The benefits of job sharing

Increasingly, more and more people are seeking a greater level of flexibility and a better work/life balance in their jobs. In the quest for these coveted work benefits, many people are shunning traditional 9-to-5 roles in favour of part-time opportunities.

Many parents often opt for this flexible way of working when returning to work after having a child. However, this is not always an easy process and finding part-time work can be a challenge. Some employers will be very open to the idea of part-time working, after parental leave for example. However, some employers may feel that a role is not well suited to this flexibility and that part-time hours could be impractical or detrimental.

Sometimes, employees may be disappointed to find that a part-time role doesn’t carry with it the same level of strategic responsibility or challenges as their full-time work, which can be frustrating in some instances.

A possible solution, for both employers and employees, is to consider the option of a job share. This is typically where a full-time remit is shared between employees who want to work part-time hours.

What makes for a successful job share?

An employer will need to carefully assess the situation to ascertain whether a job share would work well in the particular circumstances in question. They’ll need to be sure of the following, to sucessfully implement a job share.

• The work is clearly assigned and divided between the employees. The workload must be regularly monitored to ensure that an imbalance in workload between the two parties does not arise.
• Clear lines of responsibility and decision making must be defined to avoid any confusion around who takes the lead on specific tasks.
• The job sharers’ respective skill-sets and knowledge must complement each other and offer an effective combination of expertise.
• Excellent channels of communication must be established between the employees undertaking the job share. Excellent communication will be needed to avoid misunderstandings, inaccuracies or a failure to relay important information.

Benefits for the employee

• Retain the level of responsibility/strategic weight of a full time position.
• Enjoy the flexibility of part time hours.
• Exchange of skills and knowledge between job sharers.
• Keep a level of seniority with their organisation while changing the structure of their hours.
• Meet the demands of a challenging role while upholding an improved work/life balance.

Benefits for the employer

• Retention of high performing employees who are seeking more flexibility due to a change in personal circumstances.
• A wider, mixed skill-set and a complementary combination of experience and approach.
• A more relaxed, satisfied and happy workforce - potentially leading to higher productivity and reduced absenteeism.
• More ability to cover sickness and holiday leave, giving better continuity of cover.

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