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Concept of Workplace Flexibility-HR

This document is a dissertation report submitted by Komal Baliyan to Amity Global Business School in partial fulfillment of a post-graduation degree in management. The dissertation focuses on the concept of workplace flexibility and its impact on employee commitment. It provides an abstract, introduction, literature review, methodology, data analysis, findings, and conclusions regarding the relationship between flexibility and employee commitment. The dissertation examines how flexibility affects employee performance and commitment through maintaining a work-life balance.

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
186 views60 pages

Concept of Workplace Flexibility-HR

This document is a dissertation report submitted by Komal Baliyan to Amity Global Business School in partial fulfillment of a post-graduation degree in management. The dissertation focuses on the concept of workplace flexibility and its impact on employee commitment. It provides an abstract, introduction, literature review, methodology, data analysis, findings, and conclusions regarding the relationship between flexibility and employee commitment. The dissertation examines how flexibility affects employee performance and commitment through maintaining a work-life balance.

Uploaded by

Meetika Puri
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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DISSERTATION REPORT

ON
Concept of Workplace Flexibility

In Partial Fulfillment of post graduation degree in management

SUBMITTED BY

KOMAL BALIYAN

MBA 2016-18

ENROLLMENT No: A30101916184

Under the Supervision of


Prof. Reena Pandey
Faculty Guide
Amity Global Business School, Noida

AMITY GLOBAL BUSINESS SCHOOL AMITY


UNIVERSITY UTTAR PRADESH NOIDA - 201303,
UTTAR PRADESH, INDIA
ABSTRACT

Flexibility is a highly appreciated norm of today’s workplace. The important question that

arises is that how it can effect employee’s commitment towards the organization. In this paper,

I tried to examine the importance of flexibility at the workplace. There is also an attempt to

ascertain how people at the workplace perceive the call for flexibility and how this affects

their commitment level towards the organization, the issue of workplace flexibility and its role

in organizational life. The focus is mainly on relationship of flexibility and employee

commitment. The main objective is to find out whether the route of implementing flexibility

has helped in maintaining the commitment of employees towards the organization.

Now a day there is intense competition among organizations. Constant changes had to be

made in order to survive in the competition. Employees in the organization may resist in

copying up with the changes specially the older age people whereas the younger generation is

more competitive and innovative they show less resistance to changes and mould them

according to the conditions. This problem of rigidity can be sorted out by providing training to

older employees. Then review of literature about various researches had been done to know

what all research have been done on workplace flexibility. The next step was to collect the

data from various working individuals; I had taken the help of primary data collection tools.

The data was collected with the help of questionnaire filled by the respondents and with the

help of previous researches and search engines.

Then, analysis of data was done with the help of statistical tools like pie charts, and we came

to know about the importance of workplace flexibility in various aspects and how various
aspects of flexibility and employees performance are interconnected. We came to find out that

younger generation is more flexible as compared to older employees. Also, flexibility helped

the employees in maintaining work life balance which in turn enhanced their level of

performance. At last, I conclude that the paper mainly focuses on demographic trends, work

and family issues, technological changes, health and psychological condition of employees

and how the concept of workplace flexibility had helped in solving all these major issues in

today’s world.
CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that Komal Baliyan is a bonafide student of MBA in HR and Marketing,

Amity Global Business School, Noida. This dissertation titled “Concept of Workplace

Flexibility” is carried out by her in partial fulfillment of the above mentioned degree under

the guidance of Prof. Reena Pandey. While this is an independent work, to the best of my

knowledge, the veracity of the content and attribution of sources is the sole responsibility of

the student. It is complete and ready for evaluation and is hence submitted to Amity Global

Business School, Amity University Uttar Pradesh.

Signature of faculty guide: - Signature of Student:-


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The study would not have been fulfilled without the guidance and assistance from specific

individuals. Firstly, I would like to offer my sincere gratitude to my mentor Prof. Reena

Pandey, who guided and supported me throughout my project. My mentor encouraged and

helped me all through the journey of this study and always gave direction to get the most out

of this study.

I would also love to extend my gratitude towards our Director, Dr. Prof. Girish Kathuria who

has been a great support and helped with his valuable insights. I would also love to thank the

other entire faculty and staff of Amity Global Business School, Noida who in some or the

other way helped in my study, directly or indirectly. I also owe thanks to my batch mates for

helping me out with their inputs and finally I would like to say that Amity Global Business

School, Noida and the Amity University made it possible for my fellow batch mates and me to

undergo this journey.

Signature of student:-
Table of content

Sr No. Particulars Page No.

1. Abstract
2. Certificate
3. Acknowledgment
4. Introduction
5. Review of Literature
6. Methodology
7. Data Analysis
8. Findings, Suggestions and Conclusion
9. References
10. Appendix
INTRODUCTION

Regardless of what you do for a living, increasing your flexibility will do more to move you

toward personal and professional success than anything else you could do.

