Hybrid work: 6 questions that companies must ask themselves to implement it
Hybrid work is the next great experiment that the labor market will have and implies new challenges for organizations, in addition to testing paradigms on human capital management that have been present for decades in companies.
According to consulting firm McKinsey, three-quarters of the global workforce want to work from home for two or more days a week, and more than half expect at least three days of remote work.
How many days must you return to the office? That is perhaps the easiest question to answer among so many questions that companies must ask themselves for the adoption of a hybrid work model and "it may not even be the correct one to answer first," warns the firm in its analysis It is time that leaders embrace hybrid work.
The consultancy considers that there are at least six questions that leaders must ask themselves in the new era of hybrid work. These are:
- What work is best done in person and which one lends itself more to being done remotely?
- How will meetings work best?
- How to balance the experiences between face-to-face workers and teleworkers?
- How to avoid a system in which face-to-face workers are more valued and rewarded than their peers who work from home?
- Do teams have to physically meet in one place while working on a project? If so, how often?
- Can communication with remote workers be as effective as with on-site employees?
It is likely, underlines McKinsey, that the migration to a mixed work scheme will present itself without clear answers to these approaches, but as the experiment progresses, these doubts will be cleared up.
The return to face-to-face activities, even if it is presented under a hybrid model, risks generating a greater disconnection between workers and leaders, due to a bad message about a return to normality that will be the new standard for years.
“Communicating that the magic finish line is just around the corner will not erase the disconnect some employees feel between themselves and their employers, rather it will deepen it. When people with that impression return to the office and discover that they are not fully revitalized, that they still feel tired and that they still carry uncertainty and unresolved pain, they will become even more emotionally disconnected from their organizations and leaders. consultant.
Practical Action Path
Even in the return, a new scenario of mental exhaustion cannot be ruled out, especially in those companies where bosses are eager to return to face-to-face work. In this sense, it is important that, beyond concentrating on returning to the office, companies focus on listening to their workforce, recognizing that they do not have the answers to all questions and it will be over time that you will discover the best working model that will work in the long run.
To avoid disconnections in the return to face-to-face work, McKinsey recommends three courses of action:
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» 1. Understand that the best model will not be implemented quickly
Despite the months that some organizations have been working remotely, they have not finished learning what really works in these environments. The adoption of a hybrid scheme is something that could take years.
On the other hand, we must be aware that a good part of the workforce does not consider a work model focused on face-to-face activities as the best alternative, due to the advantages that teleworking has offered, the collaborators will ask the leaders to justify the decisions that alter the current scheme.
While interaction is more complex in the remote work format, and this is a point where leaders who want a full return to the office are right, it is also a reason for companies to explore how networking works best. a hybrid model, helping employees build high-quality relationships, strengthen connections and build trust.
» 2. Never stop listening to collaborators
It is fine to make decisions based on surveys, but we must not lose sight of the fact that there are some thoughts that will take time to emerge and are not reflected in these measurements. Organizations must permanently maintain their active listening mechanisms, processing information and acting based on new signals.
In this sense, it is important that leadership promote feedback and the reality that expressions of vulnerability are not bad. Listening to collaborators and creating spaces for conversation with them will help create safe environments where people have the confidence to say things.
For their part, team leaders must continue to share and listen to the needs of members. Without true partnership at that level, business leaders' conversation to reach out to employees won't work.
» 3. Promote a culture of trial and error
There is no manual or specific guide on what the new normal should look like, much less a hybrid model, so it is important that the organization adopt a trial and error mentality.
Companies can try different work models and policies, space design and tools to balance productivity with creativity or personal flexibility with team collaboration, for example. This involves performing several experiments.
Experimentation will be one of the challenges that companies will have, because the adoption of a culture of trial and error implies a drastic change in the mentality of some leaders.
If organizations don't recognize that the most effective hybrid model is still unknown and will be built step by step, they could face brain drain. In this vein, McKinsey points out that the current context is the ideal opportunity for leaders to work closely with people, with transparency, curiosity and willingness to learn together, instead of imposing.
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Human CapitalLabor FlexibilityHuman ResourcesHybrid Work
