freedom-to-grow_handbook

FREEDOM TO
GROW
A guide to making it happen

2
AECOM

CONTENTS
1. Context: What is Freedom to Grow
and how can I get involved?
2. Food for thought: Some possible
scenarios to get you thinking
3. Four simple steps to making it happen
4. Having a Freedom to Grow conversation
5. Tackling perceived barriers
6. How to escalate
AECOM 3

Section 1
CONTEXT
4
AECOM

What is Freedom to Grow
and how can I get involved?
AECOM 5

Section 1
What is Freedom to Grow?
Our strategic plan is all about growth –
growing in our largest markets; ensuring our
clients engage us in a greater share of their
own growth; and perhaps most importantly
of all, making sure our people have the
opportunity and freedom to grow and achieve
their full potential at AECOM.
Freedom in this context ranges from choosing the time, place and
type of work we do, through to the workstyle we choose to deploy,
the way we communicate and think – all the way to choosing how we
be our ‘real selves’ at work.
We are inviting everyone to embrace a new found permission;
permission to determine what freedom you need in order to grow, to
develop, to innovate, to thrive and to be your true self.
The guiding principle to this entire journey is that if it works for your
client, your team and for you, it will work for AECOM and you have
the permission to get on and do it!
6
AECOM

AECOM 7

Section 1
So how can you get involved?
Have a conversation – it’s as simple as that.
Freedom to Grow is a philosophy and a culture change
journey - it is not a process, or a reinvented flexible working
policy. It’s a conversation between employees, managers
and teams that leads to positive action and ultimately a more
inclusive and free culture.
8
AECOM

There are no rules and regulations
surrounding Freedom to Grow – we want to
keep it simple and sustainable. Just think
about what would help you be free to grow
and where the possible barriers might be.
Then talk to your manager about it. The
tips and ideas in this guide will help both
employees and managers do this.
It might not always be easy to find a way
forward that works for everyone, but we want
to encourage open, positive and solutionfocused
conversations across our business.
We also want to drive culture change
together, and this may mean that both
employees and managers need to challenge
their thinking and ways of working.
If there are any barriers that you don’t feel
you can overcome, we invite you to get in
touch and tell us the details so we can help
to make this direction a reality. It may not be
immediate, or simple, but we are committed
to a long term shift in the level of freedom all
of our people enjoy.
The opportunities at AECOM are immense.
You have permission that if it works for your
client, your team and you, then it definitely
works for AECOM.
AECOM 9

Section 2
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
10
AECOM

Some possible scenarios
to get you thinking
AECOM 11

Section 2
This section is designed to get you thinking.
The Freedom to Grow journey is about
driving change in all areas of our culture
at AECOM. It’s not just about flexible work
patterns and the scenarios below will
hopefully give you food for thought and
spark ideas in your own mind about how
Freedom to Grow could help you.
This is not an exhaustive list – there will
be hundreds more!
12
AECOM

AECOM 13

Section 2
Time:
FREEDOM TO
BREAK THE 9 TO 5
14
AECOM

Sally works much better in the morning
and is at her least productive in the late
afternoon. She’d like to develop a pattern
where she starts work at 7.30am and
finishes a little earlier.
Antoni is working on a six-month multidisciplinary
project with teams in India.
He would therefore like to explore
shifting his pattern of work to starting
very early and finishing earlier, to align
with India’s time zone.
Karl would like to start work at 10:30am
and finish work later. This would allow
him to train for a triathlon that he
has in three months’ time.
Ben has just delivered to a deadline
which saw him working long days for
the last week. He’d like a chat about how
he can adapt his working pattern for
the following week, to allow him to look
after his wellbeing effectively.
Eloise has found a new gym class close to
the office that she really wants to attend.
The session is at 2.30pm. She’d like to
adjust her working pattern so that she
can join the class.
AECOM 15

Section 2
Place:
FREEDOM TO
CHOOSE WHERE
YOU WORK
16
AECOM

Andrey finds he needs to get out of the
office to really get his head down and work
on specific tasks. As such, he wants to have
the freedom to work from a local café when
he feels it’s needed.
Jan is going on holiday to Australia but
wants to take the opportunity to visit
colleagues in the AECOM office over there
for a couple of days.
James drives to work and the traffic
congestion in the mornings can create
significant delays and lost productive
time. James would like to establish a
pattern of working from home in the
morning and then travelling in once peak
traffic times have passed.
AECOM 17

