Striking a Healthy Work Life Balance

Walk the halls of any company and you're likely to hear a conversation about "life work balance." In most organizations, people are talking about how hard it is to meet increasingly challenging work demands and at the same time take proper care of themselves and their families. Whether it's a business trip, an overseas conference call, or an all night team "blitz," it's no longer unusual for work to demand time and attention far beyond what might be considered a normal work day. And the "freedom" provided by technology merely guarantees that work no longer ends when you walk out of the office. The result is a much greater intermingling of personal and work lives, and unfortunately, the conclusion of most hallway conversations maintain a healthy life work balance. However, there are signs that this is beginning to change.

With today's job market, companies are discovering that providing a supportive and family friendly work environment is no longer something that's "nice to do," but is an absolute necessity in order to attract and retain highly skilled employees. Job seekers are asking for more than a competitive salary and benefits package, and are looking for that unique combination that makes an organization a "great place to work." Yet for most companies, this is easier said then done.

Below are a few critical steps companies need to take when establishing a life work balance for employees.

1.) Start with Culture and Values. Many companies skip over the most essential element: creating a corporate culture and set of values that are supportive of employees. Such a culture needs to be demonstrated through the behavior of senior leadership and re-played throughout the organization. It is relatively easy to "take the temperature" of an organization, and discover whether or not such a culture already exists. Questions to be considered include:

• What behaviors are being rewarded? (Is working 60 hour weeks and never taking a vacation the ideal?)
• How are the leaders themselves acting? (Are your leaders finding a balance in their own lives?)
• What is the organizational urgency addiction? (Are unreasonable deadlines the norm? Do teams often have meetings during non-work hours?)

Employees at all levels should be involved in the dialogue to determine how well the company is supporting the issue of life work balance. Companies that start out by establishing a supportive corporate culture find that many of the formal programs either fall into place naturally, or aren't needed at all. However, those companies that implement programs and "perks" without ensuring a supportive culture can be perceived as providing "window dressing," and not really appreciating their most valuable resource.

2.) Create a Vision. As you examine your corporate culture, you begin to get an idea of what may be standing in the way of employees feeling a life work balance. The next step is to develop a more specific vision of a supportive work environment for your company. At this point, you engage employees in answering the question, "What would it look like if we had work life balance?" However, this step must be done within the context of the real business demands, and the resulting vision has to be realistic for both the bottom line and the people of your company. The good news is that in most cases creating a vision of a positive work environment leads directly to increased quality and productivity... often through an increased motivation and dedication from employees.

3.) Implement the Vision -- Implementing the vision can be the hardest part of the process, as it often involves changes in organizational norms and individual habits which may have been formed over a period of years. For example, in many companies, working long hours or showing up on weekends is used as a measure of an employee's contribution. Instead, the focus should be on performance and results, and not the amount of time it takes.

There are also a number of corporate policies and programs which can be implemented that directly support a company's vision for a positive life work balance. Examples include tele-commuting, flexible hours, on-site or "emergency" day care, exercise facilities, meditation rooms, and many more. Choices regarding such programs should be made based on a variety of factors, including company size, available resources, and the nature of the business.

It should be noted that while the organization can provide a supportive environment and helpful programs, each person must consider his/her own needs, and make an individual commitment to achieving balance in his/her life.

4.) Live the vision. Over the long term, the key to the success of any life work balance program is open relationship between supervisors and staff and team members. Employees should feel that it's "OK" to ask for support for home priorities, in the same way a supervisor may request that some one stay late to complete an important project. Ultimately, an organization culture that supports its employees during the hard times and provides them flexibility and a listening ear is the one that people will want to be a part of.

TRG has found that if your organization follows these steps, and most importantly, upholds the values and behaviors that support a healthy life work balance, the conversations in the hallway will be more like "gee, isn't it great to be part of this company!