Introduction
The COVID-19 pandemic forced organizations to adopt a remote work environment. Remote employees preferred this setup given the increased flexibility, protection from disease, and travel time reduction.
However, team members have been struggling with social isolation and getting used to the increased number of meetings, among other things. After a year of experimentation amidst a pandemic, the number of hybrid companies increased significantly.
Also Read: What is a Hybrid Workplace?
Over 63% of respondents said they prefer a hybrid model over an on-site one in a survey. Now, talking about the hybrid setting, it is a perfect balance. This flexible working has been deemed beneficial by both employees and employers alike.
Over 30% of employees said they would switch jobs if forced to return on-site full-time.
Clearly, as an HR manager, you want your employees to stay with your company. Especially if the company has spent significant time and resources nurturing their skills. So, what can you do to prevent a situation like the Great Resignation at your office?
Let’s look at the common employee problems in a hybrid workplace. And then if a hybrid work model can address them effectively.
What Are the Current Employee Expectations at Work?
1. Seamless Communication
Companies have realized communication is key to keeping organizational activities running smoothly. However, they are still trying to find the sweet spot while communicating with employees in the face of hybrid work. The common communication challenges currently include-
a. Different employee preferences for communication
b. Over-communication to convey work-messages effectively
c. Difficulties keeping up due to technology
d. Breaks in productivity due to sporadic communication, etc.
Along with mitigating these issues, employees expect companies to foster inclusive communication systems. They expect robust community support and allow sharing of information synchronously.
Not only does this build greater trust, but it also ensures everyone is on the same page.
Recommended Reading: Hybrid Workplace Policy: HR Manager’s Guide
2. Better Social Recognition, Appreciation, and Perks
There’s no denying that perks and appreciation keep employees’ spirits high during the hard times.
While in an in-office setup, employees stand a greater chance of being recognized. The remote structure offers no such benefits.
Naturally, managers have found it challenging to make accurate inferences about the employee’s efforts and results. And consequently, reward their performance too.
Employees want organizations to keep track of individual efforts more seriously and compensate them fairly in return.
3. Better Mental Health Balance
Working from home may give employees more time to spend with their loved ones. Yet, about two-thirds of the employees who work from home reported feeling lonely and isolated sometimes.
This makes human interaction at regular intervals non-negotiable. It develops a sense of belongingness to the company, an important factor in retaining talent for your organization.
Sure, these employee expectations might seem too high to meet at first. But when implemented with a hybrid workplace software and sufficient HR support, it can meet at least a few of them.
Also Read: How to Make the Hybrid Workplace Fair for All?
How Can a Hybrid Work Model Solve These Problems?
A hybrid work model combines the best parts of in-office work and remote work. Here’s how it can mitigate employee retention problems.
Bonus read: Hybrid Work Model & Its 4 Competitive Advantages
1. Implementing an Effective Hybrid Work Model Helps Balance In-Person and Virtual Communication
Companies have started adapting to the hybrid work model widely since the vaccination program began in full swing. It is often deemed the best for employee engagement for office employees. Hence, companies have started holding both in-person and virtual meetings.
In-person meetings are for high-engagement tasks like decision making, feedback calls, etc. The virtual ones are dedicated to low-engagement functions like training, socialization, and so forth. Such a system ensures effective communication with employees and keeps the room open for discussion.
When you implement a hybrid work model, install a hybrid workplace software too. Why? It helps you manage and schedule both these types of meetings easily.
It allows you to connect to employees over communication channels like Slack, Google Meets, and Microsoft Teams. This helps them stay in the loop.
An added benefit? The availability of multiple modes of communication allows employees to connect to their peers. This fosters a sense of belonging and trust in the workplace. This, in turn, can also keep office workers motivated.
Naturally, the hybrid work model is a step up from the fully-remote one. This is in terms of organization-wide communication during the pandemic.
2. A Hybrid Work Model Helps Reduce Stress Related to Health Security
While there are many causes of stress for remote workers, a hybrid work model effectively eliminates those. For one, only certain employees are required to come into the office only on a few days of the week. The rest stay at home. This reduces the footfall in the office and helps employees follow physical distancing guidelines more effectively.
Recommended Reading: How to Reduce Burnout?
You can go a step further and install a hybrid workplace software that takes care of employee seating for you. The software allows facility managers to allocate seats according to the current guidelines. It allows employees to book desks according to their preferences too.
This alone increases the chances of interacting with a coworker and assimilating into the company’s work culture.
A Reliable Hybrid Workplace Software Is Crucial to the Success of a Hybrid Work Model
The hybrid work model needs efficient HR to support the employees at every step. However, it also requires a feature-packed hybrid workplace system to make the switch between remote and in-office work seamless.
Are you looking for a software solution to help you transition to a hybrid work model? WorkInSync’s hybrid workplace solution fits the bill just right. It comes with features to send messages across various channels, schedule meetings, book desks, etc. All of this makes the switch to a hybrid work model easier.
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