Flexibility involves the ability to see things by changing the point of view when normal channels

fail to give the solutions we want. Flexibility is about adapting successfully to changing

situations and environments. A flexible person is able to use different strategies in order to get

the desired results. Flexibility is about making changes to when, where and how a person will

work to better meet individual and business goals.

Flexibility fulfills both individual and business needs and helps them to achieve them.

Flexibility should be beneficial to both the employer and organization because half of

work force feel burned out and as result; more employees are willing to either leave the

organization or stay at their current job, based on the flexibility programs.

With the rise of new technology tools and globalization, workers are demanding

flexibility. In the next few years every company will have a policy, because we are

getting ready for the next “baby boom” when 80 million populations have children. It is

going to be a difficult task to handle work and home together. Marketing , finance,

human resources, research and development, management information services(MIS),

manufacturing all management areas have used this collection of skills, methods,
techniques and exercise to turn their most difficult problems into implementable ,

profitable opportunities.

Flexibility types:

1) Formal Flexibility

2) Informal Flexibility

Formal Flexibility - official policies formed by the organization to provide flexibility in

the workplace.

Informal Flexibility – policies that are not official and are not in written form but still

available to some employees in the workplace. There is no extent to informal flexibility.

For example, employees can work from home or alter their work hours.

Needs for flexibility:

Everyone needs flexibility. No workplace environment ever stays the same; you will

need to change your job type and responsibilities on a short notice with the change in

technology. The organization


needs multi-tasking employees who can perform many tasks at once. Can flexibility in the

workplace provide benefits? Many business organizations provide flexibility to their employees

who help them in creating balance between work and other aspects of life.

Flexibility tends to fluctuate with age, often due to sedentary lifestyle. Without flexibility daily

activities become more difficult to perform. Over time, unknowingly we work for hours and

hours which can create our body moments and posture habits that can lead to reduce mobility

and cause back pain, headache, joints complaints and other health issues.

Flexibility in workplace:

As we discussed the importance of flexibility now we move on to highlight the need of

flexibility in workplace. We all know that a business gain much more by implementing

flexibility in the workplace. Many business organizations report that the recruitment and

retention of a skilled and talented workforce is one of the most important challenges in today’s

business environment. Employees with flexibility are more engaged with their work and are

less stressed. They are more committed and productive, which leads to more satisfied

customers, higher profits and a better return for share holders. Employees with high level of

satisfaction due to flexibility help to reduce the labor turnover.


There are organizations like J P Morgan, Apple and Microsoft who implemented flexibility in

their workplace and enjoying the results which is comparatively much better than before. But

in case of India, organizations are still unable to implement the flexibility. There should be a

separate department like human resource department for flexibility in the workplace.

Flexibility training sessions should provide to the employees to make them understand the

meaning of flexibility and its importance because many employees and organizations

misunderstand flexibility.

Impact of flexibility:

After working for hours and hours, human body tends to get tired. Flexibility performs as

recreational activity. Employees can focus on relaxation of mind and body. Flexibility reduces

stress in mind and body, releases tension developed during the work. Improves the posture by

balancing the tension occurred across the joints due to sitting in the same posture for long

duration in the workplace. Workplace flexibility has positive impact and helps in increasing the

level of motivation in the workplace according to a survey released Oct. 15 by global human

resources association world at work. Whereas Indian organizations still believe in traditional

way of working.
Today’s generations appears to work best in those organizations where the concept of

flexibility is a part of the organization’s culture and where employees feel free to enjoy

flexibility as needed.

Flexibility reduces the time consuming efforts. Employees can work from home also or from

anywhere they feel like. The motive of the organization is to meet the goals and objectives

which can only be done by the contribution of employees. The contribution of employees

depends upon their working conditions. Many employees will ask for informal flexibility so

they can enjoy job sharing, work from home, can interact with other employees, and discuss

their views with the staff and management in the workplace. Flexibility can have both negative

and positive impact on the organization and employee’s lifestyle.

As we mentioned before many employees misunderstand the meaning of flexibility. Even if the

organization provides flexibility different employees will see it from different point of view.

Many will enjoy by spending their time here and there whereas many will understand the

importance of flexibility when it’s not there. A company may be able to survive by managing

its workplace but it might fail to survive for long in the competitive market and also fail to

achieve its goals because top talent will have no interest in working there. Talent is the single

most important factor in a company’s success. An organization can have everything but without

right talent, it will just be running in place. Right talent with right attitude leads a company to

its peak performance.


With flexibility employees feel trusted and valued and their interest in work grows. We should

not control anybody. Employees should not feel controlled else they will lose their interest in

working and organization will face high labor turnover which will directly affect organization’s

goals and future objectives.

After discussing the meaning of flexibility, it’s importance in the workplace, it’s impact, all

benefits and types we move on to the reason why we choose this topic.

In this competitive market, it takes more than salary and other benefits when it comes to

workers. Backgrounds and occupations play an important role in work flexibility. We

personally feel that flexibility is one of the key attributes for a potential employer. We are going

to highlight the balance benefits between work and personal life.

