SME workers prefer flexibility, according to Regus

SME workers prefer job roles that offer flexibility, according to research from workspace provider Regus.

The research, which surveyed over 3000 professionals across a number of different sectors, showed the importance of flexibility in the workplace.

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The research found that over 90 per cent of workers in small and medium-sized enterprises would choose a flexible job role over a role that offers less flexibility.

Workers are beginning to favour flexibility over fixed hours, with 33% of respondents saying they would have stayed in a previous job role for a longer time if it had offered more flexible working hours.

Following the research, Richard Morris, UK CEO, Regus, has now urged SMEs to “think long and hard” about the type of job roles they are offering to today’s professionals.

He stated that the days of fixed hours and a fixed job location are becoming outdated and that flexibility is no longer a perk but a “key differentiator for talented individuals”.

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Morris went on to warn SMEs, saying that businesses who do not think flexibly risk losing talent.

He said: “A flexible role is one where the individual has more control over where and when they are productive. Managers must get better at measuring on results rather than on time spent at a specified desk. There is also the current business climate to consider. The economic uncertainty requires business to be more agile and nimble so operating with a fluid and flexible workforce, using available workspace, makes real commercial sense. Put simply, those SMEs not thinking flexibly risk a talent drain.”