The Hybrid Work Model... Yay or Nay?

Has the Genie been let out the bottle??

Since the Covid-19 Pandemic, the Hybrid Work Model, once considered the “alternative,” has quickly become the norm in today’s business environment.?

Hybrid (hy-brid): having two types of components performing the same function.

Hybrid Work Model:?having both an office workspace as well as a “at home” office.

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Pre-pandemic, the Office or Whole Model required employees to manage their work week according to their job responsibilities, while following company policies & procedures. When first introduced, the hybrid model was intended to offer select employees an alternative, allowing for a better work/life balance.?The McKinley Report: ‘Great Attrition’ or ‘Great Attraction’? The Choice is Yours, clearly provides evidence that in today’s workplace, the reasons Employers think their employees are leaving is really quite different to the actual reasons employees are looking elsewhere.??

The Report confirms, employers believe that their employees are seeking other employment due to salary expectations, promotion opportunities or even job recruiting or poaching - all transactional or monetarily based, while employees are actually leaving because of value-based beliefs.

The original idea behind the hybrid work model was to offer a more flexible approach to the standard work week.?For those who faced long commutes, extended hours, adverse working conditions or who needed a better work/life balance due to family necessity or office burnout.?The hybrid work model has actually been around longer than you think!?Prior to 2019, approximately 32% of the US Workforce (that’s 60 million people) were already working in one of the four hybrid work model types.?NextGen Professional, for example, has been working successfully as a hybrid or “remote” office for the past 10 years.

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Who let the Genie out?

Enter 2020. Covid-19 hits and the Pandemic isolates the world...

Mandated social-distancing and enforced Health & Safety requirements force companies to expedite hybrid work models; drastically increasing the number of hybrid workers. Post-pandemic, 53% of employees are now embracing the hybrid work model and that percentage keeps rising. The Pandemic has completely shifted how people view what was once their work/life balance, to now a more home/work productivity and quality of life balance.

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Referring to the McKinley report earlier ‘Great Attrition’ or ‘Great Attraction’? The Choice is Yours. The report explains how employers were forced (due to Covid-19 restrictions) to comply, answering employees wishes for a more balanced work/life scenario, stating “quality-of-life” as a key factor. In yesterday's candidate-driven market, employers were given a “competitive edge” to attract and retain the professionals they need.

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The proof is in the pudding

The numbers don’t lie...

In a recent Wakefield research survey with Envoy (https://envoy.com/blog/envoy-survey-finds-emploees-want-companies-to-embrace-hybrid-work-and-mandate-covid-vaccines/), 47% (almost half) of the participants polled would likely look for another job if their employer did not offer a hybrid working model.?That’s a lot!?Even if we reduce the number by half, that’s still a 23.5% turnover rate - incredibly high and costly for any company to sustain. Another survey, conducted by envoy.com on April 2022 (https://envoy.com/blog/getting-employees-back-to-the-office/), reports that 77% of the companies surveyed are opting-in for the hybrid work model.

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At AMC Services - Fractional People & Culture we are seeing a shift in what?candidates consider “must-haves” or “deal-breakers” in terms of their employment.?In fact, one of the two top questions being asked: “Is the position hybrid or remote?” ?almost 90% of all candidates are asking this question.?

Whether you chose to embrace it, the hybrid work model is here to stay.

The Genie has (definitely) been let out of the bottle!?

The game plan

With all new ideas comes change.?Change, though beneficial to all, is often met defensively - The new idea (or the change) is difficult to comprehend, so we push back. Similarly, as we reassess current whole work models, we must consider options that are more in line with (or change to) today’s value-based candidate incentives.

By reading on, you will find ideas and suggestions on how you can assess your current work model and decide best practices in today's candidate-driven market - the hybrid working model has become the standard - it's not the competitive edge it once was.?

Which type are you?

As more and more employers move towards the new hybrid work model, it’s important to know that there are choices.?In fact, currently there are four distinct hybrid model types:

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Hybrid-At-Will (Flex or Remote): ??Employees choose which days they come into the office.

Hybrid Split-Week: Employer assigns specific days for in-office work and for remote work. Hybrid Manager & Scheduling: Managers create scheduled times for teams to be in the office.

Hybrid Mix: a combination of all three options.

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Make a list:

As an employer, you might ask yourself “Okay, so what’s in it for me?”?Let’s focus for a moment on the benefits to embracing the hybrid work model:

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Productivity: The flex hybrid model allows candidates to choose when (or at what part of the day) they will complete their work.?By allowing them to work when most productive, they produce more, complete a larger portion of the workload and usually with better and more accurate results. For example. someone who works better during the evening may split their work day 10am-2pm and start again from 7-10pm.

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Quality of life balance:?When given the opportunity to plan their own schedule (keeping company policy & procedure in mind), candidates working in a hybrid working model are able to include personal events or appointments into their work day that would normally have been missed. By allowing this flexibility, employees are happier, are more content and are motivated?and ready to concentrate on the task at hand.

Access to a Global Talent Pool:?By embracing a remote hybrid working model the employer is able to broaden their talent search globally; creating a more expansive search for specialized skills, accommodate around the clock productivity or the possibility of entering new markets.?By opening global hiring practices, and with the talent pool drastically shrinking for our industry, government (and organizations) are looking to immigration sponsorship Visas to expand talent accessibility. This brings forward another topic for discussion: What positions or roles would allow you to interview qualified candidates who are located outside of your direct vicinity?

