1 00:00:04,320 --> 00:00:06,720 Speaker 1: Welcome to How I Work, a show about the tactics 2 00:00:06,840 --> 00:00:09,079 Speaker 1: used by leading innovators to get so much out of 3 00:00:09,160 --> 00:00:12,119 Speaker 1: their day. I'm your host, doctor Amantha Imber. I'm an 4 00:00:12,160 --> 00:00:16,239 Speaker 1: organizational psychologist, the founder of innovation consultancy Inventium, and I'm 5 00:00:16,280 --> 00:00:20,520 Speaker 1: obsessed with finding ways to optimize my work day. Before 6 00:00:20,560 --> 00:00:24,000 Speaker 1: I get into today's mini episode, I have an exciting 7 00:00:24,079 --> 00:00:27,640 Speaker 1: program launching on July twenty two, which you can be 8 00:00:27,720 --> 00:00:30,600 Speaker 1: part of from wherever in the world you are listening 9 00:00:30,760 --> 00:00:35,400 Speaker 1: to this podcast. From the program is our Workday Reinvention Program, 10 00:00:35,440 --> 00:00:37,680 Speaker 1: which is a program I've been working on an Inventium 11 00:00:37,720 --> 00:00:41,240 Speaker 1: for the last two years. It's a six week program 12 00:00:41,400 --> 00:00:45,360 Speaker 1: that reinvents the way you work. The program contains a 13 00:00:45,400 --> 00:00:50,280 Speaker 1: whole bunch of science backed ways to have a more productive, fulfilling, 14 00:00:50,360 --> 00:00:53,800 Speaker 1: and happier work life, and we've gotten some amazing results 15 00:00:53,800 --> 00:00:57,000 Speaker 1: from the program so far. Not only have we increased 16 00:00:57,000 --> 00:01:00,520 Speaker 1: people's productivity by around seventeen percent, which is nearly one 17 00:01:00,600 --> 00:01:04,720 Speaker 1: day per week worth of extra time, but we've also 18 00:01:04,880 --> 00:01:09,440 Speaker 1: increased people's engagement, energy, job satisfaction, and even general well 19 00:01:09,520 --> 00:01:12,319 Speaker 1: being by up to twenty eight percent. And that's just 20 00:01:12,440 --> 00:01:15,880 Speaker 1: within six weeks. If you're a listener of the show, 21 00:01:16,160 --> 00:01:20,080 Speaker 1: you can go to bitley so bit dot l y 22 00:01:20,280 --> 00:01:24,440 Speaker 1: forward slash how I Work program and listeners of How 23 00:01:24,480 --> 00:01:27,039 Speaker 1: I Work can get a one hundred dollars discount on 24 00:01:27,080 --> 00:01:29,760 Speaker 1: the cost of the program. Just enter the code how 25 00:01:29,840 --> 00:01:32,080 Speaker 1: I Work. That's just one word how I Work at 26 00:01:32,160 --> 00:01:34,600 Speaker 1: checkout and get that discount. So the program starts on 27 00:01:34,680 --> 00:01:36,960 Speaker 1: July twenty two, and if you're a listener of the show, 28 00:01:37,040 --> 00:01:39,760 Speaker 1: I think that you'll absolutely love this program and get 29 00:01:39,800 --> 00:01:42,199 Speaker 1: a stack of value from it. So go to bit 30 00:01:42,360 --> 00:01:45,840 Speaker 1: dot l y forward slash how I Work program or 31 00:01:45,959 --> 00:01:47,720 Speaker 1: there's also a link to that in the show notes. 32 00:01:48,800 --> 00:01:53,240 Speaker 1: Now onto today's mini episode, which is all about Inventium's 33 00:01:53,320 --> 00:01:57,640 Speaker 1: unlimited paid leave policy, which is exactly how it sounds. 34 00:01:57,840 --> 00:02:01,560 Speaker 1: Unlimited paid leave, which is something that Inventing, the innovation 35 00:02:01,680 --> 00:02:05,800 Speaker 1: consultancy that I started about twelve years ago, has as 36 00:02:05,800 --> 00:02:08,960 Speaker 1: a policy. So when I launched this policy three years ago, 37 00:02:09,240 --> 00:02:12,320 Speaker 1: it made headlines around the world, and as is the 38 00:02:12,400 --> 00:02:16,559 Speaker 1: case with most news these days, it attracted many skeptics. 