Almost six months after the launch of the University’s Flex Work Companion and the introduction of our Flex Champions implementation, the Flexible Work Framework (FWF) is on track.

The first Flex Work pulse survey was held in October with 1393 staff participating across a broad range of faculty and portfolio areas. Sixty-nine per cent of responses were submitted by professional staff.

The survey results show that staff generally feel positive about the implementation of the Flexible Work Framework across the University:

• 41.7 per cent of staff were highly satisfied with how their faculty or portfolio had approached the implementation of the FWF, with a further 31.8 per cent saying they were somewhat satisfied.
• 55.2 per cent of staff strongly agreed that their manager understood the FWF and its guiding principles, with 23.1 per cent agreeing somewhat.
• 57.9 per cent were highly satisfied with their current flexible work arrangements, with a further 23.2 per cent being somewhat satisfied.
• 59.6 per cent strongly agreed that flexible work allowed teams to balance productive work with staff wellbeing.
• Only 1.4 per cent of staff were very concerned about a potential decline in their team’s productivity due to the implementation of flexible work.

Co-executive sponsors of the Our People program board Nicole Gower, Vice President Professional Services, and Professor Patrick McNeil, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, thanked staff for their participation, noting that regular pulse surveys were vital to the long-term success of the framework.

“From the outset, we have known that flexible work is not a one-size-fits-all approach, especially in an organisation like Macquarie where teaching and research activities require very specific modes of work,” says Professor McNeil. “These surveys help ensure Flex is working for everyone and identify any areas of the organisation that might require additional support to embed it successfully.

“I would encourage staff to continue sharing their experiences in future surveys, so we can refine flexible work solutions within our faculties and portfolios.”

One strong theme of staff feedback was the need for information and training on the effective use of digital tools when working flexibly.

“In response to this feedback, our digital experts within the Flexible Work team are continually adding helpful resources to the Flex Work Digital Resources section of the Macquarie Flexible Work SharePoint, where staff can learn about the collaboration features in Teams and Zoom, and get advice on online meeting etiquette,” says Ms Gower.

MQ Health has established a working group to adapt the framework to suit the nature of clinical services work, while a working group will be established in HR in the early new year to focus on further implementing the framework across our people practices.

Executive Group members will communicate survey results for their faculties and portfolios in the coming weeks. Staff will be invited to participate in the next Flex Pulse survey in the second quarter of 2023.

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Learn more about how to make Flex work for your team on the Macquarie Flexible Work SharePoint