“Everyone should have a chief of staff and a set of personal assistants,” said First Lady Michele Obama at a meeting last week of Corporate Voices for Working Families. It couldn’t be better timing for public policy group Workplace Flexibility 2010.

The think-tank based at Georgetown University Law Center issued a report yesterday outlining a policy blueprint to “expand Americans’ access to  flexible working arrangements such as compressed workweeks, predictable schedules and telework.” Essentially, the goal of the non-partisan group is to make the implementation of Flexible Work Arrangements the “new normal” –  instead of the stepchild of the traditional workplace.

The report is the culmination of five years of research and discussions across a wide spectrum of demographics including employers, employees and consumer advocates. During a press conference at the National Press Club, Professor Chai Feldblum, Co-director of Workplace Flexibility 2010, took the conversation up a notch by calling on the federal government to lead by example in work life policy.

“We need to hit the reset button on FWAs in the federal government,” Feldblum said adding that in this moment in time,  faced with restructuring the economy in what is now often referred to as the “new economy,” there needs to be a comprehensive approach to workplace flexibility.

The report indicates that the government was an “early leader” in adopting  such policies, which are still in place. But Prof. Feldblum says there needs to be commitment from all levels of government for those policies to spread more consistently throughout the public and private sectors.

Within the report are numerous examples of such workplace flexibility arrangements already being implemented in corporate America. At the press conference, Ann Weisberg,  Director, Talent at Deloitte U-S, mentioned a program called Mass Career Customization which allows an employee to adjust their hours, responsibilities and travel over the course of their careers.

Ultimately, Prof. Feldblum said it’s not that the workforce doesn’t want to work hard, they just want to work differently within a “new economy”: “The economy is changing at an accelerating rate. Companies have to be increasingly nible to respond to market conditions… it’s time to start a national conversation on the issue.”

For more information on other recent studies on Workplace Flexibility check out the following:

2009 Work+Life Fit Reality Check Survey:  Flexibility in the Recession

The merging of the working and living experience goes well beyond our WorkLife Nation. A quick review of the global economy reveals that the quest for work life balance is a slamming debate no matter the continent. many fear burnout is on the horizon. So I took a quick journey to bring you a glance of what’s happening. Here’s Judy Martin’s Work Life Global Watch this Wednesday, March 25.

Singapore

Of all the places calling to shore up emotional resilience, Singapore would not have topped my list . Yet the country, where the U.S. Department of State warns jaywalking, littering and spitting gum can land you in the can or with a hefty fine, is concerned about its citizens’ stress levels. The country’s health minister is behind a new educational campaign called Optimism for Mental Resilience. The message – “bad times don’t last forever.”

Health Minister, Khaw Boon Wan wrote in a statement yesterday that, ““Promoting an emotionally-resilient society is one of our priorities whether in good times or bad.”  The country is upping its mental health education program “to help working adults manage day-to-day stress, and to recognize signs of depression and anxiety.” Hmmm – I don’t think chewing gum is an encouraged stress reducer here.

Canada

Canada’s Financial Post just named the Top 100 Employers. The key criteria included: “ physical workplace; work atmosphere as a social setting; pay and benefits; vacation and provisions for time off; communication to employees; performance management; training and skills development and community involvement.”

Among the employee benefits at many of these companies is extended maternity leave. One firm offered top-up benefits – up to 93% and 52 weeks for new dads and moms. (Practically unheard of) Other work life initiatives included phased-in retirement, relaxation rooms and flexible working arrangements which allow employees to leave for just a few hours to do personal errands. The one perk that stood out; one company ended every week with a beer cart pushed through the office. Hmmmm – not sure that will catch on the U-S workplace.

United Kingdom

Stress levels are soaring in the U-K, according to an article on the Institute of Leadership and Management website:

“Research by the Work Life Balance Centre and Coventry University revealed that four of the five health-related stress indicators it monitors rose in the last year. This means that there was a rise in the number of people reporting chronic fatigue, sleeplessness, irritability and headaches, while at the same time the fifth, lack of concentration, fell by less than one per cent.”

The commentary in the article from experts warned that higher stress can impact career goals and an employers bottom line –  inevitably leading to more absenteeism, lower productivity and more mistakes made by employees.

