B2 – Upper Intermediate
Some believe that the best way to get the most out of employees is to allow them to do ”chronoworking”. This basically means you let them choose the work hours that best suits their biological clocks.
Read the article about what asynchronous working can do to workers’ productivity.
https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20240220-chronoworking-productivity-hack
Vocabulary Questions:
- What does “knock-on effect” mean? “Allowing staff to work when they’re at their best could boost performance and wellbeing, with a knock-on positive effect on employee retention.” Use this word in a sentence and give a synonym.
- What does “to level the playing field” mean? “The approach has the added benefit of normalising flexible hours for parents or those with other responsibilities that make it tricky to stick to 9-to-5 restrictions, she adds. It levels the playing field.” Use this idiom in a sentence and give a synonym.
- What does “chronotype” mean? “Originally coined by journalist Ellen C Scott, chronoworking enables employees to ditch standard office hours and pick schedules that match their personal “chronotypes” instead.” Use this term in a sentence.
Discussion Questions:
- How is chronoworking beneficial to employees and companies alike?
- What might the downsides be of asynchronous work?
- What do you personally think about this work approach?
- When do you think are you most productive during the day and why is that?
- Do you think your company could afford to implement this approach? Why or why not?
- Share your thoughts on this, “It’s nonsensical that we all need to be working together all at one time. You get far more out of people if you operate around different chronotypes.”.