Choosing the Best Hybrid Work Model for Your Business
Tips for managing a hybrid workplace that balances the requirements of the company with those of employees
June 1, 2022
As a result of the pandemic, a significant percentage of companies moved to fully remote work out of necessity. While not all workers want to remain at home, many want to retain some elements of work location flexibility permanently. In a recent survey conducted by Accenture, 83% of people interviewed said they preferred a hybrid model that would allow them to work from the office or a remote location interchangeably.
Defining a Hybrid Work Structure
A hybrid model can be built that balances the requirements of the company with those of employees, provided you approach the change strategically, clearly define policies, and communicate regularly with staff.
It’s essential to define the parameters of your hybrid structure so that everyone has clear expectations about schedules. This helps employees make informed choices when it comes to maintaining their work-life balance and prevents discord and dissatisfaction. You should make sure employees understand the reasoning behind your decisions, whether that’s to maintain a competitive advantage, implement company-wide digital transformation, stay on target to meet goals, or any other strategic consideration.
It’s also important to listen to feedback from employees and be willing to make changes to these parameters if it’s in the best interest of the company as a whole. The best way to achieve this is with a Work OS that supports two-way communication, both within teams and the company overall. The Swit platform is structured to provide transparency and equal access for both top-down and bottom-up conversation, allowing you to promote an open environment where everyone’s voice is heard and valued.
Choosing a Hybrid Work Structure
There are multiple ways to structure a hybrid work arrangement, depending on the specific needs of your business. Each option has both advantages and challenges, so it’s important that you fully understand your goals before making a decision.
Flexible
In this structure, employees can choose whether to work remotely or in person on an individual basis. This option offers the most flexibility for employees by giving them the freedom to decide on their own working arrangement. They may feel they’re most productive at the office every day, just sometimes, or not at all. When it comes to logistics, it can be difficult to plan for in-person meetings or know if there will be enough office space available on any given day.
By conducting all your work within a central hub like Swit, there is no need to know in advance which location an employee will be working from. Your entire team can communicate with each other through the platform, access essential files, and manage progress on tasks and projects.
Remote-First
For a business that operates remote-first, employees primarily work from a location of their choosing with occasional in-person activities scheduled on an optional basis. Your business is able to reduce costs by eliminating office space and can also take advantage of a more diverse talent pool. This model gives employees the freedom of remote work while also providing them with the opportunity for team-building through events or retreats.
Workspace Teams and Groups in Swit offer your business the flexibility to structure a “virtual HQ” for efficient collaboration. Teams pair up with your org chart for vertical communication, while Groups allow you to reorganize mentions based on projects for cross-functional or horizontal communication.
Groups can also help specify mentions for people who are gathering for an in-person activity. For example, you could have groups for employees that live in the same geographic areas, a group for employees who are interested in attending training seminars, a group for employees who want to participate in regular team sports, and so much more.
We operate our business using this model, because we function most efficiently as a 100% remote company but also understand the importance of nurturing relationships with our coworkers. That’s why we offer employees the opportunity to meet twice a year for company retreats and give them the option to attend based on their own preferences and work-life balance needs.
Office-First
This is a hybrid structure where employees are primarily expected to work in the office, with the option to work from home under specifically-defined circumstances. For some companies that means allowing employees to work remotely once or twice a week and for others it’s on a more limited basis. This option balances some flexibility with physical attendance for companies that feel there is an advantage to having their employees work in a shared space more often than not.
However, if working from home is an individual choice, it may be difficult to staff the office on certain days if everyone wants to choose those for working remotely. For this structure to work well, it’s important for your HR Department to be in frequent communication with all staff. Swit’s Cross-Workspace communication assists you in effectively communicating policies related to scheduling work from home and also helps in efficiently collecting feedback from employees about their preferences and concerns.
Fixed Hybrid
In this structure, the company determines which days people are working from the office or from home. This could be done for everyone, such as having the whole company work from home on Fridays, or could be determined by teams, such as having Sales in the office on specific days and Design in the office on different days.
This is the most predictable hybrid option because you know exactly who will be in the office on which days and how to manage the resources needed to accommodate them. On the other hand, it offers the least amount of flexibility for employees, and may lead to turnover if workers want more control of their own schedules.
Since Swit seamlessly integrates with Google Workspace and Microsoft 365, your staff have access to all their necessary materials and files regardless of work location. The Marketing Department could have an all-hands training in the office where they go over a new strategy, then attach training documents to a Tab, ensuring everyone on the team would still be able to access them from home to review. Design could meet to film a video, then access files through Google Drive or OneDrive to attach to task cards and collaborate remotely.
Tips for Managing Any Hybrid Structure
- Encourage employees to establish boundaries that promote a work-life balance. A simple way to do this is to customize the Do Not Disturb feature during hours and days when they’re off work.
- Proactively schedule one-on-one meetings to check in with employees. This can be done either in person or virtually depending on your hybrid model and employee preference. The calendar integration within Swit makes it easy to attach meetings to task cards and share them to channels for quick reference.
- Make sure employees feel connected to the company mission so that they understand what you’re hoping to accomplish together and why your shared goals are so important.
- Practice “macromanagement” by giving employees autonomy over their work process. Having both assignees and dates for checklist items on a task card gives managers an overview of project progress at a glance. Being involved as a collaborator on a task card also keeps managers in the loop and provides two-way communication.
Support your employees as they adjust to a hybrid work structure by providing them with the tools they need for success. This includes essential software, equipment stipends, clear PTO policies, and open lines of communication. Above all, make sure your company’s technology supports asynchronous communication and collaboration. Contact us to set up a custom demonstration that is catered to your company’s specific hybrid model needs.
Natalie Litofsky, Copywriting Manager
