The three-step strategy for hybrid working

The pandemic took us all by surprise, but we’ve had our eyes on hybrid working for some time.

In 2018, we wrote a CEO’s Briefing on Working from Home, prompted by the first sustained decline in UK railways’ season-ticket sales in its entire 150-year history. Urbanization and commuting remain established ‘mega trends’ across the world, but there were signs in both the US and UK that office working was on the wane.

Of course, with the pandemic, this gradual trend became a sudden flip. And what a flip: a US survey from late 2020 reported that the jump in remote-working was from 20% to 71%.

For many companies, there was a mass evacuation from the office conducted with little time to plan, and even less time for a strategy. Nevertheless, during the months that followed, people and companies adapted to new ways of working and found ways to cope.

Unlike the rapid flip required by the pandemic, this time there is scope to plan and strategise.

As the pandemic eases, many companies are looking again at office working, home-working and hybrid arrangements. Unlike the rapid flip required by the pandemic, this time there is scope to plan and enact a thought-through strategy.

We propose that your approach should be based on the following steps.

1. Strategise.

Remind your senior leaders of your business objectives and how your business stands out in the market. What makes it special in terms of customers and value? This should drive planning for you and other decision-makers in your organisation.

For example, if your market is highly commoditised, then of course this is an opportunity to look at offshoring further roles to lower costs (or to automate more roles and eliminate some costs altogether).

If your business thrives on creativity, however, we recommend that you bring your people together, because there is no substitute for the spark of brilliant people, in a room, face-to-face.

If you are competing to recruit rare talent, then perhaps home or hybrid working allows you to recruit more easily — to cast the net wider and to offer a better package than your competitors.

If you emphasise great service, then think about what your customers want, rather than what you want.

2. Segment.

Your plans for home, office or hybrid working should be rooted in the role profiles within your company. Not all office jobs have the same profile and needs; what makes sense for a credit control clerk may not make sense for a product designer.

Consider your roles in terms of:

  • The frequency, complexity, and ambiguity of their interactions with other people,
  • Their need for supervision or help,
  • And, of course, their access to suitable home-working facilities and/or their need for specialist office equipment.

Your adoption of home, office or hybrid working should be based on the needs of the role rather than the department or seniority.

3. Optimise.

It’s easy to do hybrid working badly. Meetings where half the team are in the office and half are remote can easily leave the remote workers feeling excluded. Getting the best from all your people requires more deliberate communications and inclusion; even more clarity on roles, processes, and controls; and investment in technology that supports hybrid working patterns.

In particular:

  • Hybrid working must be part of the culture of the company. People need to see how the hybrid way of working has become part of the day-to-day and feel that they are still part of the company even if they’re rarely in the office. This is particularly important for engaging new starters.
  • Set clear expectations of how work gets done, for instance defining when their physical presence is expected. Perhaps it’s okay to attend company-wide meetings on video, but weekly departmental meetings should be in person.
  • Go overboard with communication: send out information on all channels, engaging everyone at all levels, and encouraging them to take part.
  • Recognise that not everyone has a great working environment at home. Whereas senior staff can use the spare annex, junior staff may have to work from their bedroom.

 

Need help with your hybrid working strategy? Get in touch.

One of our colleagues remarked that the pandemic was the first time that communication with his offshore providers had worked properly, because they were equals in video meetings rather than side-lined. This anecdote shows how easily we can get it wrong and lose so much of what people have to offer.

But when done right, hybrid working offers the opportunity to attract the best, to lower costs, and to reduce the impact on the environment. We have a unique opportunity right now to improve service to our customers and increase productivity and job satisfaction. Let’s make the most of it.

Visit our Hybrid Working & Post-Pandemic Knowledge Centre which includes all content related to this topic.

Freeman Clarke is the largest and most experienced team of fractional IT leaders. We work exclusively with ambitious organisations, helping our clients use IT to beat the competition and grow. Contact us and we’ll be in touch for an informal conversation.