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Job Sharing – a way to recruit, retain & motivate team members

To be published in Darwin Life Magazine October 2011 - Alison Hucks, Principal, Avant

  • Is it a viable option for your business?
  • What are the pros & cons?
  • How to implement?

Job sharing, when managed well, can provide an effective solution for those hard to fill roles in your organisation. In essence two people fulfil the duties & responsibilities of one job.  Each person is recruited for the position on a permanent part-time basis.

It is up to the employer to determine whether the job share is based on days or hours to be split between the two job share partners.  Flexibility to some degree may be required to secure the best applicants for the job.

With job ‘sharing’ it is critical that any job sharing venture matches the needs of the business, the requirements of the role & the unique characteristics of the employees involved.  In essence; that the ‘right’ portions of the role, are allotted to the ‘right’ person, at the ‘right time’, in the ‘right’ framework.

There are three main styles of job sharing:

  • shared responsibility – no division of duties/responsibilities.  The job share employees (partners) are interchangeable.   A high level of communication & co-ordination between the job share partners is essential. 
  • divided responsibility – is effective when work can be split clearly into different groups (e.g. clients A-M & N-Z) or projects with  set separate tasks & parameters.; with liaison on related tasks, outcomes & activities.
  • unrelated responsibility – is a case of a job ‘split’ into two smaller part time roles running in t&em in the same department.  This style of job share fits when both the job requires two different skillsets.

A job share arrangement could well be worth your consideration if your organisation:

  • is struggling to fill a position
  • has staff seeking flexible work options
  • is experiencing operational change for any number of reasons
  • or you wish to offer more work options to your team to enhance employees’ work-life balance.

When recruiting for job share partners you need to clearly underst& the peaks & troughs of the role (& your business), & that you can offer the necessary resources to support the job share.  Clear communication, trust & accountability is required by all partners involved.

Benefits include:

for job share partners

for the employer

  • enhanced work life balance
  • shared responsibility for outcomes can increase productivity
  • opportunity to share ideas, create innovations & increase confidence
  • promotes retention
  • complex jobs can achieve a stronger result with a job share team
  • offering a work life balance option is motivating for employees

    •  

    Challenges  include:

    for job share partners

    for the employer

    • establishing clear lines of communication, the parameters of not just the work duties but also of the resources available & the work environment.
    • requires work from all stakeholders but especially the job share team so that they stay aligned.
    • ensuring adequate time is spent in planning for the job share arrangement to take place including the recruitment of the job share team, their responsibilities, accountabilities, work hours & resources.
    • supporting, monitoring, coaching, & managing the job share partners to become a strong team & to be champions of the role.

    How to implement

    Initially start with a needs analysis, planning is critical to success.  There is a need to determine the following in addition to assessing any areas for flexibility:

    • what the job share parameters will be, including results, tasks, hours, etc.
    • the skills, experience, values & ethics of your job share team
    • clear communication pathways for all
    • salary & benefit distribution
    • lines of authority & responsibility must be well understood
    • set review milestones.

    Flexible work schedules are increasingly in dem&, today’s technology readily supports this option & organisations can reap the rewards of loyal & motivated personnel.

    Job sharing could indeed be the right solution for your organisation.

    For more information contact Avant on 89412299 or email:  darwin@avantpersonnel.com.au