39 00:02:17,080 --> 00:02:21,720 Speaker 1: Some delightful comments I received online included another way of 40 00:02:21,760 --> 00:02:24,960 Speaker 1: the company owning you twenty four to seven sounds like 41 00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:28,080 Speaker 1: a clever kind of reverse psychology strategy to make people 42 00:02:28,080 --> 00:02:31,560 Speaker 1: feel obligated to work more on holiday less and one 43 00:02:31,600 --> 00:02:34,840 Speaker 1: of my favorites, the woman is an airhead, which is 44 00:02:34,880 --> 00:02:37,920 Speaker 1: some of the online feedback I received. In spite of 45 00:02:37,960 --> 00:02:42,000 Speaker 1: this constructive feedback, the policy has been a success. Revenue 46 00:02:42,040 --> 00:02:45,520 Speaker 1: and profitability have remained strong, while staff energy levels have 47 00:02:45,639 --> 00:02:48,920 Speaker 1: increased and working hours have decreased, and over the last 48 00:02:48,960 --> 00:02:53,040 Speaker 1: three years, staff tenure has almost doubled three years on. 49 00:02:53,480 --> 00:02:56,440 Speaker 1: My biggest learning is that the reason why it's been 50 00:02:56,440 --> 00:02:59,720 Speaker 1: so successful for us as a business is because it's 51 00:02:59,800 --> 00:03:04,560 Speaker 1: not an isolated employee benefit. Its success has been largely 52 00:03:04,639 --> 00:03:07,960 Speaker 1: due to all the other benefits that surround our unlimited 53 00:03:08,040 --> 00:03:12,160 Speaker 1: paid leaf policy. So when we survey staff about what 54 00:03:12,200 --> 00:03:15,560 Speaker 1: they value most about invent Him, flexibility is always at 55 00:03:15,600 --> 00:03:18,760 Speaker 1: the top of the list. And while about eighty percent 56 00:03:18,760 --> 00:03:21,880 Speaker 1: of organizations claim to have a flexible work policy, when 57 00:03:21,880 --> 00:03:24,359 Speaker 1: you dig a bit deeper, it's not actually that flexible 58 00:03:24,400 --> 00:03:27,880 Speaker 1: at all. I recently worked with a financial services company 59 00:03:27,880 --> 00:03:31,560 Speaker 1: who externally claimed to have such a policy, but in 60 00:03:31,639 --> 00:03:35,600 Speaker 1: reality staff was still required to be online roughly between 61 00:03:35,720 --> 00:03:38,480 Speaker 1: nine to five and were not trusted to work from 62 00:03:38,480 --> 00:03:41,880 Speaker 1: home or anywhere else that was not their Sydney CBD office. 63 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:45,920 Speaker 1: There are three factors that have been critical to invent 64 00:03:46,000 --> 00:03:48,880 Speaker 1: him creating a workplace where flexibility is the number one 65 00:03:48,920 --> 00:03:52,600 Speaker 1: thing that staff value. So first up, we let staff 66 00:03:52,640 --> 00:03:56,800 Speaker 1: work whenever they want, but ideally work to their chronotype. 67 00:03:57,160 --> 00:04:00,560 Speaker 1: So let me explain what I mean by this. FLEXI 68 00:04:00,560 --> 00:04:03,800 Speaker 1: work policies let staff start an hour early or finish 69 00:04:03,840 --> 00:04:06,680 Speaker 1: an hour late or something like that, but few encourage 70 00:04:06,720 --> 00:04:10,320 Speaker 1: staff to formally assess their natural circadian rhythms and work 71 00:04:10,360 --> 00:04:14,600 Speaker 1: according to that. So at Inventium, all staff assess their chronotype, 72 00:04:14,680 --> 00:04:18,320 Speaker 1: which highlights when they are at their most energetic and focused, 73 00:04:18,680 --> 00:04:21,919 Speaker 1: and schedule their work accordingly. If you don't know what 74 00:04:21,960 --> 00:04:25,479 Speaker 1: a chronotype is, I have done a mini episode about this, 75 00:04:25,600 --> 00:04:28,080 Speaker 1: and it's something I've talked about in a few episodes actually, 76 00:04:28,080 --> 00:04:29,960 Speaker 1: and I'll also link to a survey in the show 77 00:04:30,000 --> 00:04:34,160 Speaker 1: notes so that you can assess your chronotype. Given most 78 00:04:34,200 --> 00:04:36,320 Speaker 1: of the team and Inventium are larks, which are people 79 00:04:36,320 --> 00:04:39,120 Speaker 1: who do their best work in the morning. We have 80 00:04:39,279 --> 00:04:42,360 Speaker 1: some team members start work as early as five am, and, 81 00:04:42,400 --> 00:04:45,000 Speaker 1: of course, on the flip side, on any given weekday, 82 00:04:45,040 --> 00:04:48,240 Speaker 1: the office is mostly empty by four pm. Of course, 83 00:04:48,279 --> 00:04:51,280 Speaker 1: if consultants are delivering a workshop, their time clock will 84 00:04:51,320 --> 00:04:53,840 Speaker 1: be determined by our client's schedule, but for the most part, 85 00:04:53,960 --> 00:04:58,200 Speaker 1: working hours are determined by people's natural energy rhythms. The 86 00:04:58,240 --> 00:05:01,360 Speaker 1: second part of our flexi policy is about letting staff 87 00:05:01,400 --> 00:05:04,919 Speaker 1: work from literally wherever they want. This means