The emergence of hybrid working styles has significantly altered the modern workplace. Organisations are increasingly providing flexible work arrangements that offer a combination of remote and in-office work.
With the shift to hybrid work, how companies approach employee engagement also needs to shift. With people no longer required to all go into the same office 5 days a week, companies are needing to rethink how they help their workforce feel connected to their work, to the company, and to each other.
Flexibility and Work-Life Balance
Flexibility goes hand-in-hand with hybrid working. A commonly found focus for employee engagement strategies is providing the necessary support to a workforce to make sure they have a healthy work life balance, with the capacity to prioritise both work and personal obligations. When working from home, or other locations outside the office, the line between offline and online becomes blurred more easily. This can lead to individuals feeling tired, stressed and more prone to burnout.
With hybrid roles, companies need to work hard to prevent the knock on effect this can have to employees’ mental health. In fact, with the right support in place, hybrid working even has the potential to improve work-life balance. With less time spent commuting, individuals suddenly have more free time, and feel more in control of their time. Flexible working is a collaborative agreement; employer and employee can work together to create a work schedule that fits your employee’s needs and enables them to be more productive.
Employee Well-Being and Mental Health Support
We’ve already considered how flexible working can support the mental health of those operating in a hybrid role. We also want to examine the other opportunities companies can consider in their hybrid employee engagement strategy to ensure they are looking after their people.
Again, with the team not being in the office everyday, managers need to make a more deliberate effort to check in with hybrid and remote workers by scheduling in weekly 1-1s. Resources and programs for well-being are being used to help staff members maintain a healthy work-life balance. Organisations are also promoting a welcoming and inclusive workplace culture that prioritises mental health, realising its connection to employee engagement and general productivity. Resources cultivated to support a company workforce need to be fully accessible; and not limited to those able to go into the office.
Technological Integration for seamless communication
With hybrid working, a strategy for effective communication needs to be in place. As hybrid working can lead to individuals feeling more isolated from their work peers, a plan needs to be in place to ensure they still feel included and are kept up to date with company life. This is where technology comes in! The importance of technology in creating seamless communication has never been greater.
From video conferencing to project management tools, technology is essential for keeping a workforce connected and motivated; and is even more crucial for those working hybrid or remote. Employees don’t want to be fighting with outdated processes to be able to do their job. If companies don’t have the infrastructure in place to allow them to do their job outside the office, they will seek out job roles elsewhere. Consistently reviewing and evolving how the company runs online is key to retaining talent and supporting the team.
Companies need to invest in platforms and solutions that make team collaboration, and internal communication, an efficient and smooth process. Not one that is hindered by geography.
Recognition and Rewards in a Hybrid Setting
Employee recognition is a powerful tool for companies to wield, especially with hybrid workers. In the era of hybrid work, employee recognition and rewards programs are undergoing a paradigm shift. With the workforce dispersed and at times isolated through hybrid working, it is necessary to modify conventional strategies that may have relied on in-person acknowledgment to accommodate remote and office teams.
With employees not in everyday life, employee recognition has become a key step to ensuring workers feel valued and seen, no matter where they are.
With hybrid working, a balance of employee and team recognition is important. Team recognition can both boost team collaboration and promote a feeling of connectivity between individuals. Individual recognition can help employees recognize they don’t need to be in the office everyday for their contribution to be acknowledged.
Whilst individual recognition acts as a good incentive for employees, companies need to monitor the impact this has on work: of both the individual and the team they are a part of. Too much personal recognition can lead to employees feeling pitted against each other, yet too much focus on team recognition can create a pressure to not let others in the team down. A starting mixture of both, and adapting the approach as the impact of this recognition becomes clear, is best.
With hybrid working comes the easy ability to overwork. Employee rewards and team recognition are a great tactic for companies to help encourage smarter working patterns, and gently discourage this trend.
Measuring and Adapting Strategies
Companies need to set critical criteria to accurately assess employee engagement in the dynamic world of hybrid employment. It might be necessary to reconsider conventional measuring techniques to take advantage of the exceptional opportunities and problems that remote and hybrid models bring.
Establishing feedback channels and implementing continuous improvement techniques is crucial to enhance employee engagement. Organisations are encouraged to change their tactics based on real-time feedback and the developing nature of work settings to provide a dynamic and flexible approach to employee engagement.
Hybrid working is here to stay
Hybrid working has a significant impact on employee engagement. With the advantages hybrid working presents, it also isn’t going away any time soon. Companies must adjust to this modern working environment when revising their approach to employee engagement.
Besides, employee engagement techniques are dynamic and constantly changing in a hybrid workplace. To satisfy the changing needs of a hybrid workforce, companies must be proactive and versatile. Embracing dynamic and inclusive employee engagement tactics will enable success in the hybrid era as the workplace landscape changes.
