With careful evaluation and planning, most positions, including senior roles, can be ‘shared’ successfully (see case studies). From administrative jobs through to the managing director, a successful job share position offers many benefits to both employer and employee and can be easily arranged. Based on extensive research and information gathering here is what has been found to be important:

• Clear guidelines and agreements around employee salary and hours of employment. As is the case with part-time employees, salary and entitlements are worked out on a pro-rata basis so it is important to agree on how many days and hours each employee will work
• Clarity around entitlements. As separate entities with separate employment contracts, the employer will need to ensure that there is clarity around annual leave, sick leave and public holiday entitlements. (For more details on employee entitlements, follow the links to your State Government or Federal Government website)
• Clarity around what each job share partner will be earning. In some instances one partner may be more experienced than the other and a different salary may need to be negotiated
• Define expected outcomes and objectives for each employee
• Consider whether any overlap is required between the two employees to allow for the transfer of information and job continuity
• Individual strengths in allocation of tasks. Depending on the role and the level of responsibility attached to the position you may choose to allocate different tasks and responsibilities to each individual depending on their background and experience. Another possibility may be that the vacant role itself is redesigned to meet the changing requirements of the company and the individuals who are job sharing
• Clear communication channels. Critical to the success of a job share situation and the certainty that any customer commitments are met, effective and clearly identified communication channels are essential. Use overlap periods or nominate specific times for the two employees to exchange information

Job share critical success factors

• Clear and concise job description that allocates tasks and responsibilities to each employee
• Clear outcomes expected both from the position and each individual
• Clear remuneration and benefits schedules
• Clear guidelines on the times and days that each employee will work and the expectations during those times
• A communication standard that ensures information is transferred from one employee to the other so that the role appears seamless
• Communication to the rest of the organisation on how the Job Share position will work, and who can be contacted on what days and times and for what purposes
• Clear policies around who will cover when sick leave or annual leave is taken by one employee or both simultaneously
• Clear management guidelines on how the Job share position will be managed
• Compatibility between the two employees who will undertake the Job Share arrangement. Depending on the seniority and type of role, the employer may choose to run personal values sessions and/or compatibility testing for the potential candidates; and
• Career progression and career path policies for the job sharers. Questions to consider would include…. Do the individuals move in separate career directions or do they get promoted together as an item? Open communication with the employees is advisable to ensure that they have opportunities for promotion

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