June 16, 2022
By Gabrielle Christman
5 Ways to Effectively Lead Your Workforce in a Hybrid Environment
5 Ways to Effectively Lead Your Workforce in a Hybrid Environment
Leadership is challenging, and an ever-changing work environment can leave leaders overwhelmed and directionless. As indicated in a recent Gallup survey, 53% of employers plan to keep or implement a hybrid work environment for their company, suggesting that these workplace changes are here to stay.
The growth of hybrid employees necessitates a leadership shift to create a strong workforce and yield optimal results.
Invest in Technology
No matter your company’s industry or sector, ample and reliable technology is essential in a hybrid work environment.
This means employers should ensure that each employee has access to all required technological tools in both of their workplaces – office and home. With reliable internet connectivity and tools, your employees will be able to work more efficiently compared to employees struggling with slow loading times and out-of-date-software.
Be Flexible and Have Empathy
Having employees work in both the office and at home requires management to be flexible with their schedule. Life happens and employees appreciate understanding if urgent matters come up involving children, health or other personal events.
It is likely that your employees prefer different working environments. You may have one employee who loves to work at home and can be easily distracted at the office, and another that depends on the office for a quiet, uninterrupted workspace. As a manager, adjusting to their individual hybrid work preferences and schedules may elicit the best results.
Meet Often
A JLL study reported that 66% of remote workers miss regular, in-person interactions with their co-workers and bosses in the workplace.
Meeting face-to-face with employees is vital to prevent burnout and feelings of isolation. When employees come into the office for work, consider building time into your schedule to meet with them.
While email and video chatting can still lead to productive conversations, communicating with your employees in person allows for more collaboration, time for questions and human connection that many employees seek in their employer.
During those meetings it’s important to evaluate how hybrid work is going and if the employee feels like it is productive for their role.
Avoid Ambiguity and Communicate
In a hybrid work environment, your employees will rarely be in one place at the same time. Thus, it is important to be clear about your expectations for them, and the goals for your team and company.
Additionally, it is important to clearly communicate in-office expectations of your employees. If you do not set a schedule or discuss expectations, confusion can ensue and caus3e employees to become disgruntled.
Set Boundaries
Like an 8am-5pm office schedule, remote employees also deserve to have set working and non-working times. With remote work, the lines between work time and home life can easily get blurred.
Consider setting expectations for employees not to answer messages or emails during all hours of the day, as it is not sustainable and can lead to burnout. Give them a hard end time of the workday, which leadership should follow as well, to promote a healthy balance.
Implementing these tips will provide a more positive and successful work environment for your employees and will make them feel their time is being considered and used effectively.
—
Need help recruiting effective hybrid workers? Hunter International can help.
Click here for more information on how we can improve your workforce and provide you with the best talent for your organization.
