Is Hybrid good for work?
Business
Hybrid work has arrived – and it is here to stay. The coronavirus pandemic was and still is a disastrous global event, which at its outset crippled industries on an international scale. Stay-at-home orders in the US necessitated a new working approach from businesses; video communication and cloud collaboration technology took off, as companies sought out ways to keep workers working remotely.
But the adoption of these measures changed the face of business forever, as they demonstrated new possibilities for the world of work. Today, hybrid working is extremely popular amongst workers. If your business hasn’t adopted it yet, what are the various factors that work in and against its favor?
Benefits
Productivity
The leading benefit of adopting a hybrid work model relates to productivity. It had been theorized that office productivity could improve if employees were given a more flexible approach to their relationship with the office, but it was only with the onset of the pandemic that the theory was tested on a large scale.
According to economist Nicholas Bloom, hybrid work was responsible for a 3% or 4% increase in workplace productivity – a figure thought to be the result of reduced commute burdens and shorter break times.
Satisfaction
This productivity is also a natural by-product of another key benefit, which arrives in the form of employee satisfaction. Quite simply, giving employees the freedom to choose their work environment and adapt their work around their life makes them happier – thus encouraging them to stay.
Costs
Hybrid working arrangements, if properly planned and calibrated, can enable you to cut down quite significantly on your business’ long-term operating costs. For example, by dismantling the conventional office desk system in favor of a hot-desking environment, you can reduce the size of your office; with fewer people in the office on a given day, less desk space needs to be available.
Of course, there is a caveat to this. While overheads may be reduced, you need to put some seed investment into your employees’ home office setup. They will need to be provided with suitable computers to carry out their work, as well as peripherals in the form of power cords and ancillary devices. Some may also have special requirements owing to a protected characteristic.
Challenges
Office Culture
One of the leading downsides to hybrid work is the impact it can have on your business’s internal culture. Face-to-face meetings happen less often, with new starters commonly meeting colleagues and superiors digitally first. This can have an overall diminishing, even alienating impact on staff interrelationships, which can sometimes translate to bottlenecks.
Technological Weak Points
Speaking of bottlenecks, hybrid work arrangements can introduce new difficulties in the form of overreliance on technology. With staff working remotely, your business is dependent on the integrity of their equipment and internet connection. There are more points of failure that can have serious impacts on efficacy – where office working eliminates communications barriers altogether.
Is Hybrid good for work?
