Leadership Coach for Executive Assistants | Career Coach | Corporate Trainer | Named Top 15 Coach in OKC
I was told I was too hands-off for doing this. For my team, I didn't consider flexibility just a perk ↻ it was built into how we worked. While we all lived in CST time zone, the team was in charge of covering CST, EST, and PST. I organized the team into three "pods." When hiring, there was always a time zone that needed coverage, ↻ and that’s what they were brought on for. But here’s the key: ↻ I noted their preferences if they preferred working different hours. If a spot in their preferred time zone opened up, they had first dibs ↻ if they still wanted it before posting the opening. Beyond that, within each pod, they had the freedom to structure their workday in a way that best suited them: ⏰ 8-4 with no lunch break ⏰ 10-6:30 with a half-hour lunch ⏰ 7-4 with an hour lunch ⏰ 8:30-5 with a half-hour lunch Etc…you get the point! My only requirement? ↻ Customer hours had to be covered. If someone had an appointment or needed time off, they coordinated among themselves. ↻ I didn't need to know. Each pod had a leader to help facilitate, and they’d only escalate to me if there was a real issue. ⇢ Some called this approach too hands-off. ⇢ I called it trusting and empowering my team. <Read the carousel for my 5 tips to managing with flexibility.> What do you think? Would this work in your team? (PS If you have new managers that need training on how to be effective leaders, I know just the person...)