Flexibility is not an F Word, and we proudly
proclaim as much on Professionelle's unique T shirts. It's not just
a women's issue either, even though it often gets talked about as
if only working mums need and want it. We know plenty of
men who want to see their families, or study, or run marathons,
or generally add meaning and richness to their lives beyond
the work they do.
But for women and men alike, flexibility remains frustratingly
elusive. It's probably no coincidence that a third of our members
are part timers, or have moved to being self employed or
contractors in some way - as we two at Professionelle have
done.
It seems that if you can negotiate enough flexibility
to make your life workable it comes at the price of
having a meaningful career. So often we hear from professional
women who discover that 'part time' can be spelled as 'career
dead-end'. Many of our members tell us that it's full
time or nothing if you want to keep progressing. Off ramps and
on ramps for careers? As the beer ad says - yeah, right!
In this theme we keep tabs on research and progress in the area
of non-traditional work models. We follow new evidence
for the business case for flexibility. We ponder how
to recognise firms that are truly flexible. We reflect the
wisdom of our members who tell us how they "make it all work". If
you have fresh insights or have read something thought-provoking on
this tough issue, do please share them with us and we will
pass them on through this theme page.