Hybrid working and workplace culture: Rebuilding engagement post-pandemic

Businesses are facing a conundrum: How to get employees back in the office. From smaller organisations to the mighty Apple, more time spent in the office is on the agenda for most. And when you think it costs around $15,000 to seat each employee, it starts to make sense. It puts staff rewards designed to incentivise time spent in the office into perspective too.

But in my opinion, the cost of office space isn’t what’s behind the drive to get people back in for most businesses. Working from home full time and some hybrid setups are adversely impacting workplace culture for many. And culture is key to driving the success of any organisation.

Is autonomy the answer?

I’m hearing about a lot of rule setting around how many days a week employees ‘must’ spend in the office and what percentage of their working week has to be office-based. For some, returning to the office is non-negotiable.

The way I see it is if you set a rule, you set a precedent. And that doesn’t work for every employee or role. But guidelines or a framework are crucial. There’s a balance to be struck between expectations and giving people autonomy.

Should the task dictate the environment?

Pre-pandemic, many businesses followed Google and Apple’s lead creating open spaces and collaborative zones. But with the post-pandemic adoption of software like Slack and Teams, people have been quick to forget the benefits of those physical spaces and face-to-face interactions.

Technology can only take us so far. It certainly can’t engender the same attachment to a brand or business as social face-to-face interaction or promote engagement with the people we work with.

Does that demand 100% office working? I don’t think so. Wading through emails is solo work that can often be done at home undisturbed. Why should people feel forced to come into the office for that? Whereas you can’t beat working in-person face-to-face when a project requires the energy of authentic engagement and collaboration.

So perhaps the conundrum could be solved by a better collective understanding amongst employees of what everyone is there to do, and an appreciation of when they need to collaborate and when they need to get their heads down and get stuff done. And by doing so, maybe everyone will begin to recognise when technology resources will suffice and when the office environment is a better option to boost engagement and interaction.

Do incentives have a role?

Still, I suspect many people will be put off by the practicalities and inconvenience of going into the office if they’re now used to a more flexible way of working that perhaps they feel now better fits their working day. Too few are considering the potential long-term physical impact of a setup not ergonomically friendly, like the dining table and then there’s the argument around saving travel costs with little consideration given to the cost of fuel to light and heat their home-based work space.

And so perhaps incentives have their place. Coffee on tap, subsidised lunches, free EV charging points and an appealing environment set up for productivity. But not at the expense of building understanding around the value of social engagement and culture and appreciating when the task would benefit from collaborative office working.

I believe a consistent approach to hybrid working will pay dividends. In a matrix organisation with multiple functions and disciplines, that doesn’t mean everyone is given the same work-from-home framework. But that framework is consistent for each employee. Some roles require five days a week spent in the office, others lend themselves to being predominately home-based.

“Culture is how employees’ hearts and stomachs feel about Monday morning on Sunday night.” Jac Phillips

My take on it...

So rather than focusing on getting people back to the office, maybe businesses should be looking at what it takes for employees to be keen to spend a day or two in the office, interact with workmates, and take some time to be social and reconnect. And to do it because they love working for the brand, understand the value they bring and connect personally with its values. Because if businesses don’t have that culture and engagement, they don’t have the good stuff that goes with it, like identity and buy-in to the business that makes people want to achieve great things collaboratively and as part of a community.

So, if you only take away one point from this article, it’s this: Getting people back in the office might be the end goal, but it shouldn’t dictate the journey.

But what that journey looks like, I don’t quite know. Do you? I’d be interested to hear about your own views.

Who Is Lee?

Lee Kilminster is Commercial Director for RS’ EMEA Distributor Partners & Export Solutions and Chair of Governors for Great Doddington Primary School. In his personal time you’ll see him walking to the sounds of the High Performance Podcast, hanging out with his 8 year old son and enjoying a whisky (but perhaps not all at the same time).