Implementing Global Flexibility
Danielle Hartmann
BC Center for Work & Family
Cindy Martinangelo
Merck & Co.
Ann Andreosatos
Procter & Gamble
CWF Mission
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Boston College Center for Work & Family is committed to
enhancing the success of organizations and the quality of life of
today's workforce by providing leadership for the integration of
work and life, an essential for individual, organizational &
community success
Key differentiators:
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Bridge research & practice
 Employ a global perspective
 Recognize changes in work-life needs
through the career continuum
Membership
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BP plc.
•
Chevron
•
Deere & Co.
•
Dow Chemical
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Company
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GlaxoSmithKline
•
Kraft Foods
•
Merck & Co
Proctor & Gamble •
Prudential Financial
Cadbury
Dell Computers
FM Global
IBM
Johnson & Johnson
Novartis Pharmaceuticals
PricewaterhouseCoopers
State Street Corporation
What we have learned
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Many core concepts of leadership & managing the workforce
translate well across cultures
However, we need better understanding of differences
 Legal and Cultural Environment: France
 Fair Work Act 2009: Australia
 Emerging Markets: Brazil
 Talent and Flexibility: China
Coordination of strategies across corporation is critical
Universal Work-life Issues
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We have found that there are 4 universal work-life issues around
the globe. Resolving those issues takes creativity and sensitivity
to local culture.
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Dependent Care
Demand for Flexibility
Work-load/Stress
Health & Well-Being
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Legal and Cultural Environment: France
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Employers have less legitimacy than the State in the work-life
arena
Employees seek to protect their personal life; hold a more
distrustful view of employers and their vested interests
Structure and focus of unions sometimes conflict with worklife ideals.
Work-life is seen as a social issue, not an economic one that
requires a “business case”
HR managers must comply with complex legal requirements
Ollier-Malaterre, Ariane(2009) 'Organizational work-life initiatives: context matters', Community,
Work & Family,12:2,159 — 178.
Fair Work Act 2009: Australia
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9.
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maximum weekly hours of work
the right to request flexible working arrangements
parental leave and related entitlements
annual leave
personal/carer's leave and compassionate leave
community service leave
long service leave
public holidays
notice of termination and redundancy pay
provision of a Fair Work Information Statement
What should employers do to ensure compliance with r2r?
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Prudent employers would educate their managers about the
factors to be taken into account when determining such a request.
A checklist of factors would include:
• whether a work/family policy exists within the organisation
• whether a similar request has been granted elsewhere in the
business
• the nature of the role and key performance indicators
• options for change (eg including modifications to the request)
• the impact of the change on the team/business unit
• the cost of the change vs the cost of not making the requested
change
(eg turnover).
Aequus Partners:
http://www.workplaceflexibility.com.au/r2r_NES_survey_report_1_Sept_2009_executive_summary.p
df
Emerging Markets: Brazil
Work-Life Trends in Brazil
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Still many Brazilians work in the informal employment sector
Continued inequity between genders
Access to education is competitive
Challenges in approving flexible work arrangements
Demand for daycare exceeds availability
Sharon Lobel, Work-Life in Brazil Executive Briefing:
http://www.bc.edu/centers/cwf/research/publications/meta-elements/pdf/BCCWF_EBS-Brazil.pdf
Talent and Flexibility: China
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Cultural norms and workforce expectations make flexibility
difficult to implement, yet demand for flexibility is increasing.
Demand for top talent and global work environment make
flexibility a business necessity
Prevalent and successful programs include:
 Informal flexibility
 Core hours, flexible starting and ending times
 Working from home and telework
 No meeting Fridays
Russell, Graeme, Work and Life in China, BC CWF Report, January 2008
http://www.bc.edu/centers/cwf/research/publications/meta-elements/pdf/China_Policy_Paper_Final.pdf
Global Flexible Work
Arrangements
Working Mother Media
October 29, 2009
Cindy Martinangelo
Director, Global Work Environment
Agenda
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Global Constituency Group Model
Business Case for Flexibility
Results of Employee Survey
Guiding Principles
Project Timeline
Global Implementation
Challenges to be considered
Key Learnings
10 Global Constituency Groups (GCG) representing
all Merck
Asian
Black
Differently
Able
Women
Generational
Global
Constituency Groups
Native/
Indigenous
LGBT
Men
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Latino/
Hispanic
Inter-Faith
Women’s GCG initially made recommendation to Executive
Committee to develop a global flexible work policy in Dec.
2007
Business Case for Flexibility & Results of
Merck FWA Survey
Employee input
• Focus Groups and
interviews worldwide: a
common concern a-mong
Merck employees
• Flexibility Survey: a
common diagnostic of
benefits among employees
and supervisors
Benchmarking
Research on Benefits
• Productivity and Innovation
(Center for Work and
Family)
• Talent Attraction (Alliance
for Work-Life Progress)
• Commitment and Health
(Halpern)
• Reduced turnover
•Better productivity in parttime Sales Division
• Increased commitment
• Improved productivity
Overview of Survey (conducted March 2008)
•Global participation (stratified random sample, 61% response rate, more than 7000 employees globally)
•Designed to access satisfaction with and interest in flexible work options. Addressed perceived barriers and impact to productivity & careers.