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NextGen, for example, employs much of our staff globally; many of whom stay because of flexibility and the ability to live where they want.?It's a competitive edge for sure, but of course, not ideal for all positions.

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Save on Real Estate: When companies incorporate a hybrid work model, the number of employees required at the office is reduced; therefore, also reducing the square-footage of space required.?This translates into reduced overhead costs for the amount of real estate required?- sometimes by up to 30% - allowing those funds to be used elsewhere.

This envoy.com article (https://envoy.com/blog/heres-how-to-flex-your-space-and-your-budget-by-going-hybrid/) offers insight on how to downsize or enter into a?hybrid type model. What about remote or satellite office consideration? Finding yourself in a not so desirable location or in an area difficult to find qualified employees??There are more options than ever to fill these gaps. Other consideration could be given to short-term lease agreements?with organizations that already have office infrastructure, located where your staff are living. This provides a comfortable, easily accessible and collaborative group environment at a much low cost . Checkout sites https://www.wework.com/ OR https://www.iqoffices.com/

Let’s do the math

An average calendar year consists of 8,760 hours.?

Employees work an average of 40 hours per week, making that 2,080 hours, per year.

That’s approximately 24% - or a quarter - of an employee’s life dedicated to work; and that’s on the low end! Please note I did not consider waking hours vs sleeping hours.

By crunching the numbers, it puts into perspective the importance of work/life balance or better referred to as life balance.

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The “work from home” model allows employees more control and flexibility to attend to important matters that crop-up outside their professional parameters, giving them time to deal with personal issues, thus creating a more focused and productive employee during work hours.?This in turn can reduce employee anxiety, stress, fatigue, and overall burnout.?This can tangent onto an entirely new subject of Workplace Mental Health, which is a topic for a whole other discussion.

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The other side

Cons to the hybrid work model

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Lack of Collaboration: You may find that the opportunity for in-person meetings or collaboration begin to decline. With today’s technology, this can easily be avoided by implementing a visual communication application.?All that is required - simply invite your team to a virtual meeting.?There are several free, online meeting platforms available (GoogleMeet, Zoom,?Skype, etc.)

You can set up break away rooms for collaborative meetings or use platforms with status settings so people can do ad hoc collaborative meetings on the fly.

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Consistent Monitoring and Updating: It is imperative that companies incorporate new policies and procedures to adjust the day-to-day operations to the new hybrid work model.?Whether mandatory attendance or in-office meetings are set, it’s important to establish expectations and requirements early on.?Here at NextGen, we have mandatory, non-negotiable meetings where employees are expected to attend (unless on vacation or sick, of course).?In some instances, clients have implemented mandatory on-site office days or at-home days - where office days are meant to encourage collaboration and foster culture.?As people's needs do change, the policy and procedures of the company may want to be reviewed annually.

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One Size does not fit?all: While many industries will benefit from the hybrid working model, not all are able to partake.?Researching the alternatives and deciding which model best works for you is important.?

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Let’s get the ball rolling

To operate a successful hybrid working model, our best advice, Be prepared! Have the best implementation practices available.?Ensure your staff are equipped with the technology, equipment and office setup needed to effectively do their job.?Programs like Microsoft Teams and Slack are a few that come to mind for communication tools & applications.?Ensure you budget accordingly.?There are many incentive programs being offered to companies implementing these type of changes into their corporate culture.

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Hybrid - not for you?

Other ways to get employees back into the office

Here are just a few ideas or incentives to creatively generate employee enthusiasm and get employers back into the office.

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Food and Beverage Programs. Workplace professionals are bringing in snacks, lunches, and beverages to the office.

Social Events: Hosting special events such as happy hours and movie nights are starting to become popular. These events foster collaboration, team building and assist in helping your employees get-to-know one another outside the office or on a more personal basis.

Corporate?Events or In-person Training: Events such as lunch & learns, team building outings, fund raising for a community cause, among many others provide opportunities for management and staff to interact together.

Furniture and other Office Amenities. Ergonomic workstations outfitted with adjustable desks and equipment are becoming important.?Personal work pods and other such quiet spaces allow for head down concentration or collaborative team meetings. Some clients are even piping in music into their general work space or creating social spaces that allow for gaming or other such activities; giving them a place to relax and unwind for a few minutes.

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Communication is key

First rule of thumb - Communicate! it is absolutely imperative that you communicate with your staff.?If you are trying to encourage candidates to head back into the office, tell them why. Have an open and honest conversation to explain your reasons.?Let them know that corporate culture & team building are important to the integrity of the whole.?Talk about environment upgrades and ask them what their needs/wants are.?Be sure to include all levels of employees from entry level to executive.

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Embrace the Genie

The hybrid work model is here to stay! You can choose to embrace it, or you can choose not to. Either way, the data is telling us that in a candidate driven market, the hybrid working model will result in better attraction of skilled candidates and far better retention of existing staff.

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I hope this information has provided you with some insight as to what's happening with your competitors and markets in general. There is a lot of great research emerging from large consulting groups that can help you create a feasible hybrid integration plan for your office!