A medium-sized engineering company in the Midlands making components for the car industry is not an obvious place to find flexible work arrangements. Too traditional, you might say, too rooted in Britain’s regimented industrial past.

But Stuart Fell, owner of West Bromwich Tool and Engineering Company, says that two-way flexibility between him and his workers is at the core of his business model. Moreover, it a key ingredient in the success of his business.

The company, which makes pressed metal parts for large manufacturers such as BMW and Nissan, employs about 100 people on nearly 50 different working arrangements. “On paper, it seems very complicated,” Mr Fell said, “but it works very well and the company and employees each get what they need.

“This adaptable and ever-changing arrangement has proved to be capable of producing high performance and is not complicated to manage.”

He says that some employees would not be working for the company without the flexible options, ranging from variable start and finish times to early and late shifts, term-time working and time off at short notice. People are willing to come in early or stay late to get things done when necessary, he said. “There is business we have won because we have been able to respond quickly to a customer demand.”

Based on trust and two-way dialogue between managers and employees, the policy helped when the recession forced the press works to move employees to a four-day week at 80 per cent of pay for three months earlier this year. “When we told them these were extraordinary circumstances and things were bad, they really understood that it was serious and necessary and believed that we were telling the truth.”

Flexible working is still often seen solely as a benefit for part-time working mothers with young children. However, a new guide for managers, published by the Equality and Human Rights Commission, shows how employers in many different sectors are gaining tangible business results from making alternative work patterns widely available to employees.

Helen Mahy, company secretary at National Grid, which runs gas and electricity transmission networks, has a team of 70 in the UK, about half of whom have formal or informal flexibility, for example working from home for part of the week. This has helped her to recruit and retain skilled people. In general, company secretaries’ departments are fairly traditional, she said. “There’s a view that you have to be where the board is and where the management and head office are. Yes, you do — but you don’t all have to be there at the same time.”

Handled well, flexibility gives managers a powerful tool to respond to both customers’ and employees’ needs. The business benefits documented in the guide include greater efficiency and productivity, better customer service cover, improved staff retention, reduced absenteeism, more efficient use of workspace and an enhanced reputation as an employer.

BT, a pioneer of flexible working, has done more than most to measure its impact. It reports a £500 million reduction in office costs, up to 30 per cent higher productivity among home-working staff than office-based colleagues and a saving of 12 million litres of fuel through reduced commuting.

Despite the benefits, however, some industries remain resistant to flexible working. An Equality Commission report last week on flexible working for fathers showed that construction, manufacturing, retail and transport were the industries least likely to offer non-standard working arrangements.

Some employers fear that flexible working could be costly, complicated or even harmful to the business — yet more than 90 per cent of small businesses surveyed by the British Chambers of Commerce reported that set-up costs were zero or minimal. More than 70 per cent said that flexibility improved employee relations and more than half reported higher productivity.

Flexibility requires give-and-take to work well. The business has to come first and not every proposed arrangement will be workable. But experience shows that managers who sit down and discuss alternatives with employees usually find they can come to a compromise that is fair and beneficial to all parties.

• Working Better: A managers’ guide to Flexible Working was written by Alison Maitland for the Equality and Human Rights Commission. It is available free at www.equalityhumanrights.com/flexible

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