Task:
FREEDOM TO
WORK DIFFERENTLY
18
AECOM

Stefan prefers to reflect on information
before making a decision but his team tends
to make decisions quickly, as part of team
meetings. He would like to find a way to be
part of this decision making process and
his manager is keen for him to contribute
more to team discussions. Stefan sees an
opportunity to redesign team meetings and
create some simple protocols that allow
everyone to have their voice heard.
To make sense of something, Caroline has
to draw it. She sees tasks visually and draws
diagrams to work things out and create
solutions. Her current project team requests
all inputs via spreadsheets which she finds
difficult. She’d like to explore with the project
director and team how her approach to
problem solving could be incorporated into
the project team’s activity.
Adriana finds she sees the connections
between things easily. She can see lots
of opportunities to streamline and reduce
duplication on the project she is working on
and would like the opportunity to play to this
strength and explore ways her ideas might
be put into practice.
AECOM 19

Section 2
Workstyle:
FREEDOM TO
PERFORM
20
AECOM

Lena finds music helps her concentrate
when working in the office. She wants to
use headphones but there isn’t a culture of
this within the team. She’d like to work out a
way to do this and feel comfortable within
the team environment.
Farid finds emails a big distraction and
likes to shut Outlook for short periods
whilst working. He also finds Jabber really
distracting but feels there is pressure in
the team to reply immediately. He’d like to
work with his colleagues to find a way to
manage emails and Jabber so he can be
at his most productive.
Alan is new to AECOM, and finds there is
a culture in his team of eating lunch at the
desk and not taking breaks. Alan doesn’t find
this workstyle productive for him and would
prefer to take a short break at lunch. He’d like
to work out a way to do this without causing
issues for himself within the team.
AECOM 21

Section 2
Communicating:
FREEDOM TO
COMMUNICATE
IN YOUR OWN WAY
22
AECOM

Anna tends to think out loud and likes to
share thoughts and ideas with colleagues
immediately. This can be distracting for
the team and Anna is conscious of this.
However she sees opportunities to increase
innovation in the team by bouncing ideas
around a bit more. She has some simple
ideas for how to do this and wants to discuss
these with her manager and team.
Atif values detail and tends to need lots of
information to work effectively. His emails
reflect the level of detail he likes. His new
manager has a very different style and
prefers short, to-the-point communication.
Atif would like to work out a way with his
manager that allows him to play to his
strengths whilst providing the information his
manager needs in a way that is helpful.
Zoe really likes using Jabber to
communicate and uses the status options
in Jabber, including the Do Not Disturb
option. She only contacts others when their
status is ‘available’ but her manager often
messages her regardless of her status
which she can find stressful. She’d like to
work out a way with her manager that she
can keep using Jabber, without it negatively
impacting her and her work.
AECOM 23

Section 2
Thinking:
FREEDOM TO
PLAY TO YOUR
STRENGTHS
24
AECOM

Adam likes to think problems through in
a logical and sequenced way to arrive at
a solution. However, his manager often
operates on ‘gut feel’, getting straight to a
solution and then focussing on how it can be
implemented. Adam finds this difficult and
sometimes worries that not every option
has been considered. He’d like chat to his
manager about finding a way for both their
thinking styles to be accommodated.
Alexander has been working in the same
team for seven years and has developed lots
of experience in his field and market sector.
He can see how his skills and experiences
could be applied to different sectors and
markets and wants to explore how his career
at AECOM could take a different path and
provide him with a wider range of experience.
He’d like to talk to his manager about what
options there might be to do this.
Clara tends to asks lots of questions. This
helps her see the gaps in things and work out
where the opportunities are. However, she
knows her colleagues can read this thinking
and questioning style as criticism and she
sometimes avoids asking questions in order
not to offend others. Clara wants to find a
healthy way within the team that allows her
thinking style to be understood, embraced
and leaned on more, whilst also learning from
colleagues around her.
AECOM 25

