Adaptability &
Flexibility at Workplace
Adaptability & Flexibility –
An Introduction
Have you heard about how the Unilever, a British-Dutch conglomerate,
took over Ben & Jerry’s?
It’s a story of sheer courage of the CEO to show adaptability
TheBen andJerry were known for their best ice cream
flavors like Karamel Sutra, Chocolate Therapy and Imagine Whirled
Peace
TheCEO, in fact, preserved those intangible assets while
introducing company’s own managerial controls
The culture change within the acquisition brought about many challenges
and those who adapted to those changes survived
Define
Adaptability
Adaptability is the nature of changing or create modifications in oneself to suit
to the new environment
For a workplace culture, it means that a person must be open to new ideas or
changes, must be able to work independently or in teams, or carry out tasks
that are not intended for one person only
Employers are increasingly shifting from single roles to rotation of roles and
flexible job descriptions
It’s a sought-after skill as it indicates the employee can adapt to changing
customer needs, technology trends
It is also tied to career growth as the person becomes more equipped
An adaptable person is someone who can carry out multiple tasks, manage
multiple assignments by setting priorities and making changes to attitude to
merge with the new culture
To function or perform in the world in any situation or circumstances requires
an individual to possess the basic skill of adaptability
Hence, the importance of adaptability gets stronger when there are
more
given opportunities
Importance of Adaptability in the
Workplace
Of all the skills that employers are looking out is
a person having adaptability
a core emotional intelligence quality
It is ranked the top among other important skills like communication, interpersonal
skills, work ethics and principles
1. Fit the Culture
An employer is interested to know if the candidate would fit into the
corporate culture well and who would be able to anticipate changes,
respond to it and make changes on a day to day basis
Every company has its own work and corporate culture that is strategically
important for their success
When hiring process is initiated, the employer looks not only on the
candidate’s skills and experience but whether he/she would blend
themselves with the culture of the company
1. Fit the Culture
What does cultural fit mean?
It means the willingness of the employee to adopt the company’s values
He/she must show their readiness
It also shows the company’s workstyles matches with the employee
During the interview session they are often questioned on their previous
experience of the work culture
2. Make or break deal
Showing adaptability is a feature that employers look out for and could
break the deal if not having them
So, make note that companies are not interested in the candidate if they
don’t show signs of adaptability to their culture or are not willing to come
out of their comfort zone in-spite of having a good experience and skill
sets
So, it can be seen that a company would not mind to hire a person who are
willing to fit into the culture of their company even if their skills are not
enough
What they mean to say is that skills are acquired only through training but
adaptability cannot be learned, it is an inbuilt nature of the person
3. More productive
Employing adaptable people who fit the culture of the company
brings success as they are productive
The job description would be a perfect fit for such people
Thesuccess rates are high during the first year of work
for a new employee if they fit the culture of the company
They know what to adopt and what ways to carry out their work that brings
more output
Employment and promotion opportunities is higher for
adaptable individuals as many other people lack these skills
4. Job Requirement
The adaptability nature is more needed when applying for management
positions
As managers are considered as leaders, they need to lead the team and
show them ways of adapting to the culture of the company
As the level of seniority goes up so does the expectation for fitting the
culture of the company
The hiring process is even stricter or stringent when making selection
of
senior level of management
So, care is taken so that there is no mistake of making the wrong selection
5. Highly valued
This category of people who adapt to cater to the needs of job rotation, working under
pressure, or taking up assignments that skill does not call for are highly valued
They also have the ability
to take decisions during crisis or emergencies
can deal with unpredictable work situations
approach new methods to accomplish a task
are considerate of other people’s views
can physically adjust to surrounding environment
are positive in nature
have confidence in the work they do
can handle stress
keep composed and focused on task during stressful situations
are innovative in solving problems
are considerate and value other people’s cultural background
Define Flexibility at Work
Flexibility at the workplace allows one to evaluate what is happening and
adjust to the role and responsibilities or even the job being offered
It is very important for the employer and employee to be flexible as it
creates a streamlined workforce and technology adopted, due to changes
in the market
There are various other factors when we talk about the word ‘flexible’ at
work and the importance of flexibility
1. Open to trend
This attitude shows that either the employer or the employee is willing to
take their chances and wade through
Their mind is ready for adapting to change that is about to come and take
on the challenges
They respond well to the changes quickly
2. Not rigid in thoughts
People who are flexible can be approached easily as they would accept