Changing Technology:

Changes in technology are less challenging for leaders and employees who are high in

flexibility and stress tolerance. There is no requirement to mention that managing changes

requires flexibility. If employees in the workplace are not flexible then that can be stressful and

the ability to manage work on the front page becomes difficult. This was reinforced by an

article in the Canadian


newspaper the Globe and Mail, which focused on managing change in the technology industry.

Flexibility and speed has become a top management concern and it is on the rise in North

America and Japan. Technology makes things possible. It saves time and money as it allows

workers to work from home and also reduces the other expenses like travelling expenses, post

expenses, shopping expenses, bill payments, booking tickets, communication etc. Technology

plays an important role in worker’s flexibility in the workplace. But at the same time it reduces

the chance for non-techno workers.


Literature review

Alison Sheridan, Lou Conway, (2001) found out “the reconciling the needs of employers and

employee in workplace flexibility. They highlighted the that the rapid expansion in part‐time

employment in over the past two decades has largely been driven by organizations’ desire to

achieve numerical and functional flexibility (the business case for flexibility) rather than a desire

to assist employees balance work and family responsibilities (the equal opportunities case for

flexibility) Argues that the differences between the business and equal opportunities discourses

surrounding flexibility result in significant problems for both employees and organizations –

problems that limit the growth of the individual and the organization. For part‐time employment

to

be an effective organizational strategy, it is critical that the human resource management

(HRM) role actively negotiate between the different needs of employers and employees. This

will entail

making both parties’ needs explicit, acknowledging the differences between their needs and

directing efforts towards constructing outcomes that are mutually satisfying.”

Catsouphes, Marcie, Costar (2008) in their work on multi-generational workforce: “workplace

flexibility and engagement explores the perceptions of employees of different ages regarding

the flexibility they need at work (flexibility fit) and their engagement with work. Using 49,209

observations representing 183,454 employees in 22 different companies, they estimated a


hierarchical linear model (HLM) to explain variation in employee engagement as a function of

flexibility fit and age. Although flexibility fit was a powerful positive predictor of engagement

for all employees, it was a more powerful predictor of engagement for employees ages 45 and

older. The positive moderating effect of flexibility fit provides employers with guidance about

how to maintain the engagement of workers of all ages, but especially older workers who

want to extend

their participation in the labor force.”

Christine (2002) in their work of “gender equality and discourses of workplace flexibility explores

the impact of discourses of workplace flexibility on gender equity. Time Use surveys have shown

convincingly how the unequal burden of women's work in the home undermines gender equity

strategies in the workplace. They have also become more sophisticated in their ability to

contextualize their time measures to capture the gendered processes involved in domestic

activity. However, gender equity strategies which draw on these studies are limited in the extent

to which the strategies can highlight the multiplicity of timekeeping systems which order social

life and the role of working mothers in coordinating these systems. Domestic life generates

social time, responding to biological and communal rhythms as well as the logic of the clock.

Gender equity strategies which rely on Time Use surveys based on the assumption that only one

temporal logic orders social life are easily coopted by the new discourses of workplace flexibility

which are
foundered on the same assumption. This article argues that there are possible alternative

flexibility discourses which do not depend on further de-contextualizing and de-regulating the

temporal order. These are more likely to support greater gender equity if they point to the

unsocial nature of a temporal order which conflates all temporality into one single logic.”

Federica Origo, Laura Pagani, (2008) "Workplace flexibility and job satisfaction, the purpose

of this paper is to empirically test whether various flexible work arrangements produce

different effects on alternative measures of job satisfaction in Europe. To test the existence of

heterogeneity in the impact of flexibility on job satisfaction, the paper verifies whether this

relation varies with workers' characteristics. Empirical evidence is based on a representative

sample of European employees taken from a specific wave of the Euro barometer survey. An

ordered probit estimator is used to get the relevant estimates and endogeneity problems have

been addressed by exploiting

the richness of the data‐set in terms of information on workers' attitude toward work and life

(used as proxies of unobserved time‐invariant factors, which are the primary source of

endogeneity). A positive link was found between functional flexibility and job satisfaction and

either no effect or a negative impact of quantitative flexibility. The positive impact of functional

flexibility is greater when considering satisfaction for intrinsic aspects of the job. Estimates by

workers' characteristics highlight interesting differences by age, skill and country of residence.

The major limitation is the cross‐sectional nature of the data, but there was no awareness of any

panel data containing information on all the relevant variables of this analysis. With respect to the

existing literature, the paper simultaneously considers different types of flexibility and estimates

their effect on different facets of job satisfaction, also considering the impact of flexibility on job
satisfaction by workers' characteristics. This evidence may be useful to firms in designing more

tailored flexibility

packages.”

