The Role of Job Sharing Post-Pandemic: Time to Embrace the Future
The idea of flexible work is finally starting to catch on in so many organisations I speak to and across industries that would previously have thought it impossible. And whilst this is certainly a step in the right direction for many reasons, it’s important to address recognise that even a deeply-embedded flexible working culture doesn’t necessarily make it a supportive part-time working culture.
One facet that is showing promise but is currently under-utilised is the role of job sharing, where two employees share the same responsibilities but not necessarily at the same time.
As we start to see the fall out of companies as a result of COVID-19 as a results of greater financial and operational pressure, now might be a critical time to consider the benefits of role sharing over redundancies.
Exploring the Concept and Benefits of Job Sharing
In Episode #3 of my Why Care? podcast, Roleshare co-founder Sophie Smallwood reveals that job sharing could be an answer to eliminate some of the challenges women experience when trying to advance their career, re-enter their job after maternity leave, or achieve greater work-life balance.
“I’m a working parent, and I enjoy having a career and being available to my family,” reveals Sophie. “I believe you can have the best of both worlds, but it’s not usually going to fit into society’s prescribed 9-5 Monday through Friday structure.”
This was one of Sophie’s biggest motivations to start her company, Roleshare, which focuses on connecting workers with job sharing opportunities. After the birth of her first child, Sophie would have gladly gone back to work before her one-year maternity leave ended if she could have worked just three days per week. Instead, she decided to choose a different career path that better suited her schedule.
Like Sophie, many workers face similar challenges when trying to find work-life balance. It’s not just a problem among working mums, but also for men who could benefit from part-time work but don’t consider it an option because many part-time professions are low-paying and often take the form of administrative or support tasks. This simply doesn’t make economic sense to see such under-used talent in jobs that don’t match their qualifications or experience.
Job sharing could serve to change the face of part-time work as we know it by allowing greater job flexibility without changing the nature of the work performed. It’s also a win for organisations as we see a downturn in the market as they get to keep talent in the workplace, save on training and hiring costs, and most importantly, show they value their staff by catering to their needs instead of letting them go.
How Managers Can Lead and Develop a Flexible Team
Flexible work and job sharing can look and function differently for each organisation. Companies that are interested in exploring role sharing as an option must prioritise ways to make part-time roles work for them.
A recent Timewise Report discusses how COVID-19 has seen organisations “taking part in a global remote working experiment”. They advise organisations to find the right flexible pattern that works for both the organisation and the individual with the key to success being the art of job design i.e. where the work needs to be done, when the work needs to be done and how much work is involved.
Job design is where many organisations falldown – they believe the role can only be fulfilled in a 5-day working week so turn down a part time working request without even considering job sharing as a solution.
As discussed in a 2019 Forbes article:
“Job sharing is completely in line with where the modern world of work is going. In order to be successful, companies need to become more open, more innovative, more flexible and more digital. Job sharing is both harnessing and amplifying these characteristics.”
What do you think about the concept of role sharing and its future in a flexible work environment?