‘I was stationary, burning fossil fuel when I could have been working from home’
After millions began working from home during the pandemic, companies are having to reconsider where and when people do their jobs. Aerospace and security company Lockheed Martin UK, whose Rotary and Mission Systems division is based in Havant, is leading
Like so many people these days, Emlyn Taylor has got accustomed to working from home. But a few weeks ago the managing director of Lockheed Martin UK’s Rotary and Mission Systems division went into the offices at Havant.
He recalls: ‘It’s an 11-mile journey and as I sat in traffic on the M27, I glanced at my laptop bag on the passenger seat.
‘The irony was not lost on me. I was stationary, burning fossil fuel when I could have been using my time more wisely working from home.’
Emlyn adds: ‘Before Covid I would have done that journey every day.
‘Today the thought pattern has changed. It was really bad for the planet that 600 people every day got up, had their shower and their breakfast and then got in their cars and drove to Havant, sat at their screens and then drove home again.
‘Now that more people are working from home or only coming in on certain days, it means that I can spend less money on office space and heating or cooling it.
‘We have a smaller but a better working environment and where we can save costs in one area of the business we can invest in creating a collaborative space.
‘We will never say to people that you must come back to the office unless there is a mission imperative.
‘Every decision we make is done via survey. These decisions aren’t made in the boardroom.
‘On the topic of hybrid working we canvassed the team and urged them to discuss it with their managers, who came back to share the data with us.
‘It allowed us to understand the needs of our people, who are the heartbeat of our business.
‘I hope it will become the new normal, not just in the difficult times we’ve been facing because of Covid but in the future too.’
Before the pandemic, Lockheed Martin already had an initiative called LM Forward, which was looking at the way people work.
Meanwhile since 2016 it had been offering a 9/75 working pattern, where people did a four-day week every other week and made up the 75-hour total on other days.
Emlyn explains: ‘It is all part of a growth mindset.
Is what we did yesterday applicable to tomorrow?
‘But there’s no doubt Covid has been a catalyst for change.’
In April Lockheed
Martin again led the way by introducing the optional four-day week every week, with no work on Fridays.
Emlyn says: ‘It’s not just a four-day week but a four-day flex. After discussion with your direct manager, you can do your hours at any time in those four days.
‘If you need to go and collect the children from school at 3pm each day, then you can.
‘Or you might want to work early in the morning and then later in the evening - that’s also fine.
‘Although a lot of our people now work from home, we have also made sure that anybody who still wants a desk at work can have one and if they want to carry on working five days a week not four, then they can.
‘Flexibility sounds great, but maybe it’s not for you.
‘It is all aimed at work-life balance and getting the best out of everybody. I hope it helps people’s wellbeing.’
He adds: ‘What a strange thing when you think about it. For many years people like me were telling others to work core office hours.
‘Surely a much better way of doing it is to let direct managers have conversations with our people, be it about hours or location, to allow them to be the best versions of themselves.
‘For instance software engineers used to come into the office, put on their headphones, do their coding and then go home.
‘Now they do it from wherever is the best place for them.’
‘For some people, having time to themselves allows them to focus and concentrate on a task.
‘But there are times when collaboration is needed. That’s why we offer full flexibility.’
Emlyn is proud to work for a company that thinks in such an innovative way.
‘Our best asset is our people and we want to attract and retain the very best.
‘Lockheed Martin makes sure its salaries are competitive, but it’s about the whole package. We’re employing people’s grey matter.’
He adds: ‘A lot of people outside the business have said to me: ‘‘How can you trust your team to carry on working at home?’’
‘Well I think that any company that doesn’t trust its people has a big problem. We implicitly trust our team - they are helping to solve some of the nation’s biggest challenges.’
To find out more about Lockheed Martin
UK, go to https://www. lockheedmartin.co.uk
As part of a media partnership, this year The News has been featuring a series of articles about Lockheed Martin UK and the people who work there.