Goldin ,Katz (2011) in their work on “the cost of work place flexibility for high powered

professionals The authors study the pecuniary penalties for family-related amenities in the

workplace (e.g., job interruptions, short hours, part-time work, and flexibility during the

workday), how women have responded to them, and how the penalties have changed over

time. The pecuniary penalties to behaviors that are beneficial to family appear to have

decreased in many professions. Self-employment has declined in many of the high-end

professions (e.g., pharmacy, optometry, dentistry, law, medicine, and veterinary medicine)

where it was costly in terms of workplace flexibility. The authors conclude that many

professions have experienced an increase in workplace flexibility, driven often by exogenous

factors (e.g., increased scale of operations and shifts to corporate ownership of business) but

also endogenously because of an increased number of women. Workplace flexibility in some

positions, notably in the business and financial sectors, has lagged.”


Grzywacz & Carlson (2007) in their work on “conceptualizing work family balance work—

family balance has not kept pace with interest, which undermines organizations' abilities to

effectively monitor work—family balance and to use work—family balance strategically. The

goal of this article was to develop a better conceptual understanding of work—family balance.

Work—family balance is defined as accomplishment of role-related expectations that are

negotiated and shared between an individual and his or her role-related partners in the work

and family domains. This article elaborates on how this definition of work—family balance

addresses limitations of previous conceptualizations and describes areas for human resource

development research and implications for using work—family balance strategically in

management practice.”

Grzywacz, G, Casey & Jones(2007) in their work on the” effect of workplace flexibility on

health behaviors Cross-sectional and longitudinal health risk appraisal data were obtained

from US based employees of a multinational pharmaceutical company (n = 3193). Examined

health behaviors were hours of sleep, physical activity frequency, health education seminar

attendance, frequency of practicing personal resilience techniques, and self-appraised lifestyle.

Self-reported flexibility in the workplace was the primary independent variable. Each health

behavior, except regular attendance in health education seminars, was positively related to

perceived flexibility in cross-sectional analyses. Sleep and self-appraised lifestyle were

significantly related to changes in perceived flexibility over time. They find that workplace

flexibility may contribute to positive lifestyle behaviors, and may play an important role in

effective worksite health promotion programs.”


Grzywacz, J. G., Casey, P. R., & Jones, F. A. (2007) highlights “the effects of workplace

flexibility on health behaviors. To explore the potential importance of flexibility for effective

worksite health promotion programs a Cross-sectional and longitudinal health risk appraisal

data were obtained from US based employees of a multinational pharmaceutical company (n =

3193). Examined health behaviors were hours of sleep, physical activity frequency, health

education seminar attendance, frequency of practicing personal resilience techniques, and self-

appraised lifestyle. Self-reported flexibility in the workplace was the primary independent

variable. The research found that each health behavior, except regular attendance in health

education seminars, was positively related to perceived flexibility in cross-sectional analyses.

Sleep and self-appraised lifestyle were significantly related to changes in perceived flexibility

over time. These findings suggest that Workplace flexibility may contribute to positive

lifestyle behaviors, and may play an important role in effective worksite health promotion

programs.”

Hill,E, et al(2008) in their work on “Exploring relationship of workplace flexibility,gender,

and life stage to family-to-work conflict , and stress and burnout the and use of flexible work
arrangements has consistently been associated with reduced conflict in the work family

interface (Hill, Martinson, & Ferris, 2004). Workers who had greater access to flexible work

arrangements were significantly more likely to report no interference with job and family life

and low levels of family-to-work conflict in a study of a large sample of employed and self-

employed workers (Bond et al., 2002). But it is not known whether the strength of this

relationship differs by gender and life stage. The strongest reductions of family-to-work

conflict seemed to involve flexibility that allowed a reduction in the number of hours spent at

work (Rau, 2006). Women may be particularly likely to benefit from this type of flexibility

because of the increased likelihood of their experiencing family-to-work conflict, particularly

during the peak child bearing years. policy makers seek to understand workplace flexibility

and its consequences to better predict the work family interface as well as inform workplace

flexibility policy initiatives. These findings suggest that gender, life stage, and especially their

interaction are important in the quest for that understanding. Men and women are not

homogeneous groups on matters related to workplace flexibility, and can only be understood

when life stage is taken into account.”

Kalleberg, L (2003) in their work on “effect of workplace restructuring on jobs and workers

discusses some key ways in which employers have sought to restructure their workforces to

become more flexible and the consequences of such restructuring for workers and jobs. The

author argues that U.S. employers' use of numerical and functional flexibility strategies has

led to a division between organizational insiders (standard employment relations) and

outsiders (who have nonstandard work arrangements). The consequences of working in


nonstandard employment relations differ depending on workers' individual and collective

control over skills and other valued resources.”