New Zealand

An article in The Nelson Mail on Work-Life Balance, brings to light union concerns about the countries Holidays Act which mandates 4 weeks vacation time. There is a brewing debate caused by suggestions that employees might prefer to cash in on that fourth week, instead of taking the time. The fear is that employers which have suffered layoffs with other employees fearing job losses, might be pushing workers to put in more time which would impact work life balance.

Australia

In a site called SmallBusiness, Josh Gordon and Annie Lawson write that the economic woes might trigger more discussion about flexible working arrangements. In their article, Can a downturn give you better work life balance,?  - they suggest that many companies are reducing worker hours and encouraging employees to use up their holiday leave – instead of sacking their skilled workers.

The writers say that the trend is driven by two items – which for some reason is not generating the same response in the U-S.

1. Altruism: Companies trying to look out for employees with families and mortgages.
2. Optimism: When the economy turns around, these employees will be grateful, more engaged and loyal.

Despite a looming 2.3 billion dollar deficit and anticipated steep cuts in services, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has said that layoffs of city workers are, “not in the cards.” But thousands working through the dark days of Wall Street will not be as fortunate, especially with the demise of Lehman Brothers, and the merger of Bank of America and Merrill Lynch.

There will however be survivors after the hatchet makes its way through the financial and other sectors. Those left behind will be in arguably rocky waters. If you’re one of the few “lucky” ones trying to keep it together in the office, here are some strategies you can put to use to cultivate a resilient and safe disposition.

1. Be at your best, at all times. Don’t ever assume that the corporate sword won’t swing in your direction. Paranoia is not called for but instead patience with yourself. Keep to your deadlines and commitments and if you need to alter them for any reason be up front about it before the hour glass runs out.
2. Have your own at-work relaxation trigger. Place a simple picture on your desk or a piece of jewelry that reminds you to simply take a one- three minute break to stop what you are doing and decompress. Work Life balance starts with your own personal routine.
3. Suspend judgment of your co-workers. The quickest way to be thrust into the anger zone is to focus on what your colleagues are doing – or not doing. You don’t know what they are going through in this time of crisis and making assumptions about the way they are handling things will only cause you grief.
4. Relinquish the need for gossip. This is one of the most difficult things to do when word of chaos spread so quickly. The problem – you might get faulty information and act on it. What’s worse is that it’s an energy waster. Spend the time on being productive instead.
5. Take the initiative. In a downsized environment, most will be spread thin and overloaded with work. Taking on an extra project might be a way to stand out, but do it wisely. Suggest a better way of doing the work, a team to work on it together, or a way to combine a few necessary projects and then share the work among a few colleagues.
6. Reduce info-overload. Examine your behaviors with regard to the number of papers or websites you read every day. Obviously the sector you work in might impact your decisions. But you probably don’t have to head to YouTube every day to check out the latest music video. You can manage worklife flexibility by mindfully navigating sensory overload.
7. Develop unique skills and gifts. We never know if we’re even going to wake up the next day. Take the time to do now – what you have always promised yourself you would do. Whether it’s taking a knitting class, learning PowerPoint, or learning a new language – any additional skills you acquire that you have a heartfelt affinity for, might in some way make you more marketable in the future or even lay the foundation to start your own business.

"It is useful occasionally to look at the past to gain a perspective on the present." – Fabian Linden

Economist Fabian Linden held the status of "sage" in his observations of consumer behavior and its impact on shifts in the economy. With his creation of the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index, he urged the economic elite to listen to the voice of the consumer with a new perspective. After all, they were the ones on the front lines feeling the economic shifts in their pocketbooks. 

So it couldgo, with the voice of those on the front lines of managing the corporate coffers when it comes to the impact of worklife flexibility on the bottom line. That is, if corporate America cares to listen. A new study by BDO Seidman and Work+Life Fit, Inc. reveals there's interest on the part of Chief Financial Officers to explore worklife flexibility beyond the obvious benefits of employee attraction and retention.

