Yakir Bechler is a serial entrepreneur and the founder & CEO of BWith, an AI that helps large organizations manage their hybrid workforce.
Two years after the global workforce swiftly embraced the hybrid work model, it has become clear that hybrid work is here to stay. This carries a plethora of advantages, including heightened productivity, improved work-life balance, better talent attraction and retention and more.
However, the introduction of hybrid work has also brought about a more profound transformation than the mere amalgamation of two workspaces. To genuinely grasp the nuances of this paradigm shift, I believe our primary question should be: What precisely drives our need to come to the office?
The Shifting Terrain Of Office Dynamics
One key to the successful blend of remote and office work lies in the striking disparity between these two work environments. Working from home offers a haven tailored to individual preferences—an ideal realm for solitary tasks demanding focus, such as coding, intricate design and comprehensive analysis.
The purpose of returning to the office, on the other hand, is tailored to an entirely separate spectrum of responsibilities—ones that hinge on collaboration and interpersonal connections, such as brainstorming, ideation sessions and the fostering of team synergy. Without these, organizations may sustain productivity in the short term but are at greater risk of losing their innovative spark and unique culture—factors that can doom any organization in the long run.
However, deciding how to balance the two work environments is somewhat more intricate than a mere division of time. A deeper examination of how individuals truly allocate their time within the office reveals significant concerns that deserve careful attention from decision makers.
The Subtle But Significant Challenges Of Working From The Office
With the main purpose of coming to the office being those tasks that require collaboration with co-workers, there’s another important question that should be asked: What happens if those co-workers aren’t there?
Consider a company with a three-day office week policy. Based on my own experiences and observations by my company, after factoring for real-world variables like sick days, time off or holidays (all of which drive down actual attendance), the chances that an employee will encounter the same co-worker more than once per week drop significantly. A two-day policy could lower those chances even further. So, employees who make the journey to the office in this scenario—often primarily traveling there in order to collaborate with their peers—may frequently find themselves unable to connect with the individuals they need the most. This situation can yield several adverse outcomes.
• Diminished Creativity And Innovation: Tasks that require creativity and innovation typically demand the synergy of in-person gatherings, casual conversations, shared meals or collaborative brainstorming sessions. If the right collaborators aren’t in the office on the day an employee comes in, none of these will happen.
• Reduced Incentive To Come To Work: In my experience, employees inherently recognize the value of office attendance. They yearn for human engagement, impromptu discussions and the occasional dose of office chatter. Coming to the office and not meeting friends and important collaborators puts into question the whole idea. Why sit in endless commutes if you are just going to do the same tasks as you would at home?
• Decreased Engagement And Retention: Over one in five employees grapple with the challenges posed by hybrid work—challenges encompassing cross-functional communication and collaboration, rapport with colleagues, connection to the organization’s culture and more and which become paramount as coworkers risk not meeting the people important to them.
A Spectrum Of Strategic Approaches
Based on discussions with clients, I have seen several potential solutions emerge, each accompanied by its own pros and cons and with its own trade-off between employee flexibility and company efficiency. Here are four to consider.
1. Fixed Company Days
Some companies are gravitating toward fixed office days, synchronizing their entire workforce to be physically present on specific weekdays. This approach can indeed foster collaboration, but it can also be costly to maintain a full office space for the entire workforce with sparse utilization during a significant portion of the week.
2. Fixed Department Days
Similarly, having all members of specific departments scheduled to come to the office on the same days can facilitate interactions among team members and superiors. Just keep in mind that, as mentioned earlier, circumstances may still occur where employees find themselves at the office on different days from essential cross-functional collaborators or close friends.
3. Partial Or Full Employee Flexibility
On the flip side of the equation, many employees enjoy either partial or complete freedom in choosing their office days. This approach is obviously the best in terms of employee satisfaction. However, in the absence of a way to harmonize schedules, there is a higher chance that employees will arrive on different days than many of the coworkers they aim to collaborate with.
4. Technology-Based Solutions
Some companies are using technology to facilitate the synchronization of office days. Numerous workspace management applications can help employees see when their coworkers have reserved desks, giving them some visibility into the weeks ahead. (Full disclosure: My company offers services in this space, as well.) This convergence of personal preferences and predictive intelligence can yield a higher level of synchronization, helping to increase employee flexibility while nurturing a sense of connection with essential colleagues. However, keep in mind that employees will need to be trained in the use of these programs to put them to their most effective use.
Company leaders must navigate the delicate equilibrium they seek between freedom and cohesion. Through thoughtful exploration of these avenues, aligning them harmoniously with the organization’s core values and harnessing technology, a promising pathway unfurls—one that can elevate the hybrid work model and enable it to thrive during its ongoing evolution.
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