Fully remote work can be challenging, but always being in the office offers no flexibility and fun for employees. The hybrid workforce model can help remedy these two issues by allowing people the freedom to work from home with the face-to-face connection that comes from being in the office for a few days. You need to know a few things before switching your company to this model.
1. Determine How Your Business Affects the Environment
One of the most important parts of running a business is knowing how your actions affect the environment, positive or negative. Many companies plan to go carbon negative in the next 10 years, meaning you can aspire toward the same goal while enjoying a potential tax write-off for investing in renewable energy.
Instituting a work-from-home lifestyle for employees ensures they save gasoline by not commuting to work every day. Spending more time at home also encourages people to care about their power usage.
2. Realize Some Meetings Can Be Emails
It’s easy to call a meeting and ensure everyone will show up when you’re all in the office. Getting the team together might be more complicated when everyone works remotely. Due to people being unable to show up on time or technical issues with audio or video, sending an email might be easier and faster. This allows your employees to look at your important message on their own time, and it doesn’t necessarily have to pull them out of their workflow.
3. Involve Employees to Keep Them Interested
Company culture may look different to each team member, but you can offer several types of getting-to-know-you activities that people may want to participate in. According to one US COVID-19 workforce study, 73% of workers reported that they missed socializing with coworkers in-person.
Allow your employees to immerse themselves in company culture by offering fun activities, whether local or virtual. Work is typically just work, but a small break from the day can be a huge stress relief for anyone feeling overwhelmed.
4. Learn to Solve Problems Effectively
Miscommunications will happen and can be more challenging to solve when working remotely. Two people can talk to one another and clear the air immediately when in the office. You must create a problem-solving method to help everyone involved in a conflict feel heard. Emphasize the importance of video chats and face-to-face communication, even through a screen. Bosses should know when to step in and when employees can resolve miscommunications independently.
5. Consider Going Fully Remote
As the cost of living increases, rent will likely rise due to a high demand, which can affect your corporate space. Small businesses may find it nearly impossible to keep up with rent payments while struggling to grow an audience and customer base. Consider moving your business fully remote. You’ll need to change your policies and procedures to reflect a fully remote team, but it might be the easiest and best option for everyone involved.
6. Be Transparent About the Future
Not everyone feels secure about their job in a hybrid work model. Some people may think they must be in the office to communicate their dedication to their work. People should know if you expect them to return to the office full-time eventually.
You also want people to have a good work-life balance. Employees will relax if they know their futures are secure. When you’re honest with your employees, they’ll appreciate being able to plan for their future and any potential next steps they will soon need to take.
7. Avoid Micromanagement
Employees interested in their work will complete it by deadline. You won’t need to micromanage them or feel the need to ask what they’re doing every hour of the day. Micromanaged employees may start to feel suffocated.
Micromanaging is one of the top three reasons why many employees resign from their jobs, so you want to show you trust them and don’t need to monitor everything they’re doing. They can be productive without you and probably also do a better job without you checking in with them every few minutes.
8. Allow People to Choose Their Days
If you have several employees, you may allow them to choose which days they want to work from home. The obvious days might be Monday and Friday, but you could be surprised by which days people want to be remote. By giving them flexibility, employees who double as caretakers can feel relief knowing their schedules can work with their loved ones’ needs or appointments. Overall, it might improve happiness in your workplace.
9. Receive Anonymous Feedback
The best kind of feedback you can receive will always be truly anonymous because people will be able to reveal their true feelings. They might feel like they can’t be entirely honest if information is connected to them. An anonymous form can help them feel like their job is secure while talking about potential improvements.
The right feedback will allow you to make better decisions and improve your collaboration skills. It can benefit everyone, and you’ll improve the working environment by prioritizing home and office work.
10. Equip Employees With the Right Tools
Not everyone has access to the same equipment when working from home. If you’re concerned about the quality of work your employees may produce, give them a stipend to help upgrade their equipment. Allowing them to work with company equipment ensures they have the right protections, like antivirus software or any other apps they need, installed from the beginning.
Hybrid Might Be the Model for You
A hybrid work model doesn’t work for every company. Some may need people to be in the office or at the site daily, while other jobs can be done fully from home. However, if you implement some of these tips to help your company grow and develop, you’ll retain dedicated employees who want to build a future with your business.
Jane Marsh works as the founder and editor-in-chief of Environment.co where she covers environmental news and sustainable living tips.
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