Would you rather take time off for Lunar New Year than Easter? Or work through the Melbourne Cup public holiday and celebrate Diwali instead?
Melbourne management consulting firm Cube Group, which has 30 staff, is just about to formally implement a flexible public holiday policy, after experimenting with the idea for some time. “Because we do public value work … we see diversity as an area where we can really be a force for good.”Being an agile firm has given Cube Group the chance to try out different leave concepts, including giving everyone half a day off on Fridays during January.
“I think sometimes this is discussed in terms of organisations either being completely rigid and not being adaptive at all, or organisations feeling like they can’t say no to requests because that would then mean that they weren’t supportive of diversity,” she says.“Actually, what we recommend is that organisations try and aim for a win-win. In every request, you need to consider the needs of the individual and the needs of the business, and then try and find something that works.