The Future workplace is now…

Remember the time before the pandemic when we sat in the office every day because truth be told, that is what was expected of us.  

We faced the daily battle of trying to plan our life around the commute.  Rushing to drop the kids at childminders before work or running out of the door at 5pm to make dinner dates back at home.  All these things added extra, seemingly unnecessary stress to our lives and when March 2020 hit, we all found ourselves suddenly without the commute working from home.  

We all felt the initial comfort that our employers were prioritising our health & wellbeing by allowing us to work from home.  Whilst also appreciating the amazing key workers and essential service employees who had no option but to continue to travel for work. As the days turned into weeks, we adapted to the humdrum of life all in the same four walls.  We battled dogs, kids, numerous loaves of banana bread and everything else that family life throws at you and yet somehow, we still managed to survive.

We heard discussions on work calls about dodgy WIFI connections and the regular chatter of “Debbie you are still on mute!” Strong debates about whether the camera should be on or off and when we finally managed to pause, we started to consider whether we ever would be able to leave the house again.

For introverts it was a special time, no more awkward presentations or informal chats, just controlled comfort in their own environment.  The extroverts were being driven crazy; how could they go a whole day without speaking to someone face to face.

Amongst all this upheaval and madness, one thing started to resonate for many – “Adversity does breed Strength”

What if we could somehow create a working world where we could have it all?

So, insteps HYBRID working or as LEGO like to call it the “best of both”?

We spoke recently about our recommended top tips when implementing this approach with employee consultation being singularly the most important step with any launch.

But potentially the second biggest requirement is FLEXIBILITY, as not one approach fits all companies.

When we consider that Hybrid is a long-term workplace strategy, we wanted you to ponder some operating model questions:

1.     If you tell your employees, you need to be in the office three days a week minimum with no roll over.  How will this work in practice – what if they are travelling for work that week?  Or out meeting customers?

2.     What if one manager is more flexible with this policy than others – is it fair that just because you are managed by Dave, working life is breezier and less restricted?

3.     If an employee prefers to work a Monday in the office but no one else does – how will this empty office experience inspire them? 

4.     What if you are outsourcing your facilities/technology to a strategic partner, is it right that they work every day in the office, but you follow the same 3/2 approach?

5.     Is it too bold to respond to your employee behaviours and close the office on a Monday and Friday? Factoring in that if the 3/2 protocol is introduced these will typically be days that people will work from home anyway.

6.     If the office was closed on Monday’s and Friday’s there would be energy savings, from utility switch off’s notwithstanding the carbon emission reductions from staff not commuting with all your associated suppliers too – maybe this should be added to the discussion?

7.     Is your workplace ready for hybrid working?  If your office is still a sea of fixed desks how will this encourage people to return to the office?  If you still have pockets of the office with dead zones for WIFI or mobile signal employees will naturally get frustrated and will be resistant to returning.

8.     Will it now be commonplace to see people setting out of office email replies when they go to the office?

9.     Do you have a set of policies updated to reflect the new mode of working?  For example, ways to ensure that people working from home dialling into group meetings still feel seen and heard?

We are interested to see these questions being answered as more and more companies adapt to hybrid working, but the fact remains this way of working is still not without its potential hurdles, however this doesn’t mean that this isn’t a much-needed step forward. 

Environment, experiences, company culture, wellbeing and transparent communication are the pillars that need to be reviewed together in order to get this transition right.  Plus, really homing in on what the purpose of the office is, if it’s for collaboration and coming together then consider if bringing back certain teams at certain times really fits this brief.

If this article has sparked thought that maybe your organisation isn’t ready for the transition and you could do with some help, please just get in touch.

Bex Moorhouse - Founder & Director