Thinking beyond the “nine to five” can pay dividends by helping your business attract the best talent and improve diversity. This week, we catch up with Londway CEO Will Mundow, who shares his thoughts on why embracing flexibility makes good business sense.

Londway, which provides financial director services to SMEs, recently turned to Successful Mums for help finding an experienced media accountant for one of its clients, an award-winning company in the creative sector.

For Will, opening up the role to flexibility gave his client the opportunity to access a much wider pool of talented candidates and the best possible chance of finding their perfect match.

“While we were looking for experience in the right industry and we needed someone with the right skills, they didn’t need to be in the office five days a week and we were open to looking at flexible hours,” he says.

Will, who set up Londway in 2015 for a better work-life balance that enabled him to do his “share of the school run”, believes that many firms are missing out by overlooking skilled, experienced and motivated candidates who are looking to work flexibly around their families.

“I’m 100 per cent convinced of the benefits of flexible working in my industry – not just for employees but for employers,” he says. “It’s all about finding the right person. If the hours work for them and they’re engaged, they’re switched on and they want to get back home to the kids at the end of the day, then actually they are often more focused while they’re at work.

“Once you’ve laid everything out – agreed hours, remote working or whatever it is that works for you – then I’m a big fan of trusting people to get on with the job. You want people who are maybe a little bit more experienced and, with candidates returning to work after having children or whatever the case may be, I feel you’re getting that. You just need to focus your search on the right people, which Successful Mums definitely did for us.”

For Will’s client, the “right person” turned out to be Rebecca, who applied for the role through the Successful Mums Job Board and now works flexible hours four days a week, an arrangement which fits perfectly with her childcare.

Rebecca is a big hit, she’s been so effective in the first few months and is really switched on. It’s a great financial role and Rebecca is keen, she’s done some studying and she’ll get great experience here. It’s working out really well – Will Mundow

Rebecca, meanwhile, is delighted to have found a role that allows her to work flexibly while progressing her career. She says: “I think people often believe that if they want to work flexibly, the risk is that they won’t be taken seriously or are taking a step back. That was my view but it’s definitely not the case here. It’s a great role, there are real opportunities for me and I’ve already grown in confidence, especially with Will’s support.

“It’s sometimes swings and roundabouts when you work flexibly – I might need to take a call on my day off or check emails on the way home – but when you feel you’re trusted, you have more respect for your employer and it’s an encouragement to do better. I never thought I’d get this kind of flexibility in such a good role and I’m really grateful for it.”

You can find out more about Londway here.

Successful Mums works with flexible and family-friendly employers to support skilled women back into work. To find out about the different ways we can connect your business to experienced, reliable and motivated candidates, contact