When it comes to recruiting valuable talent, don’t assume money is always the primary selling point. According to a recent FlexJobs survey, flexibility at work ranked as the most important factor when evaluating a job prospect—ahead of salary, health insurance, company reputation, and retirement benefits.

Furthermore, offering flexible options may help your company retain existing employees. More than one out of three respondents (35 percent) say they have actually left a job because it did not have work flexibility, according to the survey of more than 2,500 female respondents*. Fourteen percent have considered leaving a job because it did not have work flexibility, and 19 percent are currently looking for a new job because of work flexibility issues.

Many women put so much importance on flexibility at work that they report being willing to make bottom-line saving sacrifices in exchange for telecommuting options:

• 29 percent of respondents said they would take a 10-percent or 20-percent cut in pay to get more flexibility at work.
• 21 percent said they are willing to forfeit vacation time for more flexibility at work.
• 15 percent said they would give up employer-matching retirement contributions for more flexibility at work.

And perhaps in a day and age when job-hopping has become commonplace, employers may want to take heed of this critical finding: 82 percent of respondents say they would be more loyal to their employers if they had flexible work options.

Improving Your Recruiting Efforts

So how can employers use this information to their advantage? Realize the power of flexible work as a lure and a bargaining chip. Then, create an employment brand that clearly demonstrates your company’s commitment to flexible work options. A few ways to do this include:

• Profiling telecommuting employees on your website. Allowing potential candidates to learn about actual off-site workers making vital contributions to the company while obtaining a better work-life balance helps them envision doing the same.
• Getting the word out via social media. Make a point of conveying how flexible work is engrained in company culture. For instance, a picture of happy employees could be captioned: “A whopping 97 percent of respondents in a recent FlexJobs survey say a job with flexibility would have a positive impact on their overall quality of life. Must be why these three members of our customer service team are smiling.”
• Highlighting flex opportunities in ads for open positions. According to the survey, the most in-demand type of arrangement for women is 100-percent telecommuting, but you’ll also gain notice for touting a flexible schedule, partial telecommuting, part-time work, alternative hours, and freelance gigs.


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Looking for top candidates? Browse resumes and professionals in 55 categories. 

*The survey was a voluntary sample of self-selected respondents from the public, contacted primarily through FlexJobs’ social media channels and newsletter.

Here are select results from the FlexJobs Super Survey:

Work Flexibility Benefits Diverse Audiences

Work flexibility appeals to diverse audiences and demographics for a wide variety of reasons.

•  Respondents represent various demographics: freelancers (26 percent), caretakers (22 percent), entrepreneurs (19 percent), retirees (17 percent), introverts (14 percent), and people with disabilities or managing a chronic illness (13 percent).
• Other notable audiences include traveler/digital nomad (9 percent), stay at home moms (6 percent), environmentalist (4.5 percent), and student (3 percent)
• Work flexibility appeals to highly educated and experienced workers. 71 percent of respondents have a college or graduate degree and 40 percent are manager level or higher.
• Important factors for working include wanting to pay for basic necessities (72 percent), save for retirement (63 percent), simply enjoying work (61 percent), pay off debt (50 percent), wanting to travel (48 percent), pay for health related issues for themselves or a loved one (36 percent), have a professional impact in the world (33 percent), and contribute to charity (26 percent).
• The majority of seniors report “needing” to work, but 66 percent—two out of three—also report “wanting” to work.

Interest in Work Flexibility is High

Respondents place an extremely high value on work flexibility:

• Work flexibility (79 percent) was ranked the most important factor when evaluating a job prospect.
• Salary ranked second at 68 percent and work-life balance came in as the third most important factor (62 percent), ranked above other factors such as work schedule (55 percent), location (51 percent), and company reputation (42 percent)
• 27 percent have actually left a job because it did not have work flexibility
• 15 percent have considered leaving a job because it did not have work flexibility
• 12 percent are currently looking for a new job because of work flexibility issues
• Only 1 percent worry a lot that a flexible work arrangement will hurt their career progression

Employer Benefits

50+ aged employees report being willing to make bottom-line saving sacrifices in exchange for telecommuting options:

• 23 percent of respondents said they would take a 10 percent or 20 percent cut in pay
• 17 percent are willing to forfeit vacation time or health benefits
• 15 percent said they would give up employer-matching retirement contributions
• 77 percent of respondents also say they would be more loyal to their employers if they had flexible work options

Productivity:

• Only 7 percent of 50-plus workers report being most productive in the office during regular business hours. Fifty-nine percent prefer working at home when they need to get important work done
• The top reasons they believe to be more productive working at home vs the office include fewer distractions (77 percent), fewer interruptions from colleagues (76 percent), and minimal office politics (68 percent)

Improved Health

The individuals surveyed believe flexible options would positively impact their health:

• 97 percent say a job with flexibility would have a positive impact on their overall quality of life
• 79 percent think it would make them more healthy
• 87 percent think it would lower their stress

Reasons for Wanting Flexible Work

• Work-life balance (71 percent), commute stress (48 percent), and time savings (47 percent), are the top reported reasons 50+ workers seek flexible work.
• The most in-demand type of flexible work arrangement for 50+ workers is 100 percent telecommuting (83 percent), but flexible schedule (72 percent), part-time (50 percent), freelance (48 percent), partial telecommuting (46 percent), and alternative schedule (44 percent) are also in demand.

What do you think, readers? What are the most important factors you hear from candidates looking for a new job at your company? Does work flexibility make it in the conversation?

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