New Report | Flexibility in Professional Services
What's the current state of flexible work in consulting, law, and accounting?
Current Subscribers: 3,514; +30 since last week
Please forward to colleagues and friends! Link to subscribe.
Flex Report: Professional Services Deep Dive
Before 2020, if you searched online for the phrase "hybrid work," you'd get very few hits back in return. Over the last three years, hybrid work arrangements have gone mainstream, with 54% of US companies embracing hybrid work for their corporate employees.
While hybrid work is new for most, one industry had a lot of experience working “hybrid” prior to 2020: Professional Services! Employees at Professional Services companies (e.g. accountants, consultants, legal service providers) are very used to working in multiple locations, often moving back and forth between company offices and client sites. Put a different way, employees at these companies are used to operating in an environment where teams are not co-located five days a week. These companies were “hybrid” before it had a name!
We can learn a lot by studying the work location flexibility policies of Professional Services companies. These companies should be the most comfortable with hybrid work; looking at the percentage of Professional Services companies that offer work location flexibility should give us a sense of where the broader market might head as they get more hybrid work experience.
Want a sneak peek of what’s in the report? Here’s a little preview 👇
86% of Professional Services Companies Are Hybrid or Fully Remote
The vast majority of Professional Services companies have adopted flexible work. 65% of Professional Services companies offer a hybrid work arrangement; 21% are Fully Remote.
Professional Services Companies Are Higher Adopters of Full Flexibility
Professional Services companies are much more likely to be Fully Flexible vs. companies in other industries. 56% of Professional Services companies let employees choose whether to come into the office vs 33% across all industries.
Flexibility Varies Significantly by Sub-Sector
While Professional Services companies broadly offer work location flexibility, there are significant differences by sub-sector.
Marketing Services companies overwhelmingly offer Full Flexibility. HR & Staffing Services companies are most likely to require Full Time In Office. Legal Services is the Professional Services sub-sector with the highest percentage of companies adopting a Structured Hybrid model.
ICYMI: From the Flexperts | 5 Common Executive Objections to Flexible Work and How to Address Them
In the ongoing RTO debate, two distinct camps have emerged: on one side, advocates, typically employees, cite the benefits of flexible work, emphasizing increased employee engagement, heightened job satisfaction, and a reinforced sense of belonging. On the opposing side, critics, often executives, express reservations about productivity declines, fractured collaboration and communication, and the erosion of company culture.
While these concerns are not novel, they pose an important question: do they hold any merit?
In her guest post, Flexpert Tonille Miller, Management Consultant, I/O Psychologist, and Executive Coach, delves into the five most common executive objections to flexible work and offers thoughtful insights on how to address and overcome them.
Each week we spotlight an emerging best practice on flexible work adoption or implementation from the best thinkers in flexible work. Interested in becoming a “Flexpert” and sharing your insights? Sign up today.
In the Media
NY Times: This month, occupancy rates were at 50 percent of February 2020 levels. That is shocking — only half as much time is spent in the office
compared with pre-pandemic times.Entrepreneur: In a landscape where innovation is the ultimate currency, why are tech giants like Amazon, IBM, and Zoom clinging to outdated mandates?
Commercial Observer: NVIDIA embraced Fully Flexible work, and is worth $1 Trillion. Why NVIDIA follows a different path from some other big tech firms.
One Last Thing…
Add your company to the Flex Index
Share this newsletter with friends and colleagues
About Scoop
Scoop is the fastest way to plan your next great office day. With Scoop, employees get more out of going in, with easily scheduled in-office days and invites. For HR and workplace leaders, Scoop provides insights on work location trends, office usage, and additional workplace solutions to get the most out of hybrid work.