Going Hybrid: What Your Organization Needs to Consider

As COVID vaccines continue to roll out and both employers and employees are anxiously looking forward to the end of the pandemic, many are starting to consider what the workplace will look like. Will organizations continue their remote work setup? Will they shift back to in-office settings? Some may choose a middle-of-the-road option: hybrid work, which is a combination of the two.

For those considering the hybrid model, the pros and cons should both be evaluated. This is a brand-new environment for most employers, and the ultimate choice should be one that resonates with your unique workforce.

Advantages of a Hybrid Workplace

1. Employee well-being

The remote work experiment that has taken place over the last year has broken down the barriers between work and home life. This will make going back to fully in-person work challenging for many employees, who may have grown to value the flexibility and time with their families that at-home work has allowed. At the same time, their mental health could still benefit from some in-office connections with colleagues.

2. Real estate footprint

With fewer people in the office on a full-time basis, many organizations will be able to downsize to smaller spaces. Others may choose to expand their office space to allow for reasonable distancing between employees. Many companies are opting to re-arrange their offices to ensure that everyone has a private office. Whichever way a company organizes where their employees sit, offices are bound for change.

3. Added Benefit

Before the pandemic, a remote option was considered a top benefit for recruiting. Now, many candidates may be searching for an employer that offers a hybrid work setup.

Disadvantages to Consider

1. Employee engagement

One of the challenges that could arise with a hybrid work model is a disruption to employee engagement. With workers alternating between in-office and remote work, traditional approaches to engagement would need to be revisited. Workers, who are now familiar with and used to working from home, may now struggle to adjust to alternating between home and office work environments  

2. Cybersecurity

For the past year, many company’s HR and IT leaders have had to work more closely to address bumps in the road when it comes to remote work, an issue that could be even more complicated in a hybrid setup. Cybersecurity, in particular, would need significant attention as employees may be carrying equipment to and from the office frequently and using a variety of servers and networks.

3. Collaboration

One of the primary drawbacks of fully remote work is the risk to effective teamwork, as it may be a challenge for some employees to collaborate virtually. Hybrid situations could help remedy that to a degree, but employers should ensure a strong culture of collaboration is in place before making the long-term shift to hybrid.

The workplace is changing, most likely just sped up due to the pandemic, as these changes were in the offing anyway. The acceleration of work from home/remote work and the flexibility it brings offer companies an opportunity to recruit talent from a wider geographic area, assist employees to have a better work/life balance, and force companies to focus on employee engagement more than ever before. Change is good but this is a lot to deal with at all once – HR departments will be busy (and challenged) for the next couple of years managing it all.

Elite Personel offers the best staffing services and solutions in DC and Maryland, so you can hire skilled and talented employees for your company.