​Agencies have done lots to adopt flexible work over the past three years. But have they done enough in terms of role flexibility, part-time work and job sharing?

Our agency-side consultant, Larisa Todd, thinks not and there are so many untapped benefits agencies could use.

With the changing nature of work across all industries, Larisa has noticed a number of marketing professionals looking to work a 3-day work week. So why don’t agencies look at this as an opportunity for business growth and development?

Larisa has recently placed senior marketers on 3-day work week contracts which offers a fantastic balance for working parents. This is a huge change from previous years and shows the demand for marketers wanting 3-4 day opportunities, especially those with valuable experience.

There is also a demand for 3-day work weeks for brand, advertising, PR and media agency consultants. Larisa has placed consultants in these roles and sees how it’s a win win for all parties. Consultants are challenged, help younger talent develop and are feel valuable within the team. In a growing agency, this type of talent is invaluable to support their client’s business.

Should agency land be reviewing their employment criteria?

There are a variety of options agencies can consider. These include:

Job Share

With two employees working a 3day or 2.5day working week, this is particularly valuable to benefit from experienced agency talent. Often, a Wednesday cross-over day is ideal. Even though you’re playing for a 6-day work week, it could be worthwhile if KPIs are in place and the account is growing and successful. In this case, the benefits far outweigh the initial costs.

3-day work week

Senior Account Director/Group Account Director could work 3days with a supportive and collaborative team to help on the SAD/GADs days off. This provides growth opportunities for more junior team members to take on more responsibility.

Senior talent in part-time roles are well-suited to agencies that need a mentor for the team to help growth the business and it’s talent.

4-day work week

When 3-days isn’t an option, many marketers looking for part-time work would happily consider a 4-day work week. Larisa envisions situations where talent are paid 4.5days knowing that the 5th day they may need to do a quick call, reply to emails and be available. Being paid the 5th day accounts for senior responsibilities where there may need to be available to their team or clients. Agencies still benefit too as they don’t need to pay a full-time salary.

There is a clear need for agencies to foster sustainable careers for agency talent in an industry that often sees high rates of burnout and thus talent leaving to work client-side later in their careers. Why waste the agency talent you’ve invested in when they could make fantastic part-time mentors, team leaders and consultants?

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