that on 88 00:05:05,000 --> 00:05:08,320 Speaker 1: most weekdays, despite the fact that there are about ten 89 00:05:08,400 --> 00:05:10,600 Speaker 1: people on the team that are based in Inventium's head 90 00:05:10,600 --> 00:05:13,880 Speaker 1: office in Melbourne, you'll generally only find three or four 91 00:05:13,920 --> 00:05:17,600 Speaker 1: people there on most weekdays. Staff are strongly encouraged to 92 00:05:17,640 --> 00:05:20,839 Speaker 1: work from wherever they get their best work done. For 93 00:05:20,960 --> 00:05:23,279 Speaker 1: many of us this means working from home where we 94 00:05:23,320 --> 00:05:26,920 Speaker 1: can work uninterrupted, and for others, including myself, this means 95 00:05:26,920 --> 00:05:29,800 Speaker 1: working from cafes where the white noise but the lack 96 00:05:29,839 --> 00:05:34,240 Speaker 1: of interruptions from coworkers creates the perfect focus inducing environment. 97 00:05:35,040 --> 00:05:38,240 Speaker 1: And for the last six months our head analyst NJ, 98 00:05:38,960 --> 00:05:42,000 Speaker 1: this is meant for him working part time from Mavilla 99 00:05:42,160 --> 00:05:45,720 Speaker 1: in Italy. So NJ and his fiance have been planning 100 00:05:45,839 --> 00:05:49,240 Speaker 1: a European gap half year for a long time, and 101 00:05:49,400 --> 00:05:51,200 Speaker 1: rather than pick berries on a farm or work in 102 00:05:51,240 --> 00:05:53,400 Speaker 1: a pub, I asked NJ whether he wanted to work 103 00:05:53,440 --> 00:05:55,800 Speaker 1: part time for Inventium while he was away, to which 104 00:05:55,800 --> 00:05:59,640 Speaker 1: he said yes. The final part of our flexi policy 105 00:06:00,080 --> 00:06:03,360 Speaker 1: is that people can, of course holiday or take leave 106 00:06:03,520 --> 00:06:06,880 Speaker 1: whenever they want. I think that this is the icing 107 00:06:06,920 --> 00:06:09,719 Speaker 1: on the cake to our flexible work policy, because not 108 00:06:09,800 --> 00:06:13,320 Speaker 1: only can people work where and when they like, they 109 00:06:13,360 --> 00:06:17,440 Speaker 1: can holiday whenever they like. An unlimited leave policy means 110 00:06:17,480 --> 00:06:20,760 Speaker 1: you no longer have to plan holidays with military precision, 111 00:06:20,920 --> 00:06:23,520 Speaker 1: ensuring that you save up the exact number of leave 112 00:06:23,600 --> 00:06:27,159 Speaker 1: days required to avoid going into negative leave, and of 113 00:06:27,200 --> 00:06:30,880 Speaker 1: course with this means having to endure months of zero 114 00:06:31,000 --> 00:06:33,160 Speaker 1: leave if you are planning for a huge, multi week 115 00:06:33,200 --> 00:06:36,640 Speaker 1: overseas adventure. It's about Inventium staff can tune into their 116 00:06:36,680 --> 00:06:39,520 Speaker 1: own energy needs when it comes to planning or taking holidays, 117 00:06:39,560 --> 00:06:43,400 Speaker 1: whether that be several week marathon holidays or mini vacations 118 00:06:43,680 --> 00:06:47,240 Speaker 1: using just an extra day or two of leave. And interestingly, 119 00:06:47,279 --> 00:06:50,840 Speaker 1: the average number of leave that staff take has leveled 120 00:06:50,839 --> 00:06:53,839 Speaker 1: out between about five to six weeks per year. This 121 00:06:54,000 --> 00:06:57,000 Speaker 1: seems to be enough for one significant holiday in several 122 00:06:57,000 --> 00:06:59,320 Speaker 1: mini breaks, and I've certainly found this to be true 123 00:06:59,560 --> 00:07:03,640 Speaker 1: in my own working rhythm. So rather than view unlimited 124 00:07:03,760 --> 00:07:08,120 Speaker 1: leave as a standalone employee benefit, employeers need to view 125 00:07:08,160 --> 00:07:12,600 Speaker 1: it as just another number in the flexibility formula. That 126 00:07:12,720 --> 00:07:17,680 Speaker 1: is it for today's show. If you're enjoying How I Work, 127 00:07:17,880 --> 00:07:21,120 Speaker 1: why not leave a review in Apple Podcasts or wherever 128 00:07:21,160 --> 00:07:23,920 Speaker 1: you listen to this episode from. And if you're not 129 00:07:23,920 --> 00:07:27,040 Speaker 1: a subscriber, just hit the subscribe button and you'll be 130 00:07:27,240 --> 00:07:31,040 Speaker 1: alerted whenever a new episode drops. Thanks for listening and 131 00:07:31,120 --> 00:07:32,160 Speaker 1: I'll see you next time.