Noonan, Estes & Glass (2011) in their work “Do Workplace Flexibility Policies Influence

Time Spent in Domestic Labor”. Using data from a U.S. mid western sample of mothers and

fathers, the authors examine whether using workplace flexibility policies alters time spent in

housework and child care. They hypothesize that an individual’s policy use will lead to more

time in domestic labor and that his or her spouse’s policy use will lead to less time in domestic

labor. Several results support their hypotheses. Mothers who work part-time spend more time

in housework and their husbands spend less time in housework. Also, mothers who work at

home spend more time in child care. One policy has the opposite of the predicted effect:

Wives with flexible work schedules do less housework, and their husbands do more. Overall,

mothers’ policy use has counterbalancing effects on their own and their spouses’ domestic

labor time, implying that policy use has little net impact on total domestic labor time within

dual-earner families.”
Pocock, Skinner & Itchii(2009) in their work on “work, life, and workplace flexibility

summarises findings from the third Australian Work and Life Index (AWALI) survey of work-

life interference in Australia The 2009 survey includes 2691 workers (2307 employees and

384 self-employed), providing a robust, national, stratified random sample of the Australian

workforce. AWALI reports over the past three years suggest that “employers and public policy

makers can help workers deal with work-life pressures. This involves improving the quality of

supervision and workplace culture, controlling workloads, designing ‘do-able’ jobs, reducing

long working hours and work-related commuting, increasing employee-centered flexibility

and options for permanent part-time work, improving the fit between actual and preferred

hours and increasing care supports.”

Sánchez, Pérez, Carnicer, Jiménez, (2007) "Teleworking and workplace flexibility: a study of

impact on firm performance". The purpose of this article is to explore the relationship between

teleworking adoption, workplace flexibility, and firm performance. Data gathered through

interviews with company managers using a structured questionnaire. A t‐test used to analyze the

mean differences of flexibility dimensions between companies, and a regression analysis used

to study the impact of teleworking and other flexible workplace practices on firm

performance. Firm performance is positively related to the use of teleworking, flexi time,

contingent work and spatial decentralization. Teleworking firms use more flexi time, have

more employees involved in job design and planning, are more intensively managed by

results, and use more variable compensation. The relationship of teleworking and external

workplace flexibility is not so conclusive. Measures of external flexibility like subcontracting

or contingent work are not associated with teleworking but spatial decentralization is

positively associated. A limitation of


this research is the measurement of flexibility at the firm level and the use of cross‐sectional data.

To the extent that organizations may obtain functional and numerical flexibility by means of their

relations to other organizations in networks, the most appropriate unit of analysis may be the

network which it has implications for future longitudinal studies. Flexibility is a source of

competitive advantage. Enhancing flexibility may be costly in the short run, but it gets easier over

time. Firms become more flexible because their managers emphasize the importance of flexibility

and because they practice being flexible. A self‐reinforcing process then begins. The relationships

between the different forms of flexibility are important to understand the interaction between the

dynamic control capacity of management and the responsiveness of the organization. The article

analyses the relationship between teleworking adoption and other flexibility dimensions.”

Sergio Koc‐Menard (2009) while exploring “how organizations might support older workers'

learning, "Training strategies for an aging workforce", Industrial and Commercial Training.

The research identifies four lessons. The first is to adopt a targeted approach, which involves

both
identifying older employees with key abilities and tailoring training products to their needs. The

second lesson is to develop training initiatives that update job‐related skills and knowledge. The

third is to complement skills update products with programs that expand the knowledge horizon

of older employees. The fourth lesson is to integrate training into recruitment initiatives that

target experienced job‐seekers.”

Sheridan, Alison & Conway(2001) in their work on “workplace flexibility: reconciling the

needs of employers and employees argues that the differences between the business and equal

opportunities discourses surrounding flexibility result in significant problems for both

employees and organisations – problems that limit the growth of the individual and the

organisation. For part‐time employment to be an effective organisational strategy, it is critical

that the human

resource management (HRM) role actively negotiate between the different needs of employers

and employees. This will entail making both parties’ needs explicit, acknowledging the

differences between their needs and directing efforts towards constructing outcomes that are

mutually satisfying.The reminder of the chapter will review six major forms of temporal

workplace flexibility: schedule flexibility, compressed work-week schedules, regular part-time

employment, job sharing, and transition from leave, and phased retirement. For each form of

temporal workplace flexibility we will offer a definition, explain its usage, and then

summarize research linking it to work –life integration and associated outcomes with studies

that, as much as possible, utilize professional employee.”


METHODOLOGY

A survey is a data collection tool by which we can get information about different individuals.

Individual can collect data by their own by examine the participants of the survey. Survey

focused on collecting accurate and unbiased information from the individuals or might aim to

procure the opinions of the participants. Survey is one of the most effective and commonly

used research tools and can be apply to collect data and interpret naturally developed

phenomena that exist in the real world.

Survey is a common type of quantitative and social science research.

In survey research, the analyzer selects a sample of candidate from a total population and

supervises the uniform questionnaire to them. A questionnaire is a printed document which

contains set of questions that is filled by the candidates being surveyed. With the use of

survey, we can collect data of larger or small population.


Research objective:

The purpose of this research is to investigate the following research points:

To study the importance of flexibility in an organization and its impact on working

conditions.

 Need of flexibility when technology is taking over the traditional working methods.

 Does workplace flexibility made them more loyal and committed towards the

organization.

ADVANTAGES

 To study the importance of workplace flexibility in the organization.

 Face to face survey method is authentic in nature as data is collected personally.

 Analyzer can also collect non verbal responses by examining candidate’s gestures and

postures.
 The interviewer has the control over the interruptions.