Section 2
Being:
FREEDOM TO
BE YOURSELF
26
AECOM

Michael has a dry sense of humour and
deals with stressful situations by making
light of the situation. He sometimes feels
his use of humour is misunderstood by
others in his team and may cause offense.
He wants to be sensitive to the team but
also wants to feel he can be himself at
work. He’d like to find a way to discuss
this openly with his manager and team so
stressful and pressured situations are dealt
with helpfully for everyone.
Susanne has an informal working style
and this plays out in lots of ways, including
her use of language. As a recent graduate
she finds she talks differently to lots of her
more experienced colleagues and thinks
her manager struggles with this and it is
impacting how much time she gets to spend
with clients. Susanne understands the
need to be professional when interacting
with clients but wants to work with her
manager to find a way she can be herself,
without having to ‘put on’ a way of being
that isn’t natural to her.
Nada is a practising Muslim, working
alongside people who do not identify with
any religion. In general, she feels accepted
within the team but sometimes finds her
team don’t understand her commitments
during festivals such as Ramadan. Because
Ramadan means fasting from food and
drink, she often feels very tired in the late
afternoon and worries that her team don’t
have the patience for this. She’d like to chat
to her manager about how she can help her
team understand her faith better, so she
feels more able to be herself. She’d also like
to work out a work pattern during Ramadan
which allows her to remain productive whilst
also observing her faith.
AECOM 27

Section 3
FOUR SIMPLE
STEPS TO MAKING
IT HAPPEN
28
AECOM

So how do you actually put
this into practice? There are
four simple steps and no
forms to fill in.
AECOM 29

Section 3
1: THINK IT THROUGH
Review this guide and think
about how you could build
freedom into how you work
Come prepared ready
to discuss these with
your manager
Consider the potential
impacts this way of working
could have on you, your team
and your clients
30
AECOM

2: TALK IT THROUGH
Discuss ideas with
your manager
Talk through any potential
concerns you foresee
and suggest actions to
address these
Be open to suggestions,
take into account your role
requirements and consider
any specific challenges
AECOM 31

Section 3
3: MAKE IT HAPPEN
Ensure you clearly
understand your role
expectations, responsibilities
and performance measures
Proactively manage the
changes that working with
more freedom could bring to
your work and team dynamic
Identify and plan for
scenarios when business
needs may clash with working
with more freedom
Seek alternative ways
to effectively collaborate
with, contribute to, and
work with your team
Maintain regular and
effective communication
with all of your day to
day stakeholders
32
AECOM

4: KEEP TALKING
Review regularly with your
manager and your team to
determine what’s working
well and where there is
opportunity for improvement
Encourage honest feedback
and suggestions from
your key stakeholders
Be open to adjusting
your approach as
business, client and team
requirements change
To make Freedom to Grow
really work for you, it’s
important to initiate open
conversations with your
manager and your team.
As a manager it is crucial
that you are comfortable
with the solution and we
encourage you to keep
reviewing and discussing with
your team members.
AECOM 33

Section 4
HAVING A
FREEDOM TO GROW
CONVERSATION
34
AECOM

Advice for employees
and managers.
AECOM 35

Section 4
EMPLOYEES
If you’d like to chat with your manager about
Freedom to Grow, think about how you’d like
to approach the discussion.
Consider how you can clearly outline your ideas and the options
you’ve considered, and how you plan to address the question as
to whether the solution works for your client, your team and for
you. Like any open conversation, we’d expect healthy and honest
discussion – this may mean your ideas are challenged – that’s ok!
Think about how you can lay out your thoughts in a clear, logical and
considered way. Sometimes following the simple guide of ‘why, what,
how, where and when’ can help you do this.
36
AECOM

MANAGERS
If you’re a manager and a team member wants
to talk through possible options for changing
how they work, you are crucial in addressing
the key question of whether the options
work for the client, the team and the team
member themselves.
As a manager we want you to feel empowered to answer this
question honestly and challenge where you need to. Conversely,
we want to see our manager community challenge themselves
about how they can support employees in ways that they
perhaps haven’t done before. Like everything, we expect
these discussions to be all about balance.
Managers and employees can also consider how to share
Freedom to Grow stories with your team, including the benefits
and the challenges and how you’ve overcome these. Consider
also sharing Freedom to Grow success stories with your peers,
clients and your network – demonstrating the AECOM culture
to our client community is powerful and can differentiate
us as an employer of choice.
AECOM 37

