MAY 2019 COVER STORY
ensure they don’t leave work
frustrated because they don’t
feel like they’re being heard.
People have different reasons
for being at work. Many are
only at work because they need
the money and if they were to
win the lottery, they would stop
working. For some people, the
money is important but isn’t
the main reason they go to
work. Some people also like the
structure and purpose of having
a job they enjoy. We want AE
Aerospace to be as enjoyable
a place to be as possible – we
don’t want people coming in
with trepidation on a Monday
morning. If they’re enthusiastic,
we’re doing great!”
The forgotten workforce
More than most other sectors, manufacturing relies on shift
workers. These people, says Hiron of Kronos, are often
overlooked. “In many conversations, work-life balance, flexible
scheduling, and perks at work are viewed as white collar ‘benefits.’
In reality, organisations can easily adopt these engagementboosting
practices in a blue-collar setting. Take, for example,
implementing mobile-first technology, which allows workers to
check their schedules in real time or swap shifts as needed on a
mobile device, in or out of the work environment.
“Consider the parent whose child just made the final of a sports
event. They can quickly check their shift or schedule for that day
in real-time, wherever they are, and request that time off. This
empowers hourly workers, like in manufacturing, to not have to
stress about future schedules because they have the ability to
work their way, when it works for them, while still meeting the
needs of the business.”
AE Aerospace adheres to this principle. “We’re
trying to remove the mindset that says that you
must arrive early and stay late, or else you’re a
shirker,” says Bruch. “As long as we cover the core
hours with core staff, the rest is less important.
Allowing people to either start early and finish
early, or vice versa, is important to maintain those
people in the business. It’s important to note that
it’s not flexi-time; staff agree different contracts
and working hours and stick to that – otherwise
it’s anarchy and we don’t know where anyone is.
We have to keep the machines running – there’d
be no point in having two people in at 7.30am
and nobody to run them at 9pm. We still need
structure, but wherever we have the ability to be
flexible, we are.”
Striking a balance between personal and
professional lives is a complicated procedure.
One the one hand, not allowing your staff time to
fully relax at home will cause dissatisfaction, poor
performance and wider business – and personal
– issues. On the other, taking it too far the other
way can lead to a drop in productivity and a lax,
demotivated workforce. A good business and
its leadership team will be ready to strike that
balance to ensure a motivated, productive and
happy workforce.
As Peter Bruch concludes: “Work-life
balance isn’t just about hours; it’s also about
job satisfaction. We’re trying to give people the
authority to develop and improve things. The key
is that they feel like they’re making a difference.
That gives our staff a level of jab satisfaction to
AE Aerospace
MD, Peter Bruch,
(above) says that
job satisfaction
is key
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