Work-Life Integration: Redefining Boundaries in the Modern Era

The shifting landscape

The existing concept of work-life balance, where an employee seeks to keep both aspects separate but finely balanced to accommodate their needs, has been replaced by the newer concept of work-life integration. This is where there is an acknowledgement and a realization that these things cannot always be kept separate and that they are not two contiguous, but interwoven, aspects.

This created a situation where employees have been able to get used to arranging work around their life, instead of entirely the other way around. This has changed expectations, and the way that employees see work. In some cases it has changed the way they value work.

And this matters because if we try to force employees back into a more collective experience and contractual relationship, when they have gotten used to a much more personalized approach, we could wreck the employment relationship completely.

What is work-life integration?

The concept of work-life balance is a familiar one to many leaders and HR professionals. It recognizes that employees need to be aware of how one can affect the other, and to seek balance between the two. It was a great start point to understand the employee experience, but it was never the end point – it has evolved to consider more work-life integration. This concept works on the basis that the two cannot be kept separate, that there are ways to seamlessly blend one’s personal and professional requirements.

It may sound like a similar concept, but the differences come in that work-life balance as a concept is quite rigid – keep both aspects separate, but occasionally touching. Work-life integration is a much more fluid and flexible concept, recognizing that no two days may be the same, and that the best laid plans (etc) may need to be changed to accommodate the unforeseen.

What has changed this? The continued rise of hybrid working has highlighted the need for the concept to be embraced and the rapid development of artificial intelligence and other technology that has facilitated more remote working and other efficiency realization has also helped. Plus, employee’s own values have been shaped over recent years because of the experiences we have collectively had during times like the pandemic. Work is much more personalized now.

The evolution of boundaries

Personalizing work, for hybrid workers, could mean greater freedom over when and where to work. For many, this will mean difficulty unplugging from work and setting the proper boundaries between work and home.

Overworking can be an issue. Not having to leave an onsite location because everyone else is, or because the site is closing, or to catch a train or bus, may mean that there is less incentive for ceasing work. Allied to this is the ease of doing work remotely from one’s own home, surrounded by the right environment and creature comforts. The lack of a strong signal to stop work may mean that some would simply continue to work. They may also be tempted to work longer because that might mean generating better results, or because of a fear that the remote workers manager may equate being remote with lower productivity.

There can be further issues with the devices used to perform work. When work is done through a screen, that screen can be accessed anywhere and remains in the hybrid workers’ home even when not being actively used. If the home is where work happens, then work is delivered there via the device. Sometimes that same device is also a personal one, though not always. Regardless, the intrusions from notifications and temptation to use apps is a real and often strong one.

The evolution of work-life integration is a double-edged sword. But hybrid working in a general sense offers the opportunity to dismantle traditional views on the working week, as well as where, and how, work is done. Moving to an outcome-based way of measuring productivity and performance will help employees to consider work-life integration with less pressure.

Work-life integration – why and how?

There is more and more data that shows that organizations who do not offer flexibility, and therefore the chance to achieve better work-life integration, suffer engagement and retention issues. Therefore, it follows that those organizations that do offer flexibility should reap the rewards from doing so. But how could they help their employees to do this better?

Here are some suggestions. Some are for the employee themselves to put in place, and others that require the organization to take a lead:

• If there are others in the remote workplace, they could be asked to help the hybrid worker to stop working. If these other people can be connected to an event or activity, such as going out somewhere, this can prompt a proper disconnection from work
• Going for a walk or some other form of physical activity can help to create the same effect as a commute at the start and/or end of the day, as well as giving the opportunity for a break and reconnection with others in the middle of the day
• Turning off notifications on work apps or devices when not working can be a helpful step to avoid being drawn back into work and away from personal matters
• Where possible, a separate workspace at home that can be closed off when not working will create something of a physical barrier and reduce temptation to resume working once stopped for the day
• Working out the body’s natural circadian rhythms. Some people are more energetic and focused in the morning, and others in the evening. Some have completely different rhythms, so working with them to find a more appropriate working pattern may improve their productivity and allow them to better fit their work around their personal life
• Giving explicit permission for remote and hybrid workers to undertake personal tasks during the traditional working day might mean that they can consciously schedule time to do such things and let their work flow around them, reducing the chance that these tasks will distract them whilst working
• Talking with a remote and hybrid worker about what their home environment looks like and how to minimize distractions whilst enabling them to lead a fulfilling personal life is a helpful step
• Adopt the principle of “leaving loudly” whether onsite or remotely (via internal social media channels) so that immediate colleagues know that an individual remote or hybrid worker is not available.

Can we achieve harmony?

The key to successful work-life integration lies in collaboration between employers and employees. Both need to be actively involved, or it could fail badly. It is a joint effort. Leaders themselves need to champion work-life integration and lead by example so that it becomes part of the culture. But if work and life can co-exist is harmony (and note that this will mean different things to different people), we are more likely to achieve personal fulfilment as well as organizational success.