When you run a business that employs millennials, work life balance is critical. Without it, turnover is greater and loyalty is lower. So, I love to hear how businesses handle this challenge. Today, we're going to find out.
My guest blogger is Flavia Vigio, executive director for Miami and Latin America for Golin, a global PR firm. Flavia has worked in Latin America and Italy and has seen different cultures in action. In her position at Golin, she works with global clients and has many employees who look up to her.
Golin has made some changes in the way it operates to encourage work life balance and today, Flavia will share them with us.
Going All In
At Golin, our motto is to “go all in” so in April 2016 we chose to launch a number of initiatives that aimed at promoting a good work life balance as part of a program we call Life Time. Life Time is Golin’s official commitment to honor and revere life experiences – one’s “life time” – as a foundation of life at Golin. We go all in for our clients. But this was our moment to go all in for our employees, too.
It was an important perspective shift – away from the decades-old tenure-based benefits program to a trust-based, mutually beneficial relationship. Every suggestion from employees became fair game to be considered. The results led Golin to introduce unlimited time off, enhanced family care, extended health and wellness programs and work-from-anywhere flexibility.
Has the culture and engagement changed? The answer is yes.
In the past year, members of our Miami team have chosen to explore Machu Picchu, take historic tours of Savannah or lounge on Bahamian islands only accessible by boat. And just as important for balance, staff members have had "Life Time" days to deal with personal emergencies or losses within families without having to be constantly preoccupied about the number of vacation days remaining in a ledger.
Unlimited time off – which had never been offered globally by any other agency – can, of course, be perplexing. We found that the key to success is setting expectations correctly, sharing goals with teams, assuring everyone will do their best and building a mutually supportive culture around flexibility, respect and trust.
Our teams today have stronger and more beneficial communications protocols in place to support the work-from-anywhere flexibility offering --- something more and more of the workforce says makes a real difference. Now each employee, regardless tenure or title, can choose to work from anywhere one day a week.
Finally, our extended health and wellness benefit offers a monthly stipend for exercise, wellness or peace-of-mind activities. Those activities are determined by each employee so they can achieve their own personal balance. They range from gym memberships to singing lessons, language courses to yoga retreats, photography classes to pet-sitting services.
The "Life Time" program not only helped us attract new employees at Golin, it has helped us retain talented people who might not have been able to fit their careers into their lives before. And it’s great to work with people who want to be here. Our founder, Al Golin, said it best, “Happy people make happy clients.” And we believe that we give our best when we are at our best. Today, this may mean having “me time.” Tomorrow, it might mean doubling down on our work in support of our clients.
In the pursuit of balance, there’s something to be said for those businesses that “go all in.”
Golin team at Corporate Run!
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