By Penny Holt 

When it comes to flexible working conditions we're in a bit of a stalemate.  There are companies which need staff, but can't get them because they won't rethink the way they operate. On the other side we have highly qualified, highly skilled staff who can pick and choose who they work for, and who are opting for the roles that let them maintain their work life balance.

A lot has been said about the benefits of flexible work practices, in terms of productivity, staff morale, retention rates and growth. But the message simply isn't getting through.

The companies that are doing it, are doing extremely well and will continue to do well as the skills shortage worsens.

But most companies are simply not getting the message, and wondering why they can't recruit the skilled staff they need in a rapidly expanding economy.

And it's only once they get desperate that they start to rethink their approach.

For starters, we need to stop thinking of the role that needs filling in terms of the type of person, and begin by focusing on outcomes. There's this enduring idea that a worker is a person who comes in at 9am, leaves at 5pm and sits at their desk all day. But this idea has nothing to do with what employers actually need when they hire staff.

If you're having trouble filling a role stop thinking about the person you need, and start thinking about what tasks the role actually requires.

Look at the outcomes, and the critical success factors. What do you actually need done within the organisation, and when do you need it done by? What benefit does the role bring to the company and how will it be rewarded?

In most cases what you end up with is very different from a single person sitting behind a desk for eight hours a day, five days a week.

It will look more like: someone to respond to incoming calls and allocate them appropriately, someone to process incoming orders within a certain timeframe and assign work schedules accordingly, someone to invoice completed projects and chase payment, and so on and so forth.

Thanks to the internet most of these sorts of administration tasks can be fulfilled from just about anywhere in Australia. In some cases creating more flexible working patterns will require a little investment in technology, but you'll recoup this by filling the role in a timely fashion, rather than advertising for months on end.

By going through a proper process of job design, and going to market seeking outcomes, you can attract a much broader pool of people faster.

By looking at arrangements such as working from home, part time positions and job sharing, you can open the role to new mums, or older people who aren't interested in working full time, but have skills and experience which would otherwise be lost.

The idea of a job being a full time role carried out to a specific time table in a specific place just isn't fitting with the way people live their lives any more.  More importantly it's not attracting the sorts of skills and dedication companies need.

The problem facing corporations is that the best and brightest staff know they are in demand, and can pick and choose their employers, and most corporations are lagging way behind what is happening in terms of families and communities.

And with a skills shortage looming in some areas, and clear and present in others, there's only really one way out; change work practices, or lose business.

The choice is yours.

Penny Holt is a former lawyer with more than 15 years experience in the recruitment industry.  She has worked with clients across the professional services and financial services sectors to design and deliver innovative recruitment solutions.  Penny is the Founder and a Director of Seed Recruitment & Search, a specialist recruitment agency which places professionals into meaningful, permanent, flexible positions with forward thinking employers.  Please visit http://www.seedrecruitment.com.au/ [1]