"Hybrid Work": Just a Fad? Or Here to Stay?

No doubt by now many of you are quite tired of hearing the term "Hybrid Work". Whether it’s being used by your employer to encourage a return to the office or tech vendors using this phrase as a way to promote a hybrid working strategy with their latest products, it is certainly something we are all very much accustomed to now.

Real question is do we all seriously believe this is the way we expect to work indefinitely? So far in my experience I have seen many organisations prioritise attention on supporting their employees for them to work effectively from home, and rightly so. Many up until recently are still waiting to see how the C word plays out before making any long term decisions.?

As we shift our attentions on planning for 2022 the stark reality is the pandemic began at the beginning of 2020 and for many the way we still work has not changed throughout this period. Most organisations I speak with have pretty robust work from home processes and technology in place and appear to be flourishing as a result, but recognise this is not a long term solution.

Tipping Point

We are now at that tipping point where companies are seriously having to re-engineer their workplace to accommodate hybrid working for all as we emerge from the pandemic. Those that continue to ignore the impact of not developing a hybrid working model could face a multitude of issues with long term implications. As an example Deloitte recently carried out a survey of US Tech industry leaders where the top 3 concerns were integration of new hires, deterioration of relationship/trust and a reduction of creativity. (Link to the survey results here: https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/insights/articles/US164898_TMT-charticle/figures/US164898_Figure1.jpg )

The real conundrum is how do you implement a best of both at-home and in-office working environment?

• Do you encourage your employees/teams to come in to the office 2 or 3 given days a week?
• Split the work force so there is an even spread of people in the office throughout the working week?
• Or instead go with mostly work from home with 1 or 2 days a week in the office?

Simply put there is no right answer as organisations need to build a strategy based on the needs of people now more than ever.

Hybrid Work needs to be Fluid

Regardless of which hybrid model you employ the fact is technology will play a key role in ensuring the success of delivering on a working strategy. In recent months I have seen organisations make attempts at restructuring office space and deploy technology to accommodate hot-desking, meeting rooms, collaboration spaces etc. Whilst only time will tell whether this proves to be a success, what I have not seen many consider is the fluidity of how workers will roam between their home, coffee shop, in-car or train travel, office lobby, hot desk, meeting spaces and so on. More importantly how do people continue to remain connected with their teams regardless of their location?

There is a huge risk in organisations getting this wrong as should workers start to feel disconnected from their teams because many were either all in the same meeting room with some remote or most people are remote and some in a meeting room could start to feel isolated. This one example could result in employees reverting to old habits and potentially force a move back to working from home or worse yet find another employer that is able to demonstrate a hybrid model that just works!

Bias aside my current employer Zoom has recently put together a great video demonstrating "Return to the Office" Return to the Office Tour with Zoom . This shows examples of experiences from the moment you step in to the office with a virtual receptionist to attending a meeting where the experience is equally the same for all attendees with Smart Gallery.

The Future is Hi-bright

Whilst working from home for many has very much become a normal part of life, there is no doubting that amongst most the lack of human interaction is starting to take its toll. People are now yearning for more as there is a need for us as human beings to start travelling again, meeting with our colleagues, visit our regular coffee shop and above all feel more connected to our organisation.

I for one am incredibly excited to see what 2022 holds for us as I have no doubt with the right combination of technology and strategy we will all begin to reap the benefits from true hybrid working.