Michelle Obama spoke last week about her commitment to flexible work and desire to be personally involved in helping it expand.  She talked about how important flexibility and other benefits like paid sick time are in helping people deal with realities of their lives.  In her down-to-earth manner, she got a good laugh when she said that, like her, ‘Everyone should have a chief of staff and a couple of personal assistants; that’s what they need.’ And she noted, ‘There are a lot of people counting on us to figure this out.”  Clearly, expanding access to flexibility is something high on her agenda; she knows how important it is from personal experience.

 The event was Corporate Voices for Working Families’ Annual Meeting May 7 in Washington, D.C.  In conjunction with her talk, Corporate Voices released the results of a study involving innovative workplace flexibility programs for hourly workers.  

She was her graceful, articulate self, and clearly appreciative of the pressing realities that both workers and the businesses they work for are experiencing.  She encouraged the highlighting of best practices and the spreading of good ideas.  

There is clearly more to come from her on this topic in the not too distant future.

We would welcome any of your thoughts about best practices -- what are the best ideas and where have they been tested.    We'll spread the word.