Not ready to retire yet? Mature workers may have other choices | Work It

What is Fractional Work? [00:01:19]

• Fractional work traditionally means working a fraction of the time, often for senior roles or special projects.
• At Prudential, it's about structuring work and splitting roles, not always part-time, but for a focused period, like three months.
• It can cover special projects, maternity cover, or seasonal peaks.

  "We look at how the work is structured. We look at how we can split roles up, you know, to make it fractional."

The Prue Prime Program [00:02:28]

• Prudential calls its fractional workforce "Prue Prime," signifying that mature workers are still in their prime.
• It's a retained pool of people hired through the program, not just for specific contract roles, but as a readily deployable resource.
• The program was developed partly in response to a desire for work flexibility among individuals in their 40s, 50s, and 60s.

  "It's actually a retained pool of people. So they don't just come in when we need them, you know, when we start hiring for contract roles."

Marcus's Journey into Fractional Work [00:04:06]

• Marcus, after a period of caregiving, sought opportunities and found a contractual role through a former colleague.
• He later signed up for the fractional role, bringing 20 years of compliance experience.
• He was surprised to find his skill sets transferable to non-compliance roles.

  "I can do all those roles, whatever roles that come to me. And if somebody's willing to take a chance on me, why not?"

The Appeal of Fractional Work [00:05:28]

• Marcus was drawn to fractional work not wanting to "idle away" or just take holidays.
• He was curious about the evolving work environment and the opportunity to contribute meaningfully.
• He sees value in sharing experience and mentoring younger colleagues.

  "I mean, how long can you go for a holiday in many places and all? Well, there are a lot of beaches around the world also."

Adapting to New Roles and Technologies [00:07:47]

• Marcus found that fractional work allowed him to learn new domains outside his compliance background, like digital enablement.
• He experienced initial fear regarding new systems and technologies like Microsoft Teams, which became a primary communication tool.
• Younger team members were instrumental in helping him adapt.

  "Systems-wise, I was a bit afraid of systems-wise. You know, teams, before that I was using, it was more like a social chat."

Mindset and Continuous Learning [00:11:01]

• Wendy emphasizes that the key to fractional work is a curious, learning, and growth mindset.
• Many Prue Primers actively use SkillsFuture credits for training, including participating in an AI hackathon.
• This counters the worry that older workers can't keep up with technological changes.

  "The mindset, right, that the curiosity. And the willingness to learn."

Redefining Roles and Skills [00:12:57]

• Fractional work involves restructuring tasks within roles, not necessarily making entire roles fractional.
• For example, in underwriting, core domain expertise might be essential, but other related tasks could be fractionalized.
• This requires effort from companies to break down roles and identify transferable skills.

  "How do we then restructure tasks 5 to 10 for fractional work, for different people to come in?"

Building Community and Trust [00:16:16]

• The Prue Prime program includes "Prue Prime Connect" to build a community for sharing experiences and networking.
• This community helps both Prue Primers and hiring managers understand the fractional work model.
• Clear deliverables, timeframes, and defined success metrics are crucial for building trust and ensuring successful outcomes.

  "It's a community of people to share experiences. We also do a lot of work with, you know, bringing the senior leaders, bringing hiring managers, so they get to understand."