Key Outcomes
Business Case Confirmed
Use/availability of FWA varies by location/division/local
manager
Employee engagement is 29% higher when employees
have FWA
Many employees are unaware/dissatisfied with access to
FWA
Expected turnover rate for employees who do not
have FWA they need is more than twice that for those
who do
Formal FWA used more by women & is viewed as an
entitlement or individual accommodation for personal
reasons
Even access to occasional flexibility had a positive
impact on employee satisfaction
Occasional flexibility is used successfully in some part of
the business by both men and women.
Access to flexibility is a “very important” retention
tool to 49% of employees.
Merck’s Global Guiding Principles
Our competitive
environment requires
that business
objectives be met
Flexibility is
good for our
business and
good for our
people.
The reason for a
flexible work
arrangement
request is not
part of the
process.
Equitable
consideration is
central to the
Merck Flexible
Work
Arrangements
approach.
Flexible work
arrangements
are not an
entitlement.
Flexibility helps
the company be
a better place to
work and
become
Employer of
Choice.
Flexibility is a
two-way street
Results are
what count, not
"face time."
Flexibility does
not limit career
opportunities or
advancement.
These principles provided guidance for the formation
of our global policy.
Flexible Work
Arrangement Timeline
Dec
07
March
April
08
June/July
08
Aug/Sept
08
Oct
08
Nov
08
Dec
08
Global FWA policy approved
Global Survey Conducted &
analyzed
FWA Policy & Approval
Engage Country HR and Line
Leaders. Website & Tool
Development
Executive Briefing
HR Communications to
announce HR Webinars
Deliver 3 WebExs to the HR
community
On line FWA Introduction for
Managers and Q&A telecons
Global communications of FWA
policy, website & tools,
translated as appropriate.
Measure success and evolve
model as required
17
Support tools are available
via the My/MerckFlex
webpage
18
Challenging Issues and Solutions
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Workload of current environment doesn’t allow for FWA
✦Research clearly indicates that FWA enhances engagement,
productivity, and creativity and reduces turnover
✦Our expectation is that the majority of employees are looking for
occasional flexibility, flex time or telework, not reduced hours.
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Entitlement/ Accommodation mentality
✦ Decisions are based on business need. Arrangements can be
changed/terminated as the business needs change
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Employees need to be available to others
✦ Decisions are based on business needs. Technology has made
staying connected much more practical in a remote environment.
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Nature of the job is not conducive to a FWA
✦ Not all jobs may support FWA. Decisions are based on business
needs.
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Managing in a flexible work environment is difficult
✦ Managers’ skills and comfort level will vary. Requires training,
coaching and support.
What we are seeing now:
Requests by FLEX TYPE
Hybrid Choices
13%
Other 2%
Rem ote Work
13%
Com pressed
Work Week 8%
Flextim e 10%
Job Sharing 7%
Part-Tim e 8%
Telew ork 39%
Requests by GENDER
Male
17%
Fem ale
83%
Key Learnings
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Work –life integration is defined by the individual. Not one –size
fits all
Communication – Messages should be customized (at the
country level and at the functional level) (Field, plant, office).
Culture is set at the country level, not at the region.
Don’t underestimate the value of reason - neutral
Ensure that employees understand website records/requests
are confidential. Accessible only by administrators and direct
managers
Highlight employees who are dedicated to their career and
demonstrate effective use of FWA
Use FWA as a way to be clear-headed and productive in the
workplace, not to burn out.
Provide people managers with guidance on how to manage by
objectives (not about being seen, but results that are being
delivered)
Link FWA to employee engagement in a highly stressed
environment – Provide a manager toolkit for engagement.
Expanding Flexibility on a Regional Approach
Drivers of
Work-Life
Effectiveness
Flexibility
Energy
Demands
Well
Being
Performance
Survey Question
Across the globe……
We ask employees if they have enough
flexibility to manage their work and
personal lives
CEEMEA REGION– Strategy for
Re-launch of Flexibility
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The strategy is regional
. . . the action is local.
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The challenge is complexity and scope
. . . the solution is clear, energetic central
ownership and management
project
 Resolve the significant issues through smart choices and a good
strategic framework
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Availability
Establish a “minimum floor” of policies that all countries should have in
place
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Awareness
Communication strategies were owned by each local entity starting with
engaging senior managers
 Resolve the significant issues through smart choices and a good
strategic framework
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Utilization
objectives and strategies for tracking and understanding
utilization
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Supportive Culture
Expect availability, awareness, utilization and behaviors around
flexibility to be fully integrated
 Power Lies in Measurement
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Favorable survey responses increased by 12 points versus from 2008 results
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2,500+ employees (57% of survey respondents) report using some form of
FWA.
– Flexible Hours (flexible start and start time)
– Work from Home (occasional use or set schedule)
– Personal Leave of Absence
– Less Than Full Time
 Build a solid infrastructure and make it easy to accelerate flexibility
The journey will continue:
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Partner with organization leaders to broadly deploy
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Set expectations with line leaders and managers
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Build greater education for employees
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Internalize and role model behaviors that address needs, inspire and instill
these new attitudes
Policies may be adapted to meet labor and
union requirements, and will be found in the
country’s policy book… or FlexPaths. Where
differences exist between regional guidelines
and local policies, local policies are to be
followed.”….
Latin America
Latin America
Thank you—We’d be happy to answer any questions
Danielle Hartmann, BC Center for Work & Family
danielle.hartmann@bc.edu
Cindy Martinangelo, Merck & Co.
cynthia_martinangelo@merck.com
Ann Andreosatos, Procter & Gamble
andreosatos.am@pg.com