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As companies navigate the return to work following the COVID-19 pandemic, employees have new expectations for their working models. With in-office work becoming increasingly unpopular amongst the general workforce, hybrid and remote-only models have become widely adopted, but these are not without challenges. At a recent roundtable titled ‘Navigating the Future: Hybrid vs. Office vs. Fully Remote’, we spoke with several HR professionals about their insights into these new working models.

When considering how to structure their workforce, speakers and attendees said that their main concerns were productivity, culture and retention. While workers typically value the flexibility and work-life balance that come with remote or hybrid models, remote work can severely affect engagement and culture. This is inverted in office-only settings, with increasing turnover rates due to the lack of flexibility.

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Managing Fully Remote Employees

Replicating the natural social aspect of an office environment takes a concerted effort from leadership in an online setting. Remote companies typically struggle with creating an inclusive culture rather than sustaining productivity levels, as employees now have years of experience with managing their workloads remotely.

Becky shared that bringing remote team members into the office for collaborative and team-building time has been instrumental in creating a more cohesive and inclusive work environment. She said that “it was costly to have all those people travel and stay in hotels, but we felt like it was worth the investment on the culture front.” An engaged, connected team will undoubtedly produce better work than a fragmented one.

As qualified workers become increasingly scarce, high-quality talent is now able to demand far more from their employers, and those demands are often for more flexible or remote working opportunities. It’s therefore important for companies to be able to incentivize employees in that way.

From a statistical point of view, Steven added that “I haven't seen a compelling study done on the fact that in-office is more productive.” If you’re concerned about maintaining your bottom line and getting the most from your employees, offering remote work models could be the key, as this will attract high-performing individuals and encourage them to stay in your company long-term.

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Balancing Hybrid Working Models

Hybrid work is typically regarded as the best of both worlds from both an employee and business perspective. It offers flexibility for workers while also allowing managers to get more hands-on, collaborative time with their teams. It’s also helpful for professionals who do a blend of creative and concentrated work, as a quiet home environment promotes deep focus, while an office setting is ideal for sharing ideas and developing innovative solutions.

Hybrid workers enjoy added cultural benefits, as they can have more natural interactions with their colleagues, which leads to increased engagement. Hybrid offices can also save companies money by promoting hot-seating and other more flexible space arrangements rather than the traditional office model that gives each employee their own desk, leading to smaller square footage and overheads.

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Maintaining Momentum In-Office

There has been controversy around mandated returns to in-office work in the last few years. Employees had adjusted to life at home, with productivity levels equaling or even surpassing those of pre-pandemic offices, so when they were told to sacrifice hours every day to commute to an office they no longer needed, it was not well received.

However, companies are still paying for their office spaces, and many of us hold leases for several more years. Therefore, a significant percentage of businesses are keen to see a return to office-based work that makes the most of this expense. Many older managers are also keen to be able to supervise their teams in person to ensure that productivity is constantly maintained.

However, as leaders, it is our responsibility to create a compelling value proposition for our employees that encourages them to return to the office rather than forcing our own agenda. Cindy said, “We have to convince everyone to move towards a way to work together that makes everyone happy.” Steven suggested positioning the office as a beneficial resource or optional co-working space to sway the 73% of employees who are ignoring return-to-office mandates in the USA.

This intentionality is key to encouraging office-based work. Prioritizing collaborative spaces, team events and all-hands meetings can encourage employees to return to the office willingly. Steven added that successful companies are showing “intentionality for their being there,” and “these companies are changing their office space to be more collaborative” through dynamic technology. These efforts are essential for successfully navigating the return to office work.

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Blending Working Models Across Your Company

Many companies that have a widespread workforce are combining in-office, hybrid and remote working models across their teams. This is particularly true if part of your workforce relies on physical work environments like laboratories while others can complete their work digitally. This can create a divide amongst your workforce, effectively creating two different classes of employees, according to Becky.

These different working models will have unique benefits and disadvantages, which can lead to friction between teams. Leaders of these fragmented teams must learn to intentionally include remote workers in social events and conversations. There are also several techniques that can be employed to manage engagement and productivity. Ultimately, when it comes to productivity, “The issue isn't necessarily around the model. I think it's how you execute either of those models that impacts your productivity most,” Steven said.

Regardless of where your employees work, tracking their output is far more important than calculating the time they spend producing it. Steven added “Burnout impacts productivity. You're 4.6 times more likely to leave your job if you're feeling burned out, and 43% of people are more likely to say that they're burned out if they're in an office environment.” Listening to your employees and supporting them in maintaining their wellbeing is of paramount importance in any working model.

Steven continued, " The best companies are finding the worst part of their model and finding a way to supplement it.” That could mean establishing virtual collaboration spaces and social events to improve engagement for remote workers or offering flexible hours and travel-to-work schemes for in-office employees. For hybrid employees, added benefits like a ‘work from anywhere’ policy will allow them to make the most of their time at work while exploring the world or spending time with family.

No matter what model your company is using, balancing well-being, productivity, flexibility, and engagement levels should be your top priority.

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