Beyond Folders : part time employment

Part-Time Employee, Full-Time Boundaries

Community Manager — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 14:53:00 GMT

Nearly 20 million workers in the U.S. punch the clock part-time. A large portion of this part-time workforce is composed of women. For moms of young children or women acting as care-givers for elderly parents, part-time work holds the allure of a paycheck and time to tend the fire on the home-front.

But when happens when work fires need to be out? Or when your boss puts you on their speed dial 24/7? Successful part-time employees make use of five strategies for setting boundaries:

Communication & Clarity: Communication is key. Employees need to clearly communicate their life-work priorities and schedules. Likewise, companies need to be clear upfront about the requirements of a specific role. When both parties are unambiguous and in sync, there is less likelihood that either party will feel taken advantage of.

Make the Case: Employees need to make the case for part-time work, helping companies see the bottom-line return of part-time roles. Employers will be more fully committed to making part-time roles work when they understand their value.

Master Time-Management: By definition, part-time employees have fewer hours to get the job done. Prioritization and productivity need to be your twin watch-words. If you drill down and get the job done at work, there is less chance of it bleeding over into your downtime at home.

Develop Allies: Smart part-time employees recognize the value of mentors and allies who can advocate for their work, especially in their absence. Be sure to continually educate your advocates about your role and your contributions.

Evangelize: Keep your work colleagues abreast of your work and contributions as well. If your peers understand your contributions, they will know you're pulling your weight. Take pains to cultivate harmonious work relationships, going the extra mile on your days on will pay dividends in good will for your days off.

How do you keep work from encroaching on your days off? Do you have any tips for establishing boundaries as a part-time employee? Share your thoughts here and on the Pendaflex Facebook page.

by Carly Fadako

Walk the Line: Balancing Part-Time Work as a Full-Time Mother

Community Manager — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 13:14:00 GMT

Just as good fences make for good neighbors, boundaries between work and home life make for greater productivity and less stress. Yet in our 24/7 always-on-call-world, clear boundaries between work and home life can be hard to erect. For moms working part-time, or at home, the challenge is tougher still: how to maintain a productive, professional work environment when the sippy cup set demands attention.

The Ultimate Juggle

In a recent New Yorker article comedienne Tina Fey calls the topic of working motherhood "a tap dance recital in a minefield." Fey takes comedic liberties with her description of working motherhood but she's spot on about the difficult dance.

Set work hours. By establishing set work hours (either the days you head into the office or at home hours of 9 to 3pm or noon to 5pm, whatever works) you can clearly signal to your family when you are not accessible. Setting up a framework of regular work hours also allows you to carve out protected family time, preventing the problem of "work creep," the phenomenon where work starts creeping into all hours of the day.

Establish a dedicated workspace. Try to find a quiet area of the home for your office (preferably with a door) and let kids know that a closed door means do-not-disturb. Establish a hands-off policy for work supplies in this area to prevent computer paper from becoming art projects or the lap top from being commandeered by tweens.

Nanny 911: Have a stable of babysitting options on speed-dial. Working from home doesn't mean you can work while the kids scamper about or while you drive carpool. School-aged children require babysitting after 3pm and the sippy cup set needs constant supervision; be sure to outsource that task to paid help so you can concentrate on work.

Need more ideas for making the juggle work? We've assembled some useful resources for working parents. Think of it as your toolkit for sanity.

Finding Child Care for Sick Kids: A Working Mom's Guide to Sick Kids
Stress Management Tools for Parents
25 Parent Productivity Tools for Busy Moms, Dads and Kids

Finally, here are some real life case stories of moms making part-time jobs work for them. Good Housekeeping has assembled some inspirational stores in Make Full Time Money Working Part-Time. Tips include, letting personal calls go to voicemail during work hours and not mixing home activities during work hours: i.e. keep play dates and chores for non-office hours.

Do you have any great tools that help balance the demands of work and parenting? Share your thoughts here and on the Pendaflex Facebook page.

by Candie Harris

Making a Job Share Work

Community Manager — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 17:01:00 GMT

For many workers, job shares are the Holy Grail of employment. Part-time days, full-time confidence that the bête noire of part-time employees-work encroaching at home-will be kept at bay by job share partners. For working parents, job shares are particularly desirable, providing the chance to maintain a paycheck and career while enjoying more time at home than a typical job allows.

Job shares may hold great appeal, but in our they are hard to come by and in Recession-crunched economy getting harder still. According to the Wall Street Journal,only 13 percent of employers offer job shares, down from 20 percent in 2007.

If you're lucky enough to have a job share, or are hoping to persuade a boss that one makes sense, read on for tips for making a job share work.

Pick the right partner. Before committing to a job share be sure that your work styles and work ethic are in sync. Neither partner wants to get stuck with a partner unwilling to pull their weight. Take time to assess your compatibility.

Communication is key. Job share partners must be excellent communicators. Consider a nightly check-in to debrief each other so that partners can hit the ground running in the a.m.

Create overlap. Design your work week to ensure that you and your partner share one day of office overlap. Schedule important meetings on your shared day and use the day to fine-tune synergies.

Make your case. Show your manager (and your other colleagues) that your collaboration allows the company to retain two excellent employees, who can in fact, perform the job better than one individual.

For more information on job sharing, as well as profiles of job share partners and how they make it work, read The Sustainable Side of Job Sharing.

Do you have share a job? How do you and your partner make job sharing work? What are some pitfalls to avoid? Share your thoughts here and at the Pendaflex Facebook page.

by Bradley Eggers

Managing Part-Time Employees

Community Manager — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 17:56:00 GMT

Seasonal employees, sub-contractors, freelancers, job-share workers: a growing sector of employment in the U.S. is part-time. Adding part-time workers allows companies to meet demand without sending payroll costs ballooning, but also creates management challenges. We like Inc.com's take on how to do it right: 7 Tips for Managing Part-Time Workers.

Tips include:

Write a proper job description. When an employee is part-time, it's even more critical to have clear expectations. Spell out responsibilities clearly.

Task part-timers with projects rather than open-ended assignments. Not all work is suited to part-time attention. Discrete, straightforward tasks are best suited to part-timers; save ongoing or service assignments for staff that is on the clock for the entire workweek.

Don't treat part-time employees as second-class citizens. Include all employees in important announcements and office functions and take pains to demonstrate that all employees are valued contributors, no matter their schedule.

Communication is key. Be clear that if emergencies pop-up, part-timers may need to be contacted during off hours. Be sure to have contact numbers and e-mails for such an occasion. Also, schedule regular office meetings during employees "on" days so lines of communication can remain open.

Finally, be open-minded about what part-time employees can offer. Managerial, as well as more junior roles, can often be handled part-time if a company and employee are willing to think creatively about how to structure a position.

How do you fold part-time workers into your staff? Share your thoughts here and at the Pendaflex Facebook page.