The coronavirus pandemic forced many companies around the world to run flexible working conditions due to the ease with which the virus was spreading. Social distancing and less gathering were new ways of life worldwide and they were effective in curbing the spread of the virus. This brought about the possibility of hybrid working opportunities for employees. Though the lockdown has been relaxed, hybrid working has come to stay because of the advantages that come with it for the employees and even the employers. However, there are usually some common issues with hybrid working which can be managed to achieve a fantastic work culture.
What Hybrid working is all about
Hybrid working is more of a flexible policy and working model where the employee works partly in the physical workplace, and partly remotely. The remote aspect could be from home, coworking spaces, or any other location. They could even work while in transit. This is an employee empowerment initiative to help them achieve a balance between home and the office and this will help them with their mental health. The employee could choose what balance between in-person and remote working would be the best option for them and if possible, work on this basis. Let us see some common hiccups with hybrid working and how to overcome them.
Proper communication
Communication is always a key tool in any organization. There will be no reason for a group of people to come together for a common goal if there was never a way to relate with one another. Reliance on technology has created some basic communication challenges to some setups and this is not a different case while practicing hybrid working. The first few weeks of transitioning to this style of working will come with communication difficulties. Some people are more comfortable speaking up over the screens than in-person. Some others don’t do too well over the screen. They would prefer a physical meetup. So, what happens if the person you want to meet physically is thousands of miles away this week? This and other communication issues can be managed by proper planning. For example, if you need to meet with someone physically, how about planning your meeting beforehand? On this day, you can arrange to meet at the office or any other workstation. You either choose to be effective in communication or not. So, managing an issue like this depends on everyone coming together to agree on a better way forward.
Creativity
In any workplace, employees would feel more important to the company when they are allowed to hear. Coming up with brilliant ideas that the company recognizes and implements to achieve better growth is not just beneficial to the employers but to the employees as well. Most companies are more interested in workplace creativity and not getting this is one hiccup that hybrid working could pose. For collective creativity, people can collaborate on skype or zoom but the programmed times for generating ideas may not be as fruitful as when employees are carrying out these same activities at the workplace. Individual creativity could also suffer. I mean, having time alone can help you think out some brilliant ideas but executing them in that same solitary environment may be very difficult. Some social interaction and conversation with colleagues are needed and so if creativity must thrive, there is a need for more office than home even if this won’t be convenient.
All-round staff welfare
Apart from salaries and other regular benefits for staff, employers seem to be more poised to cater to the all-around welfare of their employees when they see them regularly. This is something that may not be happening when hybrid working is the culture. As a full-time business owner, it could be difficult to even navigate employment laws in a foreign country. Onboarding new employees without having a physical relationship with them is another challenge. This is where an EOR comes in, the company’s productivity would receive a knock. An employer of record is like a surrogate employer, handling many of the traditional tasks in the employment relationship. The employee will work for the company but will be contracted under the employer of record and so all the employees’ needs when working from home or the office are well taken care of.
Organization and coordination
It is good that the employee can choose a place where he or she can be more effective but if productivity is to be increased in a hybrid working model, managers are to identify where workers can best do their jobs. The issue of bad organization and coordination is another hiccup that hybrid working has to deal with. Not all tasks can be carried out from anywhere. Some require physical office presence. Care should also be taken to not turn office visits into an almost-everyday thing, else the whole hybrid working aim would be defeated. The manager can meet with his or her employee to discuss plans and agree on days to visit the office physically. It is good that managers organize tasks according to every employee’s capacity, taking into consideration where workers can give their best.
Final word
Many companies are still trying out different methods to see how hybrid working could be more beneficial to them. Though this working style has its hiccups, it can be managed to maintain productivity. The company administrators need to keep learning the skills required to manage employees in different work environments to get the best out of hybrid working. Most employees prefer hybrid working so it would be good for a company to embrace it and find a way to make it work if they must get their best hands to stay with them.