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Digital transformation vendor eWave, headquartered in Australia, introduced flexible work hours and remote working amid the pandemic. Employees can choose when and where they want to work and they can even break up their working hours into different sections.
"With a diverse team working across the globe, we've always supported flexibility in the work environment. The pandemic, however, forced us to streamline our systems, policies and procedures to ensure we were providing the best support and maintaining our high standards," said Sam Amirikia, chief people officer at eWave.
"We began pivoting towards measuring performance based on outcomes, not just hours, which was key to redefining how a flexible work model should look," he said.
Additionally, the solutions provider introduced a cloud-based business management system to make information available securely and remotely and implemented a learning management system to upskill employees remotely. Furthermore, eWave offers unlimited paid annual leave for employees after their first year. The perk was designed especially for those who travel or are working for extended client projects.
"We trust employees to use the policy responsibly to manage their work-life balance. We're invested in making workplace flexibility a successful model well into the future," he said.
"Whether you're a parent, working on extended projects, or simply enjoying your home environment, we're seeing these additional flexibility measures have increased productivity and employee satisfaction. That's a great outcome for our clients and our business."
To build a successful flexible working model, Amirikia revealed the 3Cs: Confidence, Communication and Consistency.
Confidence
Confidence refers to having a strong conviction that everyone is still working together towards common goals regardless of the location. Building that sort of confidence within an organisation comes from creating trust.
"We put trust in everyone to show dedication and generate outcomes – and we trust in each other to show recognition and respect for the high-quality work we all do," Amirikia said.
Communication
Communication was a big adjustment for everyone. Even though some locations are returning to offices in a flexible capacity, face-to-face interactions have still changed for many. eWave made use of video conferencing platforms and has increased its communication channels such as instant messaging systems and a company-wide online message board so live updates can be shared globally.
The management is also keen on driving open and honest communication to reflect truth, one of its five company values: Mastery, passion, action, growth and truth.
Consistency
Having consistency with these various touchpoints helps alleviate uncertainty. People know when to expect the next check-in or updates.
"With all of us experiencing some sense of uncertainty over the last year, this is one we can make everyone feel more comfortable and secure," he said.
What eWave did is to host regular team check-ins, provide company updates such as company-wide newsletters, and organise regular social activities to bring people across locations together. The company also deployed employee net promoter scores to track trends and changes.
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