The 2008 CFO Perspectives on WorkLife Flexibility study showed that CFO's understand that worklife flexibility has the potential to impact companies beyond employee issues. 75% of CFO's at companies that offer flexibility, said the strategy might be important to the future profitability of their organizations. Here's some other interesting findings:

• 72% said worklife flex practices differentiate a company from its competitors.
• 53% believe flex can save health care costs
• 34% said flex can help reduce real estate costs

These statistics are coming from the company financial brass, but even with the bent toward worklife flex offering potential benefits to the spread sheet, there is an indication that fear abounds in pressing the issue in the workplace. When asked about common obstacles to flex strategies:

• 76% were concerned about "face time"
• 72% were worried about "demands in the workload of a job"
• 62% were concerned about "other employees perceptions"
• 58% said it could "hurt my career"

In a struggling economy and tightening job market, it's unfortunate that the aforementioned obstacles might be enough to keep the CFO's silent on the worklife flex question. It's too bad –  because just as we're entering an era where worklife flex is being acknowledged as a strategy to boost employee productivity – Wall Street has investors running scared and companies hunkering down. For now, the voice of negativity in the financial sector is louder than those on the front lines like the CFOs. CFOs are crunching those numbers and might have some insight as to how to do things differently.

Taking a walk along the shoreline in Boynton Beach, Florida I had a thought. I could get used to this. But an immediate surge of overwhelm ran throught me as I pondered, "Whose going to finance my South Florida retirement nest egg?" Moi. And phasing into retirement will likely be the scenario as I plan on sticking around for a while.

Retirement is so far from my thoughts as a rule. But there’s been so much talk of the sagging economy, job security and the future of the older worker that, quite frankly, I’ve been feeling a bit jittery about it. But just a few days ago I had a conversation that offered a bit of hope in my elusive quest for worklife balance down the road.

There’s a policy project in Washington D.C. called Workplace Flexibility 2010. It’s a "campaign to support the development of a comprehensive national policy on workplace flexibility." I had the opportunity to speak with Professor Chai Feldblum, a Co-Director of this project – specifically about phased retirement. Workplace Flexibility 2010 is studying the policies around the concept and plans to eventually release its findings of effective, solid, creative policy ideas – to help companies and employees better examine the concept. 

Chai Feldblum is a Professor of Law at Georgetown University Law Center. She told me 2010 has spent the last year meeting with company heads and employee groups, gathering information on trends in phased retirement. Here’s an excerpt from my interview with her.

JUDY: What is the general idea behind 2010, and why is that date significant?

CHAI:  We chose 2010 to signal that we don’t have policy ideas right now. We are seeking to essentially intervene in the political dynamic; to encourage a consensus based conversation around policy-based ideas so that by the year 2010 we would have facilitated comprehensive ideas that would work for both employers and employees.

JUDY: What about phased retirement, it’s an issue that has suddenly jumped into the headlines?

CHAI: We hope to come up with some specific phased retirement policy ideas before the year 2010. It’s essentially a sub-set within the larger worklife integration world. We feel that if we can help facilitate some consensus based ideas, that might be a nice model for some of the tougher labor and employment laws that we’ll be looking at.

JUDY: What are some of the key concerns about phased retirement for companies?

CHAI: The issue is – how can companies do phased retirement programs in a way that will not cause them any problems with the tax laws, so that their pension programs remain legal under those tax laws. If you are not compliant, there are a lot of ramifications. In other words, how can companies have programs in which they allow individuals, who are not fully retired, but are still working part-time with the company, to draw down on some of their retirement funds and still be in compliance with the tax laws.

JUDY: That poses a lot of questions around retirement age, how much individuals can take out and when – etc.

CHAI: The reason all of these rules are set in place – you have to be a certain age – you have to have left already, is that the retirement plans were initially set up to ensure that people would have enough funds when they actually retired. You didn’t want people to draw down too early. The mind set in which the tax laws were set up was not the mind set that we need now – when you think about people working past retirement age.

With the convergence of the Gen X, Gen Y and Baby boomer generations in the workplace, companies are taking a harder look at worklife flexibility. In the past, it might have been incorporated as more of a "perk," rather than a strategy. But that is changing.

According to the Alliance for Work Life Progress, more than 83% of companies offer some sort of worklife flex. But even big businesses implementing such initiatives, experience challenges. Worklife strategist, Cali Yost, author of Work+Life": Finding the Fit That’s Right for You, nails the key issue facing corporate America saying that, "You can’t have flexibility in an inherently inflexible environment." That means a worklife program that involves the voices of company brass – and rank and file.

I just completed a story on this topic which aired on NPR’s Morning Edition. It examines flexibility in the workplace. Check it out by clicking on the title below. I’ll be writing more on this topic in the days ahead, especially as it relates to the job market.