Section 4
Tips and hints for having a Freedom to Grow conversation
STEP 1: THINKING IT THROUGH
Employee
Think about meeting style and location:
Depending on the topic and estimated time
you think you need, you could choose to
have a brief and informal conversation or, in
case the proposed change in your workstyle
will impact your work more significantly,
you may think about scheduling a time slot
in a location where you feel comfortable
and preferably won’t be disturbed. This
could be inside or outside the office,
e.g. in a park or coffee corner.
Be prepared: To make sure that your
manager is aware of the topic and you both
come prepared, we’d suggest contacting
your manager first with your thoughts and
ideas, and the kind of things you’d like to
discuss in more detail.
38
AECOM

Be open: Think about how you can adopt an
open style in the meeting and be ready to
listen to your manager’s thoughts and ideas
– there may things you haven’t thought of.
Avoid distractions: It’s important to focus
entirely on the conversation and avoid
distractions, such as checking your mobile
phone, laptop, multi-tasking or thinking
about other issues.
AECOM 39

Section 4
Tips and hints for having a Freedom to Grow conversation
STEP 1: THINKING IT THROUGH
Manager
Prioritise: If your employee comes to you
asking for a catch up regarding Freedom
to Grow, ensure you make time for it and
prioritise it in your diary.
Be prepared: Make sure you have absorbed
the information your team member has
sent you before the meeting. Coming
prepared with ideas and any questions
will help the conversation.
Consider the options: Think carefully
about how the ideas address the question of
supporting the client, the team and the team
member. Think about what parameters might
need to be put in place to make the solution
work well for all involved.
Create the right environment: Think
about how you can adopt an open style in
the meeting – think deliberately about how
you will approach the discussion. For some
employees, starting a discussion about a
change in the way they want to work may
be difficult and some people might be
nervous. By creating a safe environment
and demonstrating active, genuine listening
you will encourage employees to feel
comfortable, and to be honest and open.
40
AECOM

Be open: By asking open questions,
beginning with words like ‘’who, what, when,
where, why’’ you support and understand the
conversation better. Showing (non) verbal
interest and patience; waiting until your
team member has had the chance to explain
before responding, asking new questions or
jumping to conclusions is an effective way of
having a positive conversation.
Avoid distractions: It’s important to focus
entirely on the conversation and avoid
distractions, such as checking your mobile
phone, laptop, multi-tasking or thinking
about other issues.
AECOM 41

Section 4
Tips and hints for having a Freedom to Grow conversation
STEP 2: TALKING IT THROUGH
Employee
Provide context: At the beginning of the
conversation, we’d suggest setting some
clear context for your manager – why you
would like more Freedom to Grow and how
it will help you be more effective as a person
and at work. You don’t need this to be very
long – be short and concise.
Explain ideas: Outline the different
solutions/ideas you’ve come up with for how
you could have more Freedom to Grow and
think about articulating the considerations
that need to be factored in.
Describe how it will work for all
parties: Make sure you describe how
you think this will work for your clients,
your team and for you.
42
AECOM

Outline impacts: Outline any impacts
you can see to your work at AECOM and
the ideas you have for working round/
through these.
Ask for support: Articulate the support
you think you’d need from your manager
in order to make this work
Keep an open mind: Remember – this
discussion should be about open and honest
dialogue - ask for suggestions and be open
to ideas and healthy challenge from your
manager to ensure the solution is right.
AECOM 43

Section 4
Tips and hints for having a Freedom to Grow conversation
STEP 2: TALKING IT THROUGH
Manager
Be open and supportive: Try to be
open and supportive in dialogue with
your employee or team.
Challenge your preconceptions: We
can all assume there is an ideal/preferred
way of working and when someone thinks
differently to this, we can perceive this
as a negative. Think about how your own
perceptions or potential biases may
influence the discussion, be aware of these
and challenge them.
Be constructive: Avoid focusing too much
on (perceived) barriers but instead find ways
together with the employee, the team or
other line managers to make change happen
– gaining insights or feedback from others in
the business may be useful.
44
AECOM

