9 ways to support your hybrid workforce

Supporting a hybrid workforce may seem like an impossible task. 

From finding new ways to communicate to making sure your employees still feel part of the team, it definitely comes with its own unique challenges. 

However, with 53% of employees wanting to transition to a hybrid working setup this year, it’s good to get to grips with how you can best support your hybrid team now. 

With a focus on balance (thanks to the realisation that you can have a career AND a family AND friends simultaneously), understanding how to adapt is crucial for helping to support your team for overall success. 

What is hybrid working? 

Hybrid working is when you work some days at home, and some in the office. It’s about getting the best out of both worlds, whether it’s one, two or four days in the office. It allows you to be flexible with your weekly schedule, enhancing the positive work/life balance we all aim for. 

Hybrid working and Covid-19

Covid-19 brought into sharp focus that there was more to life than working, and we adapted quickly to more flexible ways of doing it.
 
With 47% of people deciding to put their personal lives ahead of their work, it caused many to think about what they wanted their future to look like. 

Some opted to take the plunge and leave their current roles as they reevaluated their careers, while others asked for more flexibility. As of October 2021, nearly 3% of the US workforce had resigned, with news outlets dubbing this ‘The Great Resignation’. 

However, it turns out employees weren’t leaving the workforce, but rather they were readjusting what their typical workday looked like. 

From working for themselves to having a better balance; ‘The Great Resignation’ is now considered to be ‘The Great Reshuffle’ with a bias towards hybrid working. 

Covid-19 showed us that we can be just as productive and successful from the comfort of our own homes, so why go back to the office full-time? It’s the best of both worlds, whilst welcoming a healthier adjustment to the 9 to 5, and if it helps businesses to retain employees in our seemingly ever-changing world, then it’s time that we all got on board. 

9 ways to support your hybrid workforce

With the evolution of the 9 to 5 brought on by the mainstream appeal of hybrid working, it’s time to adapt to the pinnacle flexible workday. 

It’s not about checking up on your team every 5 minutes, or assuming they’ll turn up at the office one day. 

It’s about trusting your team, opening up new lines of communication and educating them on what ‘success’ looks like now, and how this will be measured. 

It’s a big adjustment, for everyone. But, the benefits far outweigh the negatives for both parties. 

Here are 9 ways to support your hybrid workforce for a happier, more productive, team. 

1. Be flexible 

Flexibility is one of the best perks of hybrid working. It allows your team to find what works for them (within reason). They can save specific tasks for when they’re in the office, catch up on emails after dinner, or run to the gym before peak time. 

Hybrid working allows them to make these changes to your day, without impacting their productivity. 

2. Trust your team

That being said, measuring your team’s productivity can be a minefield with a hybrid workforce. But it can all be solved with trust. 

You need to trust your team to be accountable for their work and to take ownership of their own projects. There are some really handy tools you can use to manage collaborative work wherever you are, such as Monday.com, Google’s suite, Trello, Slack and of course, Zoom. 

There’s a freedom of creativity and innovation when trust is given, with 80% of people being more productive at home than when they worked in the office. 

As Steve Jobs said, “It doesn’t make sense to hire smart people and tell them what to do; we hire smart people so they can tell us what to do.” 

Overall, trust your team to do their work and avoid micromanaging. 

3. Have a legendary onboarding strategy 

Your onboarding goals have to be flexible and your processes streamlined, especially for a remote new starter. 

It has to be fun and engaging, thorough and continuous. It can no longer be a single day and a dusty mug. 

Put simply, it’s an ongoing talent strategy. 

That’s why it’s so important to get your hybrid onboarding process right, and that starts with your onboarding pack. 

4. Ensure your managers are adapting to new employee expectations 

Currently, only 50% of remote workers feel they have a thriving relationship with members of their immediate team, whereas 43% of managers say relationship-building is the greatest challenge for remote and hybrid workers.

This is why your managers need to have a strategy for ensuring relationship-building within their hybrid teams, with a focus on adapting to the new communication demands and expectations their team may have of them. 

Encouraging a purpose-driven culture with clear equal opportunities and growth for hybrid workers can improve the relationships between team members. Check out the mind eLearning course for line managers to help them tackle hybrid management. 

5. Listen to your team

With 53% of employees now prioritising their health and well-being, listening to them and seeing what wellness in the workplace means to them (on an individual level ) will help your hybrid workforce feel supported. 

Discuss their needs. Know when to step back. Ensure they’re feeling accomplished and challenged in their role. Taking the time for dedicated 1-2-1s every few weeks will allow each employee to have their voice heard. 

6. Embrace your company culture

With ‘positive brand culture’ considered one of the top five most important factors for employees (46%), ensuring your company culture is clear, vibrant and honest is paramount to creating that hybrid dynamic dream team. 

Make your hybrid team feel part of the wider company community by sending out little care packages full of exciting branded merch, or how about little gifts to brighten up their day? Download our new hybrid working brochure for some more hybrid working product ideas for your team. 

7. Support individuals first

Everyone is different, and ensuring your hybrid working structure supports your team’s individual needs, as well as the collective company ones, is essential for getting the most out of your team.

Make sure they have up-to-date tech and programs, such as webcams and Teams and check in regularly with them to make sure they’re taking regular breaks.

8. Set clear expectations 

With 38% of hybrid workers saying their biggest challenge is knowing when and why to come into the office, if you set clear expectations, everyone knows what’s expected of them. With Gen Z’s  “worth it” equation, employers need to make coming into the office worth it. Your team need to know when they’re due at the office (and, perhaps more importantly, why), and what the non-negotiable touchpoints are for when they’re at home. 

9. Communication is key 

Be upfront about why you want them into the office on certain days and let them know the benefits of doing so. You need to tackle any unrest head-on when it may look unfair that some colleagues can hybrid work and others can’t. Communicate clearly what job roles entail, and don’t just assume that people will just know.

Do you WFH?

Building a successful hybrid workforce can be tricky, but if you keep communication clear, concise and open, whilst trusting your team to be accountable, you’ll have a motivated and productive hybrid workforce that’ll, in turn, be great brand ambassadors!

If you’d like to find out how you can best support your hybrid workforce, check out our hybrid working brochure full of WFH inspiration and support, or get in touch today for your free consultation with one of our Merchandise Consultants.