Why Employers Can No Longer Ignore Flexible Role Design
Here is a tension hiding in plain sight in Singapore’s workforce data. Fifty-five per cent of employers in Singapore say they are already using agile talent, above the global average. Yet only 15% of local jobseekers identify as agile workers, the second-lowest proportion across all 12 markets surveyed in Indeed’s 2025 Global Talent Report.¹
The gap tells a clear story: demand exists, but the bridge hasn’t been built yet.
Flexibility and control over time is their top motivation for considering agile roles (38%, compared to 29% globally). Better work-life balance comes in a close second (35% vs. 26% globally). And yet, only 40% of Singapore employers currently offer flexible schedules, falling below the global average of 48%.¹
The opportunity for employers is significant. Closing this gap starts with one practical step: redesigning how roles are structured and advertised in the first place.
What Is a Job Share Model?
Job sharing is an arrangement where two employees share the responsibilities, hours, and pay of one full-time role. Done well, it delivers the headcount efficiency of one position while giving you two sets of skills, perspectives, and availability windows.
For Singapore employers navigating tight talent pipelines, it is a practical way to retain high-performing employees who need reduced hours — and to attract experienced professionals who are re-entering the workforce, caregiving, or managing health considerations.
The Three Common Job Share Structures
- The Split-Week Model
Each job share partner works defined days — for example, Partner A covers Monday to Wednesday, Partner B covers Wednesday to Friday, with Wednesday serving as a handover day. Best suited for project-based or relationship-heavy roles where continuity matters.
- The Split-Day Model
Both partners work every day but at different hours — one handles mornings, the other afternoons. Particularly effective for client-facing roles, customer support, or roles requiring timezone coverage across Asia-Pacific.
- The Lead-Support Model
One partner carries the primary accountability; the other provides specialist depth (for example, a generalist HR Business Partner paired with an L&D specialist sharing an HRBP role). This works well for senior or functional leadership positions.
Redesigned Part-Time Roles: Beyond Just Fewer Hours
The most common mistake employers make when creating part-time roles is treating them as reduced versions of full-time ones — same KPIs, same scope, same expectations, just fewer hours. This is a recipe for burnout and poor hiring outcomes.
A redesigned part-time role starts from scratch: What work genuinely needs to be done? What can AI automate? What requires human judgement, and how much time does that actually take?
Indeed’s VP of Operations, Laken Masterson, puts it directly in the 2025 Global Talent Report: “If we understand the work, we can ask ourselves questions: Can AI do this task? Can it be AI-augmented? Understanding the work itself and the tools that actually drive business outcomes allows you to make choices about how to get the work done.”
This task-first approach is the foundation of any well-designed part-time role.
A 4-Step Framework for Redesigning a Role
Step 1 — Audit the tasks, not the title
List every task the current or previous full-time employee performs. Categorise each as: high-judgement (must be human), AI-assisted (human + tool), or automatable (can be fully delegated to AI or systems).
Step 2 — Identify the core value tasks
Which tasks drive the most business impact? These become the backbone of the redesigned role. Strip out tasks that are low-impact or can be redistributed.
Step 3 — Define realistic hours
Match the hours to the core task load — not the other way around. A 20-hour-per-week role should have 20 hours of meaningful, scoped work, not 40 hours compressed.
Step 4 — Build in a ramp and review point
Set a 90-day check-in to assess workload fit. Agile roles should be genuinely agile — adjustable as business needs evolve.
The Inclusion Factor: Often Missed, Always Matters
Employers using agile and job share models frequently overlook one critical element: whether non-traditional workers feel like they belong.
Indeed’s 2025 Workforce Agility data shows 62% of jobseekers globally say it is essential to feel included when working on teams with a mix of agile and traditional workers. Three-quarters of employers say building a culture of inclusivity between traditional and agile talent is essential for long-term success.¹
For job share arrangements specifically, this means:
- Both partners are included in team meetings, not just the one “on shift”
- Both appear in internal directories and org charts
- Contributions are recognised individually in performance reviews
- IT access and system permissions are scoped correctly from day one — a common friction point that signals to agile workers whether they are truly part of the team
Post a Job Share or Part-Time Role on Indeed Singapore
Ready to reach Singapore’s agile talent pool? Post a job on Indeed and use our targeting tools to connect with jobseekers actively looking for flexible, part-time, and job share opportunities.
¹Data sourced from the Indeed Global Talent Report: How Workforce Agility Drives Business Results (Indeed survey with YouGov 2025, N=7,317 jobseekers and 2,966 employers across 12 markets, including 503 Singapore jobseekers and 100 Singapore employers).
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