Southern Rail: the true cost of the commute
With real life stories emerging of professionals losing job opportunities due to the Southern Rail strike saga, we examine the true cost of travelling to and working in London.
A London based company of 20 people is paying on average, £144,000 per year in desk costs*
*calculated on £600 per desk
Most companies accept this is the price to pay for doing business in London as the capital attracts talent and customers. There is however a real struggle with recruiting quality staff in London. 43% of SME’s have difficulty recruiting the staff they need with no end in sight.
A hefty commute deters experienced professionals juggling childcare responsibilities. This piece on the war for talent shows the rise of the self-employed despite being paid less and working longer hours. The sell for these professionals is they gain flexibility, including getting rid of commuting which often feels like lost time.
Our Head of Marketing Kathryn Wright talks about her personal journey:
“I want to have an exciting career but my home is two hours away. Do I really have to choose between one or the other? It seems a waste for a company and for me”
Structured correctly, flexible working gives businesses access to the whole of the UK market (and in some circumstances, the world).
“We work really hard on integrating someone culturally into a business. This process happens naturally when we sit side by side but a little extra legwork is needed without that face to face interaction”. says Wright.
The cost efficiency for some businesses is hard to deny. Grant Thornton, UBS and BLP are just a few corporations who have closed or consolidated London offices to promote flexible working. Immediately large overheads are reduced and joint research for Vodafone and RSA showed a reported 83% increase in productivity when flexible working is implemented.
Juggle.Jobs a SAAS based platform helping businesses to find and manage flexible workers, challenging traditional methods of recruitment.
Juggle.Jobs’ CEO Romanie Thomas believes it is all about handing freedom to workers.
“High-quality professionals want to work hard and do a great job but they need the space to perform. Your best employees are likely those who don’t embrace traditional methods.”
She acknowledges the benefit of collecting people together but questions the need for this to be an everyday scenario:
“We opted for a London office base but a number of people come in only once a week. We have to work harder at culture and communication sure, but once it works — it really works”.
Do you have a key hire that could be done flexibly? Schedule a call with us here today to explore this further.
About Juggle.Jobs
We are aiming to ensure 50% of business leaders are female by creating a working environment where professionals no longer need to choose between home and work — they can have both. Support us today via our crowdfunding campaign.
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