 Face to face survey is free from any technological errors.

 In this type of survey technique interviewer can easily grab the emotions and

behaviors of respondents which is not possible in telephonic/online survey.

 Interviewer can help the respondents to understand the questions.

DISADVANTAGES

 Respondents may hesitate to give answer on sensitive topics.

 Face to face survey research is time consuming.

 It is costly and time consuming.

 Risk in giving advice during the survey.

 Interviewer has to enter data manually.

 Quality of data depends upon the interviewer i.e. the way of asking questions.
 Possibility of bias of interviewer and respondent is maximum.

Sources of data:

Commonly we can collect from two sources, primary sources and secondary sources. Data

collected from primary sources are called as primary data or firsthand data and data collected

from secondary source called as secondary data or second hand data. Primary data is also

kwon as unprocessed data.

In this research I have collected data from primary source with the help of survey which was

conducted in the starting of the research by questionnaire.

Qualitative research

A subjective approach was picked as the examination technique for this investigation. The

procedure of research includes experimental work being completed with the gathering of

information which can agree, discredit or challenge speculations which thusly takes into

account comprehension and illumination for various perceptions. Subjective research includes

a procedure known as acceptance, whereby information is gathered identifying with a

particular zone of study and from this information, the analyst develops distinctive ideas and

speculations. A subjective approach was viewed as more significant to embrace this

examination as it enabled more note worthy ability to acquire profundity and importance in

light of a person's encounters of watching films alongside their convictions and emotions
contradicted to a quantitative approach which is more organized, more extensive in scale and

all the more numerically based.

Here are three techniques of survey research:

1. Questionnaire: it referred as a research instrument which contains a set of questions for the

purpose of collecting information from respondents.

2. Interviews: questions posed to a respondent to obtain information about him or her, it is just

like a job interview in which one person asking another many questions.

3. Surveys: brief interviews and discussions are conducted with respondents about a specific

topic.

I have chosen questionnaire technique in our

research-

The following were the question that researcher has asked the following questions to the

audience:

And people gave the fair answer for these questions which was recorded on paper who

favored or unfavored the above questions


DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION-

Figure 1. in the figure below we analyzed that out of total respondents 50% were males and

50% were females who responded to the survey. Both the genders responded equally in the

survey performed.
Figure 2. in the figure below we analyzed the age of the respondents out of total individuals

targeted. Out of those who responded 43.8% were from age group 20-30, 40.6% were in the

age group 30-40, 12.5% were in the age group 40-50 and the rest 3.1% lies in the age group

50 and above.
Figure 3. the figure below shows that income level of respondents 40.6% comes in the income

level of 3-5 lakhs, 21.9 were in the income level of 5-7 lakhs, again 21.9% in the income level

of 1-3 lakhs and the rest 15.6% has a income of 7 lakhs and above.
Interpretation- from the above figure we conclude that out of the total respondents 87.1%

agree that flexibility should be there in an organization 9.7% say that there should be no

flexibility in the organization and the rest answered maybe means they were not sure about

their answer. As more and more respondents give their answer as yes it is clear that flexibility

is an important aspect in every organization. There are many factors related to workplace

flexibility that will have an impact on employee’s health as well as their performance. As we

can see in the responses most of the employees consider flexibility as an important aspect at

their workplace and they want to work in a flexible working environment. Further, we had

analyzed other important aspects related to flexible working environment.


Interpretation- in the above figure we can see that most of the respondents agree the fact that

workplace flexibility made them more loyal and committed towards the organization. About

84.4% people agreed whereas 6.3% refused about the fact and the rest 9.4 were not sure about

whether flexibility make them more loyal and committed towards the organization. As large

percentage of respondents indicated towards the importance of workplace flexibility in

making them more loyal and committed towards their work therefore flexibility should be

there in an organization. When employees work in a flexible environment they will be more

comfortable in working and give their full efforts towards the success of the organization.

When employees feel that organization is taking care of their needs they will also give their

hundred percent and thus the concept of flexibility is beneficial for both the employees and

the organization. According to the survey we find out that a large number of respondents were

happy in working with their organization when working conditions are flexible.
Interpretation- in the above figure we tried to find out whether the concept of workplace

flexibility in the organizations had helped the individuals in maintaining their work- life

balance and we found that about 96.8% agreed to the fact and only 3.2% were not sure about

the fact and there were 0% response in case of denying of the fact. Such a huge response from

the respondents agreeing to the fact that workplace flexibility is helping them out in

maintaining a balance between their personal and professional life. When the employee’s

working conditions are flexible they get enough time to spend with their families. So, they are

able to maintain balance with their work as well as their personal life. And if working

conditions are not flexible, employees may feel overburdened with work, they will also feel
frustrated from both work and family conflicts which will have an impact on their

performance. Now days because of the competitive environment employees have pressure of

meeting deadlines and they forget about their family and only focused on their work. This

thing has created a big challenge for the working people to manage their personal and

professional life and the concept of workplace flexibility is helping them copying such a