Be honest: If you see challenges with
the options your team member has
put forward be honest about this, and
try to think about other ideas that will
help them have greater freedom.
Be creative: Provide solid arguments and
creative solutions in case a suggested
change would not (entirely) work for the
employee, the team or the client.
AECOM 45

Section 4
Tips and hints for having a Freedom to Grow conversation
STEP 3: MAKING IT HAPPEN,
KEEPING TALKING
Employee
Keep talking: Once you have reached an
agreement with your manager following
discussions, be open and ready to keep the
conversation going. We recommend regular
check-ins with your manager to ensure you
still have the Freedom to Grow and at the
same time, that your manager, team and
client are happy with the arrangement.
Be patient: Remember that once you
implement a new way of working, it may take
your manager and your team a little while to
adjust and get used to this new approach. Be
patient and keep talking!
46
AECOM

Be flexible: Be ready to discuss and adapt
changes to how you work should the team,
project or client require this.
Share your experience: Share positive
Freedom to Grow experiences with your
peers and external network as appropriate.
AECOM 47

Section 4
Tips and hints for having a Freedom to Grow conversation
STEP 3: MAKING IT HAPPEN,
KEEPING TALKING
Manager
Keep the paperwork light: In order to
implement a Freedom to Grow solution
with your employee you don’t need to fill
any forms in! There is no formal or written
request procedure. This is about open
conversations and trust. As such, avoid
trying to document this in a formal manner.
A simple email summarising what you’ve
discussed may be all that’s required.
However, if there is a more fundamental or
contractual change to an employee’s work
pattern, then you may need to get in touch
with your HR representative to implement.
Keep talking: It’s important to have frequent
check-ins with your employees and team and
to encourage open and inclusive dialogue.
If required for the employees’ individual
development, the team performance or
the client expectations, you may need to
think about amendments to what you have
originally agreed.
48
AECOM

Share your experience: Being transparent
and sharing positive change during team
meetings will encourage and inspire others.
AECOM 49

Section 5
TACKLING
PERCEIVED
BARRIERS
50
AECOM

AECOM 51

Section 5
If one member of a team is
allowed to work with freedom,
everyone will expect to.
AECOM

TRUE!
But remember that working with freedom means different
things to different people and everyone differs in how, when
and where they prefer to work. The guiding principle to
Freedom to Grow is that is needs to work for the employee,
their team and their clients. Beyond this, everyone has
permission to work in the way that best suits them.
On some occasions this may not work for all three parties,
therefore managers and team members are encouraged to
discuss why this may be the case, what the alternatives might
be and possibly look for opportunities at a different time
when the principle works for all.
AECOM 53

Section 5
Working with freedom is not a
suitable way of working for a
junior team member.
AECOM

FALSE!
Freedom to Grow recognises that one size does not always
fit all and everyone is different in how, when and where they
prefer to work. It’s easy to think that Freedom to Grow is just
another term for flexible or remote working. We hope this
guide shows that it’s much broader than that.
However, we recognise that when it comes to the example of
working remotely, people in the early stages of their career
may prefer to work very closely with their line manager
and co-workers to help support their development. Others
may find working away from the office in certain situations
helps them be more productive. If it works for the client, the
team and the individual, then any option is fine with AECOM.
Freedom to Grow is open to everyone and is not related
to how senior you are.
AECOM

Section 5
Employee performance
cannot be managed as
effectively if they work with
greater freedom.
AECOM

FALSE!
Freedom to Grow does not change our global approach
to managing performance (P+R) but may change the
management style needed in order to monitor and
measure this. Ultimately, we want to move to a culture
where we are all measured by our outputs and behaviours,
not by presenteeism.
We recognise however that there are practical things
that need to be considered to bring this culture alive. Any
Freedom to Grow conversation between an employee
and a manager should include conversations about
expectations, responsibilities and measures of performance.
In addition, Freedom to Grow encourages managers to
have more frequent check-in conversations with their team
members to ensure ways of working still work for the client,
the team and the individual.
As with any scenario, if there are performance issues with
any employee, we’d expect these to be managed using the
guidelines and processes we already have in place.
AECOM 57

