What Is Hybrid Working?

With the worldwide pandemic rapidly changing the work landscape and how it is done, some new trends have emerged in remote working. And one of the recent trends is called hybrid working. But what is it? When is it reasonable to do hybrid working? And is it just a fad or a possible future of office jobs?

Hybrid working is a simple concept. Where regular jobs ask you to be in the office every workday and remote working or working from home have you entirely work outside of an office, hybrid working means that sometimes you will be working in the office with your colleagues and other times you’ll work from home. This approach has been popular with many companies in the wake of the pandemic as uncertainties about potential nationwide lockdowns loom over empty offices. Many workers have also reported that working from home sometimes helps them with their overall productivity.

As mentioned above, companies like hybrid working because it helps them defend themselves against the unpredictable nature of the pandemic and the following lockdowns. If a large portion of their staff is used to working from home, the change from the office to the house is easier. But even the workers themselves report satisfaction with hybrid working. Switching between the office and home helps people feel like they have more control over their workflow while not being isolated from their colleagues.

Project-oriented jobs can work very well in this way, as people have time at home to complete tasks that have been brainstormed and planned out in the office. However, these benefits only work for some people. Many people prefer the structured space of the office to the mostly unstructured space of their homes. They are more stressed and lonelier when forced into the home office.

Some companies have even used the pretext of home offices to extend their monitoring of their employees, resulting in more stress and work for everyone involved. And as many people have reported during the pandemic, working from home has made them work longer hours and have a worse work-life balance. So hybrid working is best for only some people and some jobs.

In general, hybrid working takes a bit more effort than just working from home or working in the company’s office, but the benefits can be significant. Firstly, you have to make sure the office is still accessible and ready to be used while also ensuring you have adequate means of online communication.

It would be best if you had an official hybrid workspace policy. You should also consider having regular feedback meetings to communicate their needs and experiences with the hybrid workflow. You should also try to build relationships through group outings outside of work, as this can help people connect (something hard to do in the online space).

Finally, you should make sure that all the benefits and rules that apply to your workers in the office also apply to those at home. It should be the choice of the worker when it comes to what suits their productivity, not a coerced choice based on withheld benefits. In this way, hybrid working can boost your team’s efficiency and happiness.