the changes ready to implement them
They do not show rigidity in accepting the views
Having workplace flexibility skills allows for pushing through changes that
are inevitable
3. Adjusting to situations
These people can easily adjust to the situation they encounter
They know how to adjust and what to do
They can be relied on when assigned with new projects. It’s futile in
showing resistance to change as it will only cause undue stress
Such employees are ready to take assignments other than what their role
was meant to be
4. Effective problem solving
As these people would have faced many situations that forced them to take
the call for making changes within their system or attitude, they seem to
be effective in finding solutions to problems
In fact, they know where to look for in case of any problems
5. Able to negotiate
Having flexible team members would definitely bring in negotiation at ease
Their outlook on the aspect of negotiation is easily identified
They seem to know which portfolio to take into consideration to make that
negotiation work out best
6. Work under pressure
There could be times when the company may not be performing well and
need to downsize their payroll
These people come to the rescue as they can handle pressure or work
load
Their skills might not fit but as they show the willingness to take up
those additional roles
7. Ability to listen
Being more open to changes is a sign that shows the person has ability to
listen other views
An important part of communication is listening
Having a flexible attitude means the person will be willing to give their ears
to others views
8. Able to communicate
As changes are the cause for making one to be flexible, they learn the art
of communication
They are adept in this art that no one can beat them
The exposure of such people is enormous due to their experience in
various fields which brings in more knowledge converting to
communications
9. Acknowledging others view
This category of people is prone to the difference of opinions and views
To cater to the change that is needed they know that being
able to understand others views is a sign of acknowledgement
So, acknowledgement is a good attitude
10. Allows
expanding
It is always seen that employees who adapt themselves or are flexible to
the changes have more chances of achieving success
Their willingness to learn the concepts and adopt new trends that go
beyond their skills and experience brings in many changes within the
business and henceforth the success of the business
These employees are always considered to be valuable assets as they
embrace change
11. Able to learn
Changes bring in new concepts to be learnt
Having this attitude of showing flexibility at the workplace would instigate
the employee to learn
As their mind is open to absorb the changes, learning is not difficult for
them
They have the initiative to find ways of learning the new concepts and
become the expert in it
12. Balancing work with family
Gone are those days when the employee can relax with their family after
working hours
Now they can take care of their family as well if they know to embrace the
changes in technology and use it to balance their work too
The fine line between work and family is maintained
13. More productive
This attitude of being flexible allows a person to handle tasks with ease as
they learn the techniques easily thereby making them productive
Having this attitude brings in more chances for exploring
opportunities
other
The person when having exposure to technology becomes
productive
14. Optimistic
Flexible people are often most wanted in the company as they have that
attitude of never saying no for an answer
They can fit themselves well into the group and that itself shows they have
a positive outlook
The positive nature is appreciated
15. Diversity valued
With the globalization of many businesses,there is an
interchange of cultures with varied interests
Having a mind to accommodate the diversified culture,
employers are ready to identify the needs and address them too
Care is taken to see that interaction is smooth
Managing diversity in the workplace is very important
16. Use the different way of
approach
They usually don’t approach an issue or problem the conservative
way
They know how to look at the problem to arrive at the solution
The way of approaching is quite different and unique
17. Accommodate job
rotation
Having a flexible approach, employers motivate such people
withthe rotation of jobs to give a chance for job enrichment
Not only skills are enhanced but also demonstrates for taking
up supervisory roles
Job rotation makes one to shift from one job to another periodically making
them more valuable in the eyes of the employer and future employers
18. Shows confidence
Flexible nature shows that you are confident in the work that you are taking
up
You are sure that you can handle risks that would be associated with it
19. Scheduling
Now employers could show they are flexible with the schedule to benefit
the employees and keep them happy
Making life easier for them would definitely enhance the productivity
20. Able to
transcend
Its willingness to transcend that a person is considered to be flexible
Sticking to the old ways of working will not allow an individual to move
forward
Routine tasks or predetermined set of tasks can be done
automation
through
But value-added tasks like problem-solving requires input from
individuals
Advantages of Application of
the Training
According to a research on flexibility and adaptability at work –
A higher level of emotional intelligence helps people to adopt
to new changes easily
People who are adaptable have more chances of having
better job satisfaction
In the long term there forms a link between adaptability
and job performance
THANK YOU!