situation.
Interpretation- in the above figure we tried to find out whether the employees working in an

organization are comfortable in accepting the changes taking place in an organization and

most of the individuals about 75% of the total respondents were ready to adjust with the

changes in the organization and 3.1% were denying in copying up with the changes and the

rest 21.9% were not sure. As most of the people responded positively towards accepting the

changes in the workplace and most of these respondents were lying in the age group of 20-30

years we can say that the young generation is more flexible as compared to the older

generation in accepting the changes at the workplace. When employees are asked to cope up

with the changes some of them may agree while others may resist according to our findings it

is concluded that most of the people showed no resistance in accepting the changes while

others resisted and these were the people who are lying in the age group 50 and above. This
had made the fact clear that old people generally resist in copying with the changes whereas

the new generation is more enthusiastic, confident and competent and are ready to face new

situations and challenges.


Interpretation-In the above figure we analyzed that most of the respondent that is about 81.3%

agree to the fact that flexible working conditions helps them in maintaining good relation with

their colleagues and rest 9.4% were denying with the fact and the left of 9.4% were not sure.

As a large percentage indicated towards that flexible working condition helps them in

maintaining good relations with colleges, therefore flexibility is an important aspect in every

organization. Whenever an individual is overburdened or in stress he will feel irritated and

exhausted. This type of frustration can spoil the relationship with the colleagues. This can

create problems among the employees which will make the situation difficult when the

employees have to work in team. Therefore, if flexibility is there this problem is sorted out,

employees will work happily and coordinate with each other and there will be peaceful

working environment.
Interpretation- Interpretation- In the above figure we analyzed that about 87.5% of the total

respondent agreed that flexible work environment helps in reducing stress and about only

12.5% were not sure. A positive response from most of the respondents indicates if flexibility

is there people working in the organization are less stressed and more comfortable in working

and will do their work more efficiently and effectively. Stress arises when employees are

overburdened with work and work burden arises due to inflexible working conditions both the

things are interconnected. Employees have to meet their deadlines and along with that they

also have a pressure of spending time with their family. This leads to a lot of stress and it will

hinder the performance of the employee. Therefore if flexible working environment is there in

the organization this problem can be sorted out and both the organization and the employee’s

goals are fulfilled. Therefore, we can say that flexibility is an important aspect in every

organization.
Interpretation -In the above figure we analyzed that about 93.8%of the total respondents

agreed to the fact that workplace flexibility had a positive impact on their health and behavior

and 6.3% were not sure and the interesting thing was that nobody is denying with the fact. If

the working conditions are not flexible employees will be overburdened with work and they

will not get sufficient time to take care of their health and they will also feel irritated and their

irritated behavior can create problems with their family life. As we have seen earlier all the

aspect of flexibility are interlinked. Here we analyzed that whether flexible working

conditions had helped the employees in taking care of their health and a large no. of response

were positive in this regard. A lot of work can lead to mental stress and illness which can have

an adverse impact on employee’s personal as well as professional life. Therefore flexible

working conditions can help them take care of their health. And when the employees is free of

stress and tension of meeting deadlines, positivity will reflect in their behavior and the

working environment will remain peaceful.


Interpretation- in the above figure we tried to find out whether there are any policies regarding

workplace flexibility in the organization or are there any improvement required in workplace

flexibility in the organization. Workplace flexibility helps the individual in maintaining their

work- life balance and we found that about 46.9% agreed to the fact regarding workplace

flexibility polices where on the other hand 28.1% were not sure about the fact and there were

25% response in case of denying of the fact. Such a huge response from the respondents

agreeing to the fact that workplace flexibility is helping them out in maintaining a balance

between their personal and professional life. The above chart also highlights the awareness

and ignorance of workplace flexibility among the employees.


Interpretation- from the above figure we conclude that there is no proper documentation about

the norms of workplace flexibility. In the given figure out of the total respondents 43.8%

agree that there is no documentation regarding workplace flexibility in an organization 21.9%

says that there should be proper documentation about the workplace flexibility in the

organization and the rest answered maybe means they were not sure about their answer. As

more and more respondents give their answer as yes it is clear that flexibility is an important

aspect in every organization.


Interpretation- in the above figure we tried to find out whether any mechanism is followed or

not to improve or maintain the workplace flexibility in the organization. There is no doubt that

flexibility have helped the individuals in maintaining their work- life balance and we found

that about 37.5% agreed to the fact and only 28.1% were not sure about the fact and there

were 34.4% (a good percentage) responded in case of denying of the fact. On the other hand

such a huge response from the respondents agreeing to the fact that mechanism is followed to

maintain the workplace flexibility and this is defiantly helping them out in maintaining a

balance between their personal and professional life.


Interpretation- in the above figure we tried to find out whether all the employees equally

entitled to avail benefits under workplace flexibility policy in an organization and are

comfortable in accepting the changes. Most of the individuals about 40.6% of the total

respondents were agreed and gave positive response and 28.1% were denying and the rest

31.3% were not sure. As most of the people responded positively towards all the employees

equally entitled to avail benefits under workplace flexibility policy in an organization and

most of these respondents were lying in the age group of 20-30 years. We can say that the

young generation is more flexible as compared to the older generation.


