Flexible Working Strategies For Insurance Companies: How To Find The Right Balance

The working world has faced significant shifts recently with employees now having a legal right to request flexible working from their first day in a new job, rather than waiting 26 weeks as before.

After the pandemic, remote, flexible, and hybrid working became the norm, with 44% of UK workers reporting some form of hybrid work in 2023 (CIPD)

It's something that we assume is the perfect fix. We constantly talk about the benefits of it as it gives employees a better work-life balance, and in turn boosts their engagement, productivity and creativity, leading to better success for the companies they work for. But is it all positive? 

In the insurance industry, the shift has been dramatic. Pre-pandemic, 90% of insurance employees worked in the office four or more days a week. Post-pandemic, this number plummeted to less than 5%, with 86% going to the office three times a week or less. 

According to a CII report, this change has generally been positive. Areas like formal learning and development, work-life balance, and access to line managers have seen improvement. Nearly 80% of respondents acknowledged the positive impact of hybrid working on work-life balance.

However, it's not all perfect. 

Employees have reported on affected areas like social interaction, on-the-job learning, access to mentors, and collaboration. It's also been reported that over 41% of respondents feel that access to mentors has been negatively impacted and almost 60% of junior underwriters and brokers believe it's hindered their on-the-job learning.

Finding the Right Balance

The reality is, flexible working is here to stay. Insurance companies can't begin to take it away due to some negative experiences, but instead, work to address these problems head-on and find a balance that works.

There's a lot on the media that will make you believe that there's one magic flexible working formula for all companies and all employees, but it depends from person to person, industry to industry, and job to job, meaning that the insurance industry needs to be more intentional and reactive to be able to support each person whilst supporting the company success as a whole. 

Flexible working has its perks and those perks need to be respected, but the downsides need to be too. But how do you create policies that ensure that everyone is happy, productive and progressing?

1. Open Lines of Communication

The first step is to always communicate. You won't know what your employees need until you ask them.

Regularly enage with employees and teams to understand their needs, ambitions, and preferences. Surveys, feedback sessions, and one-on-one meetings can provide valuable insights into what's working and what needs adjustment.

2. In-Person Management Support

One downside of fully flexible working can be the in-person presence of a manager which is why I believe it's essential to have at least one manager present in the office daily.

This ensures that there's always in-person support and someone of authority available and present for those who are in the office.

3. Track Performance Effectively

In the same way, you need to know that employees are okay, you need to know that business is okay. 

Track metrics on performance and team engagement as well as having frequent meetings with managers to begin to understand what is needed. For instance, if a particular team are rarely in the office, clearly lacking motivation and missing targets, implementing more in-person training sessions may help them get on the right track. 

As an employer, you should never punish employees by taking away flexible working, but if flexible working is getting in the way of productive work being done, workarounds need to be put in place. Workarounds that still respect work-life balance, but also respect the company.

4. In-Person Training

While remote training can be of benefit, nothing beats in-person training for effectiveness. Offering regular in-person training sessions can help provide in-depth support that some employees may be lacking. 

The same goes for implementing "office days" where one day a week/ month, is when everyone is to be in the office where possible. This means employees can experience on-the-job mentorship, real-life collaboration with employees, and a feel of the culture - something that may be hard to mimic online.

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