The hybrid workplace is the workplace of today, tomorrow, and long into the future. It provides flexibility that employees love. Plus, it helps businesses simultaneously reduce their operating costs and boost productivity and efficiency.
There’s a lot to like about the hybrid workplace. Yet how you build your hybrid office can have far-flung effects on your company’s success.
An employee-first hybrid office is key. This office ensures the wellbeing of employees is put front and center. The office allows employees to feel and perform their best. It also empowers businesses to get the best results from their hybrid workers.
Why You Need to Create an Employee-First Hybrid Office
The sooner you embrace an employee-first hybrid office, the better. Many companies are expected to adopt hybrid workplaces in the months and years to come. This is due in large part to the fact that the hybrid workplace of the future is safe, sustainable, and flexible.
A hybrid workplace gives employees opportunities to complete work tasks in a traditional office setting and outside of it. If employees have ongoing concerns about the COVID-19, they can continue to work remotely. Or, workers who prefer to come into the office frequently can do so.
Meanwhile, businesses can reduce their carbon footprint by offering hybrid work opportunities. They can provide tips and tricks to help hybrid employees limit their electricity use and fuel consumption when they work at home, too.
A hybrid workplace can help employees maintain a healthy work-life balance as well. Hybrid employees can spend less time commuting to work and more time at home with family. They can do so without sacrificing their workplace performance.
Tips to Create an Employee-First Hybrid Office
There are many things you can do to establish an employee-first hybrid office that meets your workers’ expectations. These include:
1. Learn from Your Workers
Find out what your employees want from your hybrid office. You can conduct employee questionnaires and surveys to collect feedback from your workers. Next, you can use this feedback to create a hybrid office that suits your workers perfectly.
Consider your employees’ workplace rights relative to your hybrid office. Your hybrid employees must receive the same level of support as your in-house workers.
2. Establish an Onboarding Program for Hybrid Workers
Make it easy for hybrid workers to hit the ground running. Create an onboarding program to ensure workers receive the tools and technologies they need to thrive.
Your onboarding program can include steps for employees to follow when they begin working in hybrid roles. The program can explain what resources are available to help employees adjust to working remotely. It can highlight who hybrid workers can contact if they have concerns or questions, too.
3. Keep the Lines of Communication Open
Communicate and host meetings with hybrid workers regularly. Verify hybrid workers understand their roles and receive ample support. If workers need help, they should have no trouble reaching out for assistance.
Offer hybrid workers multiple communication platforms. You can communicate with hybrid workers via phone calls, emails, and other communications. In addition, you can use Slack and other real-time communication platforms. You can also leverage video conferences for face-to-face meetings.
4. Promote a Healthy Work-Life Balance
Educate hybrid workers about the value of a healthy work-life balance. Hybrid employees are expected to perform a wide range of duties. At the same time, they should take care of themselves. This ensures hybrid employees are well-equipped to perform at peak levels without putting their health in danger.
Encourage hybrid workers to take regular breaks throughout the day. These breaks enable workers to step away from the hustle and bustle of work. When workers return, they can feel revitalized and ready to tackle any tasks.
Provide flexible work hours and other perks to foster a healthy work-life balance among your hybrid workforce. That way, hybrid employees can use these perks to stay on track and be great at work.
The Bottom Line on Creating an Employee-First Hybrid Office
An employee-first hybrid office can be a difference-maker for your business. The office can help your company attract and retain top talent and achieve its desired results.
Start building an employee-first hybrid office today. You can establish a hybrid office where workers of all skill and experience levels can succeed. From here, your company can reap the benefits of your hybrid office for many years to come.
This blog was printed with permission.
About the Author: Dan Matthews is a writer, content consultant, and conservationist. While Dan writes on a variety of topics, he loves to focus on the topics that look inward on mankind that help to make the surrounding world a better place to reside. When Dan isn’t working on new content, you can find him with a coffee cup in one hand and searching for new music in the other.
