Not necessarily!
We have a flexible working policy and we want people to use it. It’s not a list of rules and regulations; more a set of guidelines for individuals and managers so they have the freedom to look at flexible working patterns and what might work best for individuals, teams and Hiscox more generally.
Nearly all of our flexible working requests have been approved in full, with a fair few individuals and some whole teams breaking out of the regular Monday to Friday, nine to five routine.
Here’s what a few of our employees had to say about their working patterns:
Andrew Sellers, Group Head of Claims Supplier Management, London:
“My team has been working virtually for around 18 months now. We all chose to do away with our old permanent desks, each of us works from home one day per week and everyone is in regular contact via phone, VC or WhatsApp in between our weekly face-to-face meeting in London. Like any relationship, we’ve had to work at it, but it’s worth it for the work life balance.”
Tanny Prophile, Senior Financial Analyst, White Plains NY:
“I work four days per week in the White Plains office and one day from my home office. This working pattern has helped me with creating a work/life balance. I actually have a few minutes to myself after I get the kids to school in the morning and before I log on to the computer. I’m home to greet my kids when they get off the bus in the evening and I get to hear about their day before it’s all forgotten.”
Chris Davies, Sales Operations Manager, Colchester:
“In March 2017 I moved to a four day week, with Monday as my day off. My wife and I felt that a flexible working pattern was the right thing for various reasons; she was returning to work from maternity leave and we didn’t want our two children in nursery more than three days a week. A four day week allows us each to have a day with our children whilst also balancing the needs of our individual careers.”
Sandra Hopp, Marketing specialist, Germany:
“I work Monday-Thursday 9am to 2pm and work from home on a Tuesday. I have more time for my family, getting things done at home and for myself. In particular, the day I work from home is great because I don’t have the time pressure to catch the train and I am more flexible with my work because I do not have to ‘drop my pen’ at 2pm. Right now, as I write this, it is Tuesday 2.19pm.”
