New research from the Chartered Management Institute indicates that while one in five UK managers have taken what they call a “workation” - working remotely from a location away from their usual home or office - strong support for this emerging trend of flexible working depends heavily on the presence of clear, well-managed organisational policies.
The research also highlights a striking difference in how workations are treated if organisations have invested time to create a clear policy. While 52% of workers whose organisations don’t prohibit “workations” believe their manager would be supportive of workations, and 38% say the same of their organisation, these figures rise dramatically among those employers that have formal policies. In those circumstances, 84% report managerial support and 86% organisational support, compared with just 48% and 29% respectively among those without a policy.
The data shows that workations are far more successful when supported by robust guidance. Among managers whose organisations have a formal policy, more than half (56%) say it includes prior manager approval. Other common safeguards include guidance on data protection and cybersecurity (45%) and prior HR approval (38%).
Many policies also set out restrictions on days (35%), devices (33%) and permitted locations (32%), as well as expectations around working hours (25%) and compliance with local tax and visa rules (24%).
When asked about potential gains from allowing workations, managers identified increased employee wellbeing and mental health (35%) and improved work-life balance (33%) as the top benefits of workations. However, concerns remain around organisational risks, with 29% citing potential data security or compliance issues.
Petra Wilton, Director of Policy and External Affairs at CMI, said: "If organisations want to make ‘workations’ work, they must put clear, transparent rules in place and actively manage them. Where strong guidance exists, managers are far more confident and supportive. As with any form of flexible working, it’s skilled management, not good intentions alone, that determines success."
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