Returning to the office with a hybrid team? Here are 4 things to get right

It goes without saying that the pandemic has created the greatest workplace transformation of our lifetime, quickly changing the way you and your team work.

Even though the office has opened up again, you may decide to offer employees the choice to continue working from home, in the office, or a mixture of both – creating a new type of hybrid workforce.

Here are 4 tips to creating a successful hybrid workforce:

1. Create a hybrid working policy

With any sort of change, there are always lots of unanswered questions. You’ll need to create a hybrid working policy to answer them. This is all about setting expectations to help protect you, your business and your relationship with your employees.

2. Make sure you’re treating employees fairly

Make it clear to everyone that, although they may be working away from the office, they are still very much in your mind and will be considered for all of the usual things, such as projects, promotions, or additional roles as they would normally be.

3. Rethink how you manage performance

Instead of measuring ‘time’ spent in the office, you may want to reconsider the metrics you’re using to measure employee performance. Use the following instead:

• Business outcomes

• Employee behaviours
• Important activities

4. Focus on team happiness

Just because people are working away from the office, don’t forget to do the things that you would do if they were in the office. It’s not ‘out of sight, out of mind’. Check in with your team regularly. Make sure you have wellness or mental health initiatives in place and arrange social activities.

You may be considering, or have decided, to maintain that element of increased flexibility, by giving your employees the choice to continue working from home, in the office, or a mixture of both and so creating a new type of hybrid workforce.

The benefits of a hybrid workforce can be huge. But, of course, it can also have downsides that you need to both be aware of and manage.

If you would like more tips to return to the office with a hybrid team, download our eBook now. You can also contact us on our website to request any further support with transitioning in to a hybrid team.