Interpretation-In the above figure we analyzed that about 40.6% of the total respondents

agreed to the level of workplace flexibility. Where 40.6%, the same number of respondents

were not sure. Many accepted the fact that workplace flexibility has a positive impact on their

health and behavior and 18.8% were not sure and they denied with the question. If the

working conditions are not flexible employees will be overburdened with work and they will

not get sufficient time to take care of their health and they will also feel irritated and their

irritated behavior can create problems with their family life.


Findings

Majority agreed that flexibility should be there in an organization. Flexibility is an important

aspect in every organization. There are many factors related to workplace flexibility that will

have an impact on employee’s health as well as their performance. Workplace flexibility

makes the employees more loyal and committed towards the organization. As large percentage

of respondents indicated towards the importance of workplace flexibility in making them

more loyal and committed towards their work. When employees feel that organization is

taking care of their needs they will also give their hundred percent and thus the concept of

flexibility is beneficial for both the employees and the organization.

96.8% agreed to the fact that workplace flexibility in the organizations has helped the

individuals in maintaining their work- life balance. We found that about and only 3.2% were

not sure about the fact and there were 0% response in case of denying of the fact. Further, we

had analyzed other important aspects related to flexible working environment.

According to our findings it is concluded that most of the people showed no resistance in

accepting the changes while others resisted and these were the people who are lying in the age

group 50 and above. This finding clearly indicates that young generation is more flexible as

compared to the older generation in accepting the changes at the workplace. Flexible working

conditions help employees in maintaining good relation with their colleagues. Employees will

work happily and coordinate with each other and there will be peaceful working environment.
In our study we found out that 87.5% of the total respondent agreed that flexible work

environment helps in reducing stress only few were not sure(manly male respondents).

Workplace flexibility had a positive impact on their health and behavior and 93.8%of the total

respondents agreed to this fact. As we have seen earlier all the aspect of flexibility are

interlinked. A lot of work can lead to mental stress and illness which can have an adverse

impact on employee’s personal as well as professional life. Therefore flexible working

conditions can help them take care of their health. And when the employees is free of stress

and tension of meeting deadlines, positivity will reflect in their behavior and the working

environment will remain peaceful.

There is fair information and awareness about the documentation of flexibility among the

target audience but at the same time there is another side of coin too. This indicates that there

was considerable amount of distress and dissatisfaction among people about the widespread

an use of flexibility at the workplace. This indicates about the lack of information sharing as

well as its use at the work place. Keeping this in mind it is suggested that people must explore

the options and


documentation about flexibility as and when they get an opportunity to be associated with the

organization they seek.

With such a positive response we gathered we also need to mention that about 43.8%

respondents also stated that there is no proper documentation about the norms of workplace

flexibility. Rest says that there should be proper documentation about the workplace flexibility

in the organization. We are glad, 37.5% respondents agreeing to the fact that mechanism is

followed to maintain the workplace flexibility and this is defiantly helping them out in

maintaining a balance between their personal and professional life but on the other hand,

34.4% (a good percentage) in the same organization responded in case of denying of the fact.

A finding indicates that the employees are equally entitled to avail benefits under workplace

flexibility policy in an organization and most of these respondents were lying in the age group

of 20-30 years. This again highlights the young generation group. When we asked to the

employees about their satisfaction level of workplace flexibility, out of total 40.6% of the total

respondents agreed where 40.6%, the same number of respondents was not sure. 18.8%

denied with the question

As we can see in the responses most of the employees consider flexibility as an important

aspect at their workplace and they want to work in a flexible working environment.
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Appendix

Q1. Do you think flexibility should be there in an organization?

Yes

NO

Q2. Does flexible working conditions make you more loyal and committed towards

yours organization?

Ye

so

No

o Maybe

Q3. Does flexibility at workplace helps in maintaining work life balance?


o

Ye

so

No

o Maybe

Q4. Are you comfortable with accepting the changes at your work place?

Ye

so

No

o Maybe

Q5. Does flexible work conditions helps in maintaining good relations with your colleagues?

Ye

so

No
o Maybe

Q6. Does flexible work environment helps in reducing stress?

Ye

so

No

o Maybe

Q7. Do you think work place flexibility had an positive impact on your health and behavior?

Ye

so

No

Q8. Are there any policies regarding workplace flexibility in your organization and is there

any improvement required?


o

Ye

so

No

o Maybe

Q9. Is there proper documentation about the norms of workplace flexibility?

Ye

so

No

o maybe
Q10. Whether any mechanism is followed or not to improve/maintain the workplace

flexibility in your organization?

Ye

so

No

o Maybe

Q11. Are all the employees equally entitled to avail benefits under work place flexibility

policy in your organization?

Ye

so

No

Q12. Are you satisfied with the level of workplace flexibility in your organization?
o

Ye

so

No

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