Embracing Flex Time Takes Work, Firms Find

For more information on worklife issues check out my  at JudyMartinSpeaks.com.

Caught in a whirlwind of frenetic conversation while reviewing 2007 with a few pals, a colleague of mine decided that she, a mother of three young children, would make a monumental change to impact her WorkLife Strategy in 2008. "I really want to work more in 2008, and I’m putting myself out there," she told me enthusiastically. "I’m going to attract more freelance work. Period."

My buddy had put The Law of Attraction to work in the form of verbal intention. But before I knew it, she had her resume flying around the Internet, generating numerous hits on her website. Then a conundrum -how to distinguish which company or job best fit her needs. This begged the question – What’s the best way to assess worklife needs heading into 2008?

We all want better worklife balance  – not burnout. So how do you get that career boost that won’t negatively impact your family concerns? After much thought are my Top 7 Strategies to kick off  2008 in better balance.

Judy’s Top 7 Personal WorkLife Strategies for 2008:

1. Defining your WorkLife Balance Profile. Write down your personal definition of worklife balance. Clearly state what your personal mission looks and feels like. It might mean spending more time with your family or being more efficient at work. Perhaps your greatest need is more flexibility at work. Are you an extreme worker? Is your commute too long? Is your productivity challenged by workplace conditions?
2. Discovering Passion & Purpose in your Work. Do you love your work? If not, how can you better align your work with your personal passion and purpose? Identify aspects of your job that are most fulfilling and take on more responsibility in those areas. If you work for yourself, delegate the labor you don’t feel passionate about. If a new career is the answer, make a list of the most important components of your dream position.
3. Create a WorkLife Edict for 2008. Identify the top three realistic goals you want to achieve toward balancing your work and family life in 2008. Then address those goals with the ideal changes that can help manifest them. What is needed to make a conscious shift in your WorkLife Balance for 2008?
4. Navigating and Managing Info-mania. Info-mania quickly becomes Info-overload if not managed properly. New rule. You don’t have to answer every e-mail (file it or dump it instead) or pick up the phone every time it rings. It’s all relative. Ultimately, you are in charge of the mind boggling amount of stimulus that enters your personal stratosphere so establish guidelines.
5. Identify Energizing and Depleting Relationships. Make a list of the most important personal and work relationships. Assess which unions foster your growth as an individual. This exercise will give you a new level of awareness in your decision making process as to whom you spend time with, and HOW MUCH TIME you spend with them.
6. Define Success on Your Own Terms. We are consistently blasted with other peoples benchmarks of success. This concentration on what is deemed important by others is an anxiety producer that can lead to less productivity. Determine your own vision of success for 2008. What does it look and feel like?
7. Create your Workplace Reality. First, whether you sit at a desk, in a cubicle, or drive a truck – you can make simple environmental changes to foster more productivity. From Ergonomics, to changing the layout of the items on your desk, to re-evaluating the pictures that stare you in the face every day. Second, give yourself a daily emotional boost. Choose a stress-busting routine. A brief walk every day, a quick breathing exercise at your desk, or even a few minutes of easy-listening music will do wonders for the mind and body.

In her first official campaign stop on Long Island, Senator Hillary Clinton addressed an audience of more than a thousand people speaking not only of “bringing the troops home” but also, ” universal health care and some childhood and family issues. Her visit this week coincided with the introduction of the Working Families Felxibility Act, which she along with other democratic colleagues, including Barak Obama, presented this week.

This is a first step to introduce the issue, but by no means addresses the worklife issues that families face. And while the legislation is hot off the press, we have yet to hear in depth what the candidates really think about improvements, or proposed changes in law, that might better worklife culture in general for workers and employers.

In seven weeks New York Democrats will head to the polls for the February 5th primary. Might this new agenda creeping its way into the race and the political talk show circuit? A new survey suggests as much.

Nearly 60% of those surveyed in the 2007 Annual Work+Life Fit Reality Check are looking for the presidential candidates to put worklife flexibility on their radar. The telephone survey was sponsored by Work+Life Fit, Inc. and conducted by Opinion Research Corporation.

WorkLife strategist and author Cali Yost Williams is the pioneer who started this survey last year. Head to the following links to read more about her findings.

Click here for Cali’s blog on the presidential race and workplace flexibility:  Cali Yost at FastCompany.com

Click here for more on the 2007 Annual Work+Life Fit Reality Check