Restructuring Work-Life Balance

As the famous saying goes, balance is not something that you find, it is something that you create. In order to decipher this balance and create one, the three eminent panellists—Ms. Soonu Wadewala, Senior Vice President, Axis Securities Ltd; Mr. Subhadeep Khan, Chief Human Resources Officer, BALCO and Mr.Pradyumna Pandey, Chief Human Resources Officer, Mother Dairy Fruit & Vegetable Pvt. Ltd, expounded on restructuring a work-life balance.

Khan described work-life balance as "worklife integration rather than worklife segregation. This integration includes freedom to do personal work as well as work from home. " He explained how the peers with whom an employee shares a workspace have the potential to increase his/her happiness quotient. He said that the emerging trend of '4-5 day work culture' will make work more productive as it will cut the extra 2-3 hours of daily travel in metro cities.

When asked regarding hybrid as a new work culture, Wadewala replied that going hybrid should not be driven by COVID, rather it should be because of the purpose. This purpose should find a balance between business and employee’s purpose. She went on to say that her organisation follows the "Spiderman mantra," which states that "with great power comes great responsibility. She added that instilling responsibility in leaders to make happy homes is key, as treating the employees right will ensure they return home in a happy mood. Its ripple effect will further lead to a happy society.

"The perceived outcome of a work-life balance is that when an employee clocks into the office, he/she should be in a happy mind to achieve better engagement, which will yield more productivity. I want to reverse it and ensure that even after office hours, he/she is happy, " said Pandey. Moreover, he conveyed that creating an inclusive organisation with a transparent ecosystem along with motivation driven by leadership behaviour will truly ensure work-life balance.