London,
10
September
2014
|
06:16
Europe/London

CIPR launches nine recommendations for enabling flexible working in public relations

The Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) – the UK’s professional body for public relations practitioners – has launched a new ‘Flexible Working and Public Relations’ guide as part of its policy work on gender balance and equal pay.

The 28-page guidance, which positions flexible working as a business management issue for all public relations practitioners and teams, offers nine recommendations for enabling flexible working in PR:

  1. Create an open process to consider flexible working requests
  2. State required work hours — flexible or otherwise — in staff contracts
  3. Embrace technology and invest in it
  4. Set rules and expectations for out-of-office contact
  5. Establish a BYOD (bring your own device) policy
  6. Encourage communication
  7. Establish and encourage a flexible working structure
  8. Set an example and lead ‘people-centric’ organisations
  9. Acknowledge that there isn’t one way of working for all

Also contained within the guide is legal, business and HR advice which details the extension of the right to request flexible working, which came in to law from 30 June 2014, as part of the Children and Families Act 2014.

Other features of the guide include:

  • employer-focused case studies (featuring Telefonica UK (O2), Stripe Communications, and more)
  • employee-focused case studies
  • useful links, resources and tools.

Flexible working has also been further supported for CIPR members by the Institute announcing a partnership with NearDesk, a service that will allow members to rent workspace by the hour at locations around the UK.

Sarah Hall FCIPR, CIPR Board member and Owner of Sarah Hall Consulting, who has led this work during 2014
Promoting, guiding and supporting flexible working in public relations is just one route to counter the fact that in senior management roles the industry is losing talented women at an alarming rate, generally at about the time they reach their thirties and attempt to juggle family life with the demands of modern-day practice. Gender aside, public relations is recognised as an ‘always on’ profession, and every practitioner deserves to have working practices that reflect this and support the needs of both workers and clients. This document is a starting point for management staff looking to create a forward-thinking team that has high morale, strong retention and is fit for the future, and within are nine practical recommendations to put flexible working in to practice. Flexible working requires a significant culture change. The results can be dramatic in terms of reducing churn, increasing productivity, and the impact on the bottom line. With this in mind, why wouldn’t you want to adopt it?
Sarah Hall FCIPR, CIPR Board member and Owner of Sarah Hall Consulting, who has led this work during 2014
Notes to editors

Notes to editors

About the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR)Founded in 1948, the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) is the Royal Chartered professional body for public relations practitioners in the UK and overseas. The CIPR is the largest membership organisation for PR practitioners outside of North America. By size of turnover and number of individually registered members, we are the leading representative body for the PR profession and industry in Europe.

The CIPR advances professionalism in public relations by making its members accountable to their employers and the public through a code of conduct and searchable public register, setting standards through training, qualifications, awards and the production of best practice and skills guidance, facilitating Continuing Professional Development (CPD), and awarding Chartered Public Relations Practitioner status (Chart.PR).

 
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