Stop debating the benefits of office or remote working, embrace the benefits of both

For all the complications of the pandemic – the isolation, the uncertainty and the end of on-site operations – it arguably kickstarted the working world’s most transformative era. Gone was the daily commute, the enforced nine to five, the office camaraderie and the water cooler moments; in came the Cloud software, the coffee shop conferences, the video calls and the billionth reminder that our laptop microphones were, in fact, muted. Remote working had arrived.

For many, it was a breath of fresh air in an otherwise tumultuous period. With no need to commute, employees had precious extra hours to balance their personal and working lives. Technologies let users access their work from secure Cloud storage, providing any-time, any-place working environments. At long last, jobs could align with employees’ personal values.

And yet, others struggled immensely. Social engagement was stifled. Businesses, battling the challenges of production, service delivery and demand, suffered incomparable losses. Collaboration occurred not in break-out rooms or inspiring environments, but over endless video calls, emails and instant messages. Communication had floundered, along with business growth and employee investment.

In many ways, on-site working is irreplaceable. High-speed working environments need more meaningful and reactive conversations than those we conduct online. Collaboration breeds innovation and is made so much easier when junior and senior staff members have a space to discuss, share and shape the future of their work. Our daily connections strengthen our relationships between our colleagues and our job.

Yet while some have predicted 2023 to be the year of ‘the great return’ to the office,
we’ve arguably invested far too much in our out-of-office solutions to ever retire them. More importantly, there is value beyond that initial investment, and the lessons learned from remote working are indispensable as we explore the modern workplace.

Debates around the value of either a prescribed or open-ended work environment are now, ultimately, futile; today’s dependent on both. To that end, even the way we interpret the 'workplace' is overdue revision. Our workplace is now wherever we lay down our laptops, with our work travelling seamlessly along with us. It’s an environment that creates new opportunities and ensures that employees benefit not from either office or remote working, but both.

So how does our new hybrid workplace unite the two experiences – and evolve their employee offerings?

The opportunities of the hybrid workplace

Attracting and retaining talent

In the wake of the ‘Great Resignation’, which saw dissatisfied employees leaving companies that could no longer cater to their lifestyles, leaders and an ongoing shortage of talent, it behoves leaders to attract talent from all backgrounds and working preferences. By providing options to work both remotely and on-prem, your business offers this flexibility and widens your talent pool further than the local skillset. Crucially, a company that embraces this flexibility attracts the entrepreneurial mind – and promotes better business growth.

Culture and employee engagement

By embracing both options as a whole – and not as disparate experiences – businesses can develop a culture where no employee is left behind. Naturally, this means developing a fluid, more holistic approach to your technologies and schedules, but doing so provides employees with an always-available workload, and ensures tighter working consistency. Employees will feel empowered knowing that their work won’t be limited by location, and by operating an always-open policy, they will have the freedom to enter and exit your working premises. Their work, and their colleagues, will be available without compromise – and that’s a reassuring standard.

An environment that aids and enables

Remote working needn’t distract from a rewarding workplace experience; if anything, it’s instrumental in making your premises prosper. The cost of implementing remote working can be offset by the overheads it reduces. Servers and software can be hosted online, freeing up space on-premises. A more open office allows you to restructure; could you create quiet areas for those that need them or space out phone operators for clearer client comms? Could you, quite simply, decorate premises for a more vibrant work environment – or create more relaxed break-out spaces where ideas can flow more naturally?

Perfecting the office experience

As the return to work picks up its pace, it’s natural to incentivise workplace visits. Leaders can create brighter spaces, evaluate the needs of their workforce and make a place that employees will want to return to – knowing that the door is always open to them.

It needn’t be complex either, with a two-pronged approach reliant simply on technology and leadership. Cloud technologies are already standardised (if not biased!) towards this hybrid approach, reflective of their users’ ongoing needs and demands. Yet it’s leadership, and how they embrace this open-ended culture, that decides on the hybrid workplace’s success.

Embrace your workers’ needs and demands, create an inclusive, open-ended work environment and leverage the technologies available. In doing so, your hybrid workplace will endear and endure.