Tips for Implementing a Hybrid Work Plan
Creating a hybrid office arrangement is the first big step toward effective post-pandemic office management. It is imperative to clearly communicate current and future expectations to employees. Many processes and procedures will likely be shifting, and a strong internal messaging program will ensure engagement and productivity, helping you avoid confusion and frustration.
Because it is new, your initial plan is likely to require adjustment over time. It’s okay not to have all the answers at the beginning. Once you establish clear channels of communication and create feedback opportunities, it will be easier to achieve optimal workflows. As time goes on, you will have many opportunities to help everyone in the office feel comfortable, welcome, and productive.
Here are some specific strategies to help your team acclimate to hybrid work.
Optimize the In-Office Work Experience
When introducing the concept of a hybrid work arrangement, it is important to understand your employees’ needs for productivity. Many businesses consider trading in dedicated workspaces for a ‘hoteling’ arrangement, where desks are used by different people on different days. To maximize the benefit of an in-person work environment, greater emphasis (and space) is dedicated to collaboration. It is important to solicit input from your workforce to maximize engagement.
When communicating with employees, inform them of the new facility arrangements you may have introduced, such as:
- You may utilize an access control system that enables you to see how many people are in the space at one time and plan for teams to alternate in-office days or group them in certain areas to avoid overcrowding.
- If implementing shared workstations, it may be necessary to introduce a reservation system for desks, shared spaces, and meeting rooms.
- Providing additional amenities such as staff lounges, team lunches, or food trucks is a popular way to draw more people into the office.
The more thorough you can be about processes and new technology, the more confident workers will be as they navigate hybrid arrangements. To provide an additional layer of reassurance, it is helpful to assign an employee to act as your hybrid workplan champion and answer questions and address concerns related to hybrid work.
Promote In-Office Collaboration
Hybrid work offers employees the best of both worlds — collaborating and socializing in the office and doing focused work that requires concentration at home. This arrangement is especially appealing to employees who don’t want to be in a group environment all the time. To maximize the benefit of the in-office experience, try these tips:
- Invite employees to share their schedules with their teams and other people they work with frequently.
- Provide detailed instructions on how to book a specific workstation, conference room, or other space and any access to printers or videoconferencing equipment.
- Enhance collaboration by recommending that meetings and brainstorming sessions are held in person.
- Plan gatherings for special occasions and to celebrate major accomplishments.
Manage and Maintain Your Hybrid Work Plan
Once you have established which steps you will be taking to accommodate a hybrid work arrangement, you need a method of tracking how you are effectively adopting those plans and sharing the findings with the organization, so they have a real understanding of the progress being made. Also, ensure that everyone understands their responsibilities and knows where they can go with questions or concerns.
This can be accomplished via email, through regular team meetings, or in a recurring all-hands meeting with top leaders. Expect there to be aspects that need to be worked out, new issues that arise, and employees who are not satisfied with the established arrangement. You should equip your dedicated hybrid work champion to manage these concerns and offer tips for process and policy improvements. Plan to reevaluate your hybrid work plan quarterly at first and annually thereafter.
Kastle Can Help
As a leader in optimizing workplace productivity, Kastle can provide several solutions that assist businesses in streamlining hybrid work arrangements to increase productivity and maximize efficiency.
Access Control – One of the most important data points businesses need when implementing a hybrid work plan is determining who is working in the office on which days and times.
This can be achieved by installing a cloud-based electronic smart access system like KastlePresence®, where this data is recorded daily and available on-demand in real-time from any location.
Kastle’s base tenant package is a hybrid work starter kit for office managers who want to streamline hybrid work as quickly and efficiently as possible. This kit includes a reader and controller with an option to adopt either KastlePresence smartphone-based credentials or access cards and fobs. This package enables offices to track on-site attendance patterns by day or by the office team to assess adherence to attendance schedules. It also ensures that only people with access privileges enter the office as entry patterns shift.
A mobile KastlePresence option offers superior convenience and safety and enables a daily health screening as well. While cards and fobs capture access activity data, they are less convenient than smartphone-integrated systems that can be managed remotely. The mobile option provides a convenient, modern, hands-free employee experience at the office. Additionally, staff members are less likely to suffer the hassle of forgetting their badges because their credentials are on their smartphones.
Kastle manages and monitors the system so administrators can focus on their work. Nationwide, Kastle is the leader in managed security, servicing over 3,600 commercial buildings and 41,000 businesses.
Learn more about Kastle’s Hybrid Work Starter Kit