“Flexibility is the new compensation.”

Troy Chapdelaine
Managing Director of Strategic Recruiting Solutions
BGSF
.…on how job candidates are bringing up hybrid and flex workplace arrangements in interviews before they even mention compensation.

The Dallas Regional Chamber conducted a Future of Work survey of its members in May to better understand the workplace arrangements of companies across the Dallas region. One key finding from DRC member BGSF: Job candidates are prioritizing hybrid and flexible workplaces above all else when considering their next post.

“In our work with job candidates across numerous industries, we’re seeing that flexibility is the new compensation,” Chapdelaine told the DRC. “Candidates are asking about hybrid and flexible work arrangements in interviews before they bring up compensation—though they still expect strong compensation, in addition to great company culture with career advancement opportunities.”

Still, workers don’t have quite as much power as they did in the last couple of years, when COVID and an ultra-tight labor market changed the game, says Jessica Heer, the DRC’s SVP of marketing and talent attraction. 

“In the Great Resignation, we watched talent take more power in the hiring and talent retention landscape,” Heer said in a post. “The exodus trend continues, but it’s much lower than the height in 2021. In the aftermath of the Great Resignation, workers still have heightened expectations, but we’re starting to see a shift.”

Flexible work still rules

DRC’s 2023 Future of Work survey indicated 85% of respondents are offering flexible work schedules, along with hybrid and remote work. “In most cases (38%), hybrid working arrangements are determined at the team level, though company-led schedules are close behind (31%),” the DRC said.

Employers’ in-office requirements are on the rise, however. According to CBRE Group’s spring 2023 U.S. Office Occupier Sentiment Survey, 65% of employers are requiring some level of in-office work, the DRC noted, while 40% are looking to increase their office attendance requirements.

That includes companies like AT&T, which recently announced plans to have managers return to the office.

“This is a trend to watch,” Heer said in the post. “By AT&T joining the rise of in-office work, we’ll likely see more companies start to follow suit and increase their in-office work expectations for employees, and we know from CBRE’s data that 67% of employers are placing more importance on quality of the working environment than they did pre-pandemic.”

You can read the full DRC post by going here.

For more of who said what about all things North Texas, check out Every Last Word.

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