Now in its seventh year, the aim of Work Wise Week is to promote modern “smarter” working practices such as flexible, remote and mobile working. Work Wise Week and National Work from Home Day are excellent opportunities for organisations to showcase what they are doing to improve business efficiency through smarter working and this year was the most proactive and successful so far. Changing working practices to embrace all forms of flexible working is an obvious solution to addressing competitiveness, the environment, road congestion and work/life balance.
The biggest benefit from working at home is the ability to focus on the outputs required and to “get the job done” on time and efficiently. It is no longer about how long someone spends in the workplace, it really is about achieving what you need and knowing what you are paying for. A business has to consider: is each employee actually delivering what they are being paid to do? If so, a business can focus its attention on cost, productivity and profit.
The office will not become redundant, but it will become less important as the focus of business activity shifts towards delivery and customer service. We no longer have to think of work being a place; it is an activity that delivers value. Modern technology means that we really can work anywhere, anytime, anyplace.
We operate a 21st Century work place in the UK and the world can see how efficient we are in all walks of life. Smart organisations have already created the flexible working environments that will allow them to showcase their businesses to the world and demonstrate beyond doubt what a great place the UK is to do business and that our innovative people really are the best.
Since 2006 we have worked with companies large and small, helping them develop strategies and implement work plans to keep their industries and people ahead of the game. But here we are just a few weeks away from the greatest sporting event on the planet and we are still talking about how prepared businesses are for the huge numbers of visitors to the UK and how they will cope. The Olympics will not only showcase sporting achievements but provide a great opportunity for the UK to demonstrate that we have one of the most flexible and efficient working environments in the world.
The next six months will be a busy time for Work Wise UK as we will be launching the Work Wise Alliance Programme, which will bring together a group of Public, Private and Third Sector organisations who will work together to raise the awareness of new workforce management techniques and the benefits of implementing smarter working practices. In addition we shall also be running Commute Smart Week from 11th-17th November, which launches our annual winter campaign designed to raise the awareness of implementing smarter ways of commuting and business travel.
We look forward to 2013, our 8th year, and following the Olympics we are keen to see what Employers have learnt and how this will influence their implementation of smarter working practices.
