Since the world mostly recovered from the epidemic, distant work is no longer required. And right now, management is attempting to get everyone back to offices. But it’s no longer feasible to declare this publicly – everyone attempted working remote. On the other hand, the concept of a hybrid work format appears to be a fake solution: “We allow you independence, but we provide a chance not to be covered in dust at home, meeting with colleagues and friends at the office on a regular basis.” In fact, though, all meetings and work will need to be scheduled. And the issue will not be only limited to logistics. The hybrid format appears to have been created specifically to spark a “class war” between those who returned to work and those who stayed remote.
During the forced remote times, many hybrid companies may have failed to rethink their management techniques. Despite the fact that the team has scattered and online collaboration skills have improved, some leaders still want to manage the team in the traditional manner. As a result of discrimination against remote employees, the hybrid mode is likely to degrade into “remote allowed.” After all, the company’s management will remain constantly seated at the headquarters, and employees will be (eventually) let go remotely, with no procedures in place to integrate them into the corporate culture. In a nutshell, everything will be as usual.
The hybrid idea will divide the team into “classes” of remote and office personnel. Such is the psychology of inequality: we understand better the people in the same social group.
Remote employees will be detached. Office coworkers will believe they are working harder. It might even be anticipated that there would be more job promotions for those in the office. So goodbye team spirit, and long live the “class” conflict! Those who desire to work remotely but live in the work-oriented paradigm will simply leave the company in such an environment.
This bias might be avoided by rigorously scheduling workers who only visit the office on occasion, ensuring that the entire team is present at the same time. Managers should follow the same paradigm as their staff while establishing a hybrid regime.
To ease the stress associated with a quick change to remote work, a hybrid work arrangement is occasionally recommended. Still, managers will have one disadvantage as a result of this: they will have to monitor personnel from two viewpoints at the same time: “office” and “remote.” This combination will emphasize the shortcomings of each method while balancing the benefits of each. To cope with a hybrid, a new operational model must be created rather than relying on traditional attendance-based timesheets. This takes time and effort, and it is only justified if there are no other options – if a complete office or total remote work cannot be substituted.
Along the way, the “hybrid” limits the company’s access to employees from other cities or countries, which is one of the key advantages of remote work (and not at all saving on office rent, as many tents to think).
Want to know if there is a statistical struggle of management and remote/office workers? Check the opinion polls. A simple overview reveals that employees desire to be in the workplace far less frequently than the managers imagine. Many people never want to return.
The key to hybrid work is personalisation.
In this new era of work, the focus for both managers and employers has been on determining what works best for each individual. On the other hand, the pandemic allowed workers to demonstrate that they can be productive at home and had earned the right to request flexibility.
When deciding whether to go hybrid, consider what you need in your surroundings to function effectively. There may never be a better time as with a few years of expertise, the overall empathy level to personal requests or desires has increased.
At Octonius, our entire team, including executives, has been working remotely since the company was founded. Even though the fundamental procedures were established at the time, we continue to enhance how everything works for us.
On the blog, we discuss how we deal with critical challenges. To summarize all that has been mentioned thus far, there are several principles that serve to level the limitations of remote work, particularly those that leaders of integrated remote and office work are striving to overcome.
Working from home is not the same as working remotely.
Everyone is free to work anywhere they desire. Those who cannot afford a private office at home or who want to be more social are turning to co-working spaces and rented offices, depending on what is available locally.
We understand how to manage a remote team.
We don’t need to get folks in one place on a regular basis (or, for that matter, see colleagues all the time) to know who is doing what. We use our own platform to ensure that jobs are completed on schedule thanks to the collective efforts of the entire crew.
Remote idea creation relies on groups or even individuals.
We have many examples of excellent ideas that have emerged through video talks. We don’t deny that certain teams need to interact in-person to develop informal ties. As a result, we occasionally plan meetings with coworkers.
To summarize, the hybrid model has every right to exist. However, from the perspective of management, it should not be interpreted as “remote is easier.” And before you commit to such a timetable, you should grasp how everything looks in reality.