Section 5
Working with freedom
could negatively affect the
strong team culture that we
have already established.
AECOM

TRUE AND FALSE!
As stated previously, it’s easy to think Freedom to Grow is
simply about flexible or remote working. It’s much more than
that. We know some teams may be concerned that Freedom
to Grow will mean people working remotely all the time and
that this will negatively affect collaboration and team working.
We understand this and recognise that there is sometimes
no substitute for face-to-face working.
We think the basic principle of Freedom to Grow helps
protect against some of these challenges – test any idea or
pattern of working against this – does it work for the client,
the team and the individual? However, added to this, we’d
expect all teams to challenge themselves – it could be that
other forms of communication could be adopted that allow
people to work more freely whilst maintaining a strong team
culture. Ultimately however, Freedom to Grow will have a huge
positive impact on your team by allowing everyone to be
themselves and work in a way that adds most value.
AECOM 59

Section 5
Our clients have strong
expectations around how we
communicate and work as a
team. Working with freedom
could negatively impact our
relationships with clients.
AECOM

FALSE!
We recognise that not all clients are the same and some may
require more contact / face-to-face interaction than others.
Our central commitment to working with freedom requires
us to take into consideration the needs of our clients, the
team and the employee, and each should be addressed when
discussing how to work with freedom.
In this globally connected world, our clients expect us to
be joined up and deliver across boundaries and borders,
therefore greater freedom may actually help us to work and
perform better for our clients. In addition to this, it may be
that we need to share our Freedom to Grow philosophy with
our clients to help them understand the culture we have at
AECOM. A team that is made up of people who are at their
most productive, will ultimately benefit our clients.
AECOM 61

Section 5
Challenges currently
experienced with technology
will inhibit our ability to work
with freedom.
AECOM

FALSE!
We do not operate in a perfect world and technology can
be challenging at times. However working with freedom isn’t
just about working from home or a location outside of the
office, it’s also about how we chose to work and when.
Technological capability should therefore be taken into
account when considering how to work with freedom, but
should not be seen as a barrier.
AECOM 63

Section 5
Our local legal regulations
preclude us from being able
to work flexibly.
AECOM

TRUE AND FALSE!
We know that there are potentially lots of local regulations in
certain countries that could be seen as a big barrier to the
Freedom to Grow programme. Clearly we need to comply
with local laws but they should not be where a Freedom to
Grow conversation starts. It should start with what would
work best for the employee and the team and what options
there might be to make it work.
You should consider all the various factors that may impact
the options that are discussed, investigate potential barriers
and identify ways to overcome them. If there are some
barriers which you struggle to find a solution to, consider the
next steps described at the final section of this guide.
AECOM 65

Section 5
Our Oracle timesheet system
won’t be able to capture how
we work with freedom.
AECOM

FALSE!
This is irrelevant to Freedom to Grow. Our timesheets capture
the total time an employee works, not how, where or when
they undertake this work. Therefore the timesheet system
should not present a barrier to working with freedom.
AECOM 67

Section 6
HOW TO INVOLVE
OTHERS OR
ESCALATE
68
AECOM

AECOM 69

Section 6
If you as a manager or employee are
struggling to overcome barriers to organise
working in a more free way, and have not been
able to reach a solution together or within the
team, then think about other ways you could
work to resolve those challenges.
70
AECOM

These might include:
Talk to a trusted peer or mentor about how you
could overcome these challenges – other managers
or peers might be able to give you tips about how to
discuss your ideas in a different way or they may see a
different way forward
Contact your local HR representative to get advice
Managers can reach out to their own manager to
discuss the options
Contact a more senior business leader
AECOM 71

About AECOM
AECOM is built to deliver a better world. We design,
build, finance and operate infrastructure assets
for governments, businesses and organisations
in more than 150 countries. As a fully integrated
firm, we connect knowledge and experience
across our global network of experts to help
clients solve their most complex challenges. From
high-performance buildings and infrastructure, to
resilient communities and environments, to stable
and secure nations, our work is transformative,
differentiated and vital. A Fortune 500 firm, AECOM
had revenue of approximately $18.2 billion during
fiscal year 2017. See how we deliver what others can
only imagine at aecom.com and @AECOM.
aecom.com