how to ask about flexibility in an interview?

hiltyn78

I currently have an ok job.  I don't love it.  I don't hate it (mostly).  I do, however, despise the lack of flexibility.  I work for a small privately owned company.  My boss is the "owner" (he also has other investors) so what he says goes.  I get that.  I just mistakenly thought that this would indicate a  wee bit more flexibility.  In fact, in my interview, my boss said "family comes first.  I get that.  We'll work with you as things come along."  Ok, I obviously misunderstood what that meant.  Fast forward a year.  My sitter's husband has emergency surgery and has been in a coma for 2+ weeks.  Needless to say, we scrambled and found back up child care.  However, our backup will only watch kids from 8-5 which are my exact hours.  I asked my boss if I could work 7:30 to 4:30 for about a week and a half.  He said no.  I asked for 3 days, then 1 day and he said No.  He said I could use up my PTO and take a half day if I needed to leave early.  Thanks.  I got the same BS answer of "if i let you, I have to let everybody." Everyone else in my lab is pissed on my behalf.  (all men).  It's 30 minutes.  I'm not trying to stiff him out of it, I'm not trying to do it forever. 

This is just one little tiny thing that is frustrating to me.  I'm just keeping my options open for future jobs.  So anyway, I obviously made a short story long.  Is there an acceptable way to find out about flexibility during an interview so that I (& a potential employer) do not waste each other's time?  I don't want to come off as a slacker who needs to leave early all the time b/c my kid has a hangnail but as a working parent, I need a little more flexibility than I needed prior to having a child.  Thankfully my husband's boss is great so he works short weeks in the office and finishes up his work as needed at night.

FOR THE RECORD, I'm not asking for MORE flexibility relative to my coworkers, just trying to find a more overall flexible work environment.

thanks

Pesky

It's tough to ask in an interview without coming across as a slacker unfortunately.  I have always asked the interviewer to describe a typical day for them and what they thought would be a typical day for the position.  I can usually gauge the flexibility accordingly.  And I've found that if the work environment IS flexible, it tends to get mentioned at some point, as it is a selling point.

wheelenl

I would say the best way to figure it out without asking directly would be asking the manager about the company's culture, and then also asking about his/her management style. That should tell you a lot. Even at a family-friendly company, some bosses are more flexible than others. I've been lucky enough that at my last two jobs I knew my boss in advance of taking the job (my industry is small) and so I knew exactly what I was getting into.

riables12

I wouldn't ask about flexibility until you are offered the job. 

Mrs Lou

I've been in your shoes, I was offered a job with a company that was voted "family friendly" by the area chamber, however, I ended up in trouble for using sick leave with my child...1 am talking 103 and up fevers...so no I wasn't really making it up that my child was sick...I have found it depend on who you are as my boss would bring her dog and sick kid to work and come in late and forth.......:( but good luck in finding a flexible position...i haven't found one yet as to why I am still at home

shouldbworkin

I think you can get a general feel for it through the interview process, up to and including the offer letter.  So, I say go in and interview like you want the job and worry about flexibility after there's been an offer.  Once you get the offer, see if the hours are included in the offer letter.  Talk to the recruiter/HR about the flexibility of those hours.  If the offer comes in lower than what you'd like, see if you can use that to get you some flexibility that you need. 

mysticporter

Most jobs with flexibility advertise them as such, or push it as a perk during the interview process.  I don't think there's a way to really ask to get the information you need without it coming across poorly in an interview type setting...after all, your current boss indicated flexibility, and apparently misdirected you, without pushing hard to pin him down on the details of what that meant (which wouldn't be appropriate in an interview setting) I don't think anything would have changed.  If it's a larger firm you could ask to speak to human resources, most larger companies have specific policies on leave/hours/etc. and I don't think it's inappropriate to ask to speak to HR to get the policies ahead of time.

The only way I've found to get the real bottom line is talking to potential coworkers at the new place.  It's not common or possible in some lines of work (you have to play it by ear if it seems appropriate), but if there's a way for you to meet with some of them, they can give you the real 'way it is'.

kcox123

I don't know what kind of work you do so it's hard to me to gauge what you could ask..but the job I have now (3rd year in) I asked point blank at the interview if they would be flexible with me regarding my young child(ren). I asked if I was going to have to do stuff in the evenings if I could come in late in the morning or take a long lunch during the day.. I asked if I would have any trouble attending my kid's daycare holiday parties during the days.. I asked if I would be able to stay home with sick kids as needed and answer emails from home (as long as it didn't become a chronic pattern)... I basically just laid out exactly what I was looking for because the only reason I was even looking to switch jobs was for more flexibility and so I figured there was no point in being vague or beating around the bush.

I knew we seemed to mesh well from the interview but I was still a little surprised when I was offered the job. It's a fairly high-paying cushy gig and they let me leave to do stuff with my kids whenever no questions asked. I do work my butt off for them and I do a great job and during our busy season I put in a lot of evenings... But it really is crazy how accomodating they are... All this and I even told them in the interview that I would be having more children (I only had 1 then) and they said they would appreciate me trying to consider our busy season but that they realize these things can't always be perfectly timed. So far, I have managed to have my pregnancies very-well timed so that my maternity leave doesn't conflict with our busy season.

Some people might be offended by some of the discussions we have (like asking me to time my pregnancies, etc.) but honestly - I am given so much flexibility and latitude and paid so well... I would rather just have these conversations straight-up than tip-toe around the issues...

hiltyn78

WOW!  Good for you for asking for it all up front.  In hindsight, I wish I'd done a better job.  There were a lot of fishy things about my interview (ie only my boss interviewed me, no one else).