Fundamentals of Ensuring a Productive Hybrid Work Environment
In the post-pandemic business world, hybrid work is one of the most popular models for SMBs as well as large enterprises that want to retain a diverse, mobile, and satisfied workforce. Hybrid work is all about balancing, managing, and organizing teams that are working in-house, remotely, on-the-go, and even internationally. If you’re on a hybrid work model yourself, however, you know that it comes with its advantages and drawbacks.
While there are many benefits to hybrid work when it comes to job satisfaction, setting up a remote work career, and being as productive as possible, business leaders are finding it difficult to ensure productivity and efficiency across the board. And employees are finding it difficult to stay productive when teams, workflows, goals, and communication are not aligned.
That’s why today we’ll be talking about hybrid work and how you can ensure productivity for yourself and your hybrid team in 2023.
Adapting to the hybrid work model
There’s no denying that hybrid work can be a confusing concept for employees and business leaders alike. In essence, it means that a single employee can work from home or on the go, but also come into the office a couple of times a week or when needed. Now, hybrid work can also mean that the organization as a whole is divided into in-house and remote teams, leaving the management to create an efficient and effective model for seamless collaboration and communication.
To manage a remote team or to become more productive yourself, however, you’re doomed or you adapt to the needs of the hybrid workforce. Communication is your top priority, and schedule alignment is essential between teams in order to facilitate collaboration.
That said, asynchronous work is also a big part of the hybrid model. Asynchronous work means that team members are completing tasks and working in their time zones, on their terms, which can be very beneficial to mental health and overall satisfaction.
Optimizing your remote work environment
Hybrid work encompasses work at the office and remotely, so when you’re not at the office, you still need to ensure you’re working in a productive setting that has everything you need to get the job done efficiently. This can be a great arrangement if you’re a work-from-home parent, but at-home work can be troublesome for many.
You first need to make sure you have a home office or at least a quiet corner when you can work in peace. Interestingly, according to the latest hybrid working statistics, as much as 34% of employees think that employers should provide resources to establish a home office, so you can talk with your employer about this possibility.
If your employer has adopted the hybrid work model, then they may be inclined to provide you with the at-home resources to do your job properly. Whether your employer provides these at-home resources or not, it’s important to organize your remote work environment and ensure you have proper connectivity with all the right software to communicate and collaborate with colleagues, and do your job in a stress-free way.
Commit to continuous learning
Your employer is required to provide adequate learning opportunities so that you can feel fulfilled at your job and continue your professional advancement. This is one of the key prerequisites for a satisfied and productive hybrid workforce, and there are many ways you talk to your employer about these programs.
One of the most popular programs for hybrid workers is peer learning, which allows you to seamlessly work with your colleagues from different departments and the higher-ups on exchanging knowledge and developing new skills. The best part is that you can do this in a synchronous or asynchronous way, which is perfect for hybrid teams that work in different time zones, or simply have different work schedules.
Ask your employer if peer to peer learning is an option, but also explore other options like specific training and workshops, online learning platforms, and seminars.
Improve communication
Efficient communication is the key to good collaboration in hybrid work environments. Not only is this a great way to make friends at work even when you’re working remotely, but it’s essential for your productivity and for achieving operational goals with minimal setbacks. That said, when the communication channels are clogged up or disorganized, nothing gets done.
That’s why employers that want to improve productivity and satisfaction need to focus on good communication. A good example comes from WilsonHCG on hybrid working in which communication and feedback are essential for employee happiness, but also focusing on employee empowerment, culture, and leadership.
These are the principles that your employer should focus on in your organization, but it’s also something you should strive for at work yourself.
Use the right software
There’s no way around it – hybrid work simply can’t work without the right tech. If you are managing your own hybrid teams, then you need the right software to manage workflow, projects, tasks, and numerous other processes on the go.
Documentation software is the key to getting things done in a hybrid environment. Working with the right tools will allow you to organize your people and your processes, which will elevate employee satisfaction and productivity.
Eliminate unconscious bias
Lastly, there are many conscious and unconscious problems you can come across at work that can ruin your productivity and the productivity of your hybrid team. Many can lead to a proper mental breakdown at work if you’re not careful, and if you’re the one going through it, these problems can lead to you quitting a job you love.
It’s important to identify unconscious bias at work and eliminate the various types of biases from your behavior and the behavior of your colleagues in order to support a truly diverse hybrid workforce. Make sure to support an inclusive culture in your team and learn to spot potential biases in your own behavior to eliminate them and create a happier workplace for all.
Over to you
Hybrid work is here to stay, and it offers some amazing quality-of-life perks for the modern employee. That said, it can be challenging at times, and if you have found that your productivity or the productivity of your team has been lacking as of late, then it’s time to shake things up and adapt your approach.
Be sure to use these tips and tricks to elevate your own productivity and the productivity of your hybrid team, and create a more efficient work environment.
Photo by Shridhar Gupta on Unsplash
About the Author
A seasoned writer and storyteller, Sara does her best to share her experience with the world and help brands and entrepreneurs find their voice. She loves the learning curve that comes with writing, so she gladly takes on new topics that will expand her own knowledge and expertise. The only thing Sara steers clear of? Anything resembling a comfort zone in life, as well as writing.
