Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) should strive to offer flexible recruitment opportunities across all parts of their business in order to improve employee engagement, it has been suggested.
Allowing staff to work part-time or from home can improve employer brand, particularly at a time when many will be struggling to balance their work and personal commitments due to the state of the economy.
According to the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), flexible and part-time working opportunities should be par for the course when it comes to smaller firms which may otherwise struggle to retain their best employees.
Highlighting the benefits to firms and staff offered by such an approach, Stephen Alambritis, a spokesman for the federation, explained that the vast majority of people are employed by companies with less than five staff members, making flexibility key.
“In small firms, part-time work and flexible working is commonsense. It fits the needs and demands of staff and employers, and staff are more productive if they are able to have a say in their hours of work,” he said.
It is estimated that approximately two-thirds of SMEs currently offer flexible working opportunities to all staff, rather than restricting it to parents.
However, some businesses will be unable to offer remote working as a viable option, Mr Alabritis warned.
He continued: “Smaller firms have the autonomy to implement greater flexibility but as they generally have fewer staff than bigger businesses they need to ensure that whatever is implemented is open to all staff and works in the best interests of the business.”
The FSB’s comments come after a report by the Warwick Business School indicated that 90 per cent of SMEs have tried to offer staff greater flexibility, something that could improve employee engagement.
The Blueprint for Success report, published at the beginning of this month, also concluded that some of the key ‘ingredients’ for successful SMEs are flexibility, business process efficiency and growth ambition.
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