While exploring all of the various topics for my COMM 305 (work-life balance) course project, I came across an interesting subject to pursue. The topic I chose for this project is flexible work benefits. Flexible work benefits stem from flexible work arrangements, which are loosely defined as an adaptation of any working pattern to suit the needs of the employee. I chose this topic due to its recent rise in popularity since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic four years ago. This topic has been at the forefront of debates in the past few years as the workforce adapts to its growing popularity.
Based on a recent scholarly article that delves into the positive and negative sides of flexible work arrangements, I was able to narrow down my proposal to this stage. The article, “The benefits and penalties of formal and informal flexible working-time arrangements: evidence from a cohort study of Australian mothers”, written by Ning Xiang, Gillian Whitehouse, Wojtek Tomaszewski, and Bill Martin, examines both sides of flexible work arrangements while discussing the causes behind each. While reading this article, I was provided with enough thorough information that helped me refine my understanding of this topic. Ultimately, guiding me in the perfect direction for this project. In this article, the authors discuss flexibility stigma, intensified workload, and reduced opportunities for career advancement opportunities. These issues discussed within this article highlight the challenges that employees face due to the lack of proper communication with their employer.
The second article I found that helped me narrow down my proposal is from the Harvard Business Review. The article, “The Future of Flexibility at Work”, written by Ellen Ernst Kossek, Patricia Gettings, and Kaumudi Misra, highlights the importance of communication with flexible work arrangements. The article efficiently provided detailed information on how to apply better communication strategies within the workplace to better accommodate flexibility arrangements. These strategies include transparency, clear and precise layouts of policies, and widely communicated clear frameworks. Each of these elements is monumental in creating a better work environment for employees with flexible working arrangements.
Now, just as anything else, flexible work benefits and arrangements come with its downsides. Although flexible work arrangements seem ideal to the average worker, the problem that many employers and even employees face is the lack of proper communication. Which then spills over into other crucial aspects of work.
In this project, I will highlight the true benefits of flexible work arrangements. As well as bring to light the problems that stem from flexible work arrangements that both employers and employees face. Communication is a significant aspect of this research topic, and I will trace the ways in which it affects this topic in the project.
Overall, while searching through articles to find the best information pertaining to flexible work benefits and arrangements, I learned something new. I discovered that flexible work arrangements are not necessarily as straightforward as they may initially appear. There are underlying issues within this topic that stem from communication, as highlighted in the Harvard Business review article. The article discusses the type of leadership communication needed for a successful flexible arrangement. A theory from my Comm 305 class that applies to this discussion is McGregory’s Theory X, which emphasizes the importance of communication. According to Mcgregory’s Theory X, decisions made by top management should be efficiently communicated throughout the organization. These decisions should be shared and based on input from all levels of the organization. Ultimately, encouraging feedback by implementing upward and downward communication to satisfy the needs of employees and improve quality. I look forward to exploring and solving the communication issues associated with this topic.