotely in the situation I’m in now is pretty vital because it’s just such a busy week.”

Barriers to Success

Shea isn’t the only mom, or employee in general, who feels this way. Karen Buell, vice president of Operations at Payveris and mother of two, has been working from home three days a week for eight years.

“Some women are pushing off having a family or they’re choosing between a career and having a family. For me, I can choose both,” she said, adding that being part of a tech company makes this a pretty easy thing to do.

Tiffany Appleton says Western Mass. businesses are adopting work-from-home policies slower than bigger cities, but it is still becoming more normal in the area.

In fact, Buell says about a third of the employees at Payveris are 100% remote.

But for some employers, this can be a difficult thing to embrace. Appleton says the negative stigma that surrounds those who work from home can sometimes prevent employers from making the jump.

“I’ve found, in Western Mass., we’re a little slower to adopt it than the cities are,” she said. “Sometimes employers get scared by work-life balance and think, ‘that means people don’t want to work, they just want to have a life and pretend they’re working.’ They just assume the worst.”

This negative perception is one of the things Buell experienced in her early work-from-home days, with people telling her she’d have a hard time being visible or ever being promoted. Despite the lingering stereotype, she was promoted at Payveris just a couple months ago.

“It doesn’t hold you back. If you’re there and you’re showing up and being productive, you can do anything,” she said. “It’s not about where you are, it’s about how productive you can be.”

Another challenging aspect about working from home is maintaining a connection with those who are at the office. Both Appleton and Shea agreed this responsibility lies largely with the employee, but also the cooperation of co-workers to maintain connectivity.

“Keeping the culture of the office is probably the most important thing the employer can do when having people who are not in the office all the time — finding ways to make sure that they are included, even if they’re not there in person,” Appleton said.

This may even include something as simple as telling a co-worker not to bring a lunch tomorrow because the office is ordering pizza or letting them know that so-and-so down the hall got engaged.

“Those are the things that usually irk people,” she continued. “Making sure there are ways to include the people when they’re not there — and being very conscious to include them and make them feel like they are part of the team — is important.”

Karen Buell says employers would benefit from seeing the upside of remote work instead of focusing on the negatives.

Technology makes all this especially simple. Appleton says more and more employers are investing in the kinds of technology that can be accessed remotely, such as Freedcamp, a collaborative project-management system that GCAi uses for everyday business and communication.

Win-win Situation

With increasingly adaptive technology that allows employees to do things like videoconferencing and sending documents through group-sharing software within seconds, disconnectedness is becoming less and less of a problem.

“Taking the next step to make sure the tools you’re investing in for the office have those abilities for people to work from anywhere is crucial,” Appleton said.

When she thinks about becoming a working parent 19 years ago, she realizes how helpful modern technology would have been when her daughter was home sick from school and she had to take the day off from work. Or on a snow day, when it wouldn’t have been necessary to get in the car and drive to the office to be productive.

“It’s nice now that you can do everything you need to do from home,” she said. “I think it’s good for the employees and the employers at the end of the day.”

Kayla Ebner can be reached at [email protected]m