Hybrid work is a flexible modality that gives employees autonomy. Those who work under this work scheme have the freedom to carry out their duties from anywhere in the world, it can be at home and eventually from the office.
With the pandemic that required isolation as a security measure, thousands of companies around the world were forced to be creative and join the remote work modality.
In an uncertain landscape with drastic changes in the workplace, hundreds of employees have shown that they are capable of being just as productive working from home as they are working physically in the office. By doing work remotely, employers and employees have discovered the advantages of working remotely.
Once the danger posed by the pandemic had faded, companies questioned whether it was worth going back to the traditional model. For their part, employees who support remote work were reluctant to give up this way of working. After spending more than a year operating remotely, it is impossible for companies to say that it is impossible to work like this, an argument used as a main objection in the past.
Today, although the danger of the pandemic has diminished, it is still a great health risk, even more so when you work with a large team in a small space. It is enough for a collaborator to get sick, to cause chaos of infections. The solution: hybrid work.
What is hybrid work like?
Hybrid work today divides a part of the collaborators remotely with another part directly in the office. Sometimes it is the decision of each boss to organize the remote work calendar and make the pertinent rotations according to the needs of their area.
On the other hand, there are companies that have managed to completely move jobs to the remote model and keep only a small part of the workforce from the office.
Why are companies switching to hybrid work?
Technology facilitates remote work and since there is no need to rent a large space, paying for full services such as electricity, water, internet usually represents savings for companies.
New business models, work processes, and technology investments forced by the global health crisis are prompting companies to fully consider going back to the way they used to work. Many companies are moving towards a hybrid work model to help them compete and succeed in the future.
The hybrid or remote model is also a way to retain or even hire better talent. Cisco conducted a global workplace survey on the hybrid work model that yielded strong results. Only 9% of employees are willing to return to work from the office.
The refusal of companies to support hybrid work can make it difficult for them to attract and retain the talent they need to succeed in the future.
Variations of the hybrid model
Remote work
The company adopts this work model with all its collaborators, that is, it does not matter what area it is, they will be working from home or outside the office.
This model is different for all companies, but those that have understood the value of this work have collaborators in different time zones with communication by default online.
Quora through its CEO Adam D'angelo described their working model as follows:
Remote work will be the main focus of our company, the default option for all options.
D'angelo specified that he would work out of the office and not be there more than once a month, the leadership team would not be in the office either. Despite having a physical space to work, Quora is focused on remote, but they offer the possibility of going to the office for those who wish to do so.
Dropbox is another example of remote-focused hybrid work, despite having offices around the world, it intends for its employees to work remotely and attend physical spaces according to its collaboration guidelines.Dropbox Studios será específicamente para la colaboración y la creación de comunidades, y los empleados no podrán usarlos para trabajar en solitario. Se lee en uno de sus blogs.
Remote work as a priority does not mean that collaborators never see each other. Companies that are fully remote and have understood the model. they organize some sort of annual potluck, and many employees who live in the same city in remote organizations may occasionally choose to work together.
Temporary office
Some companies believe that the best option is to take advantage of the physical space they have available for employees, among other reasons, because it costs, but mainly because they do not understand the value of remote work. This work model is described as hybrid or temporary office.
Unlike Dropbox, the goal here is for employees to work several days a week from the physical office location.
This model uses the office to combine in-person collaboration and individual work. Depending on the needs of the company, this can be a fairly flexible policy, for example, mentioning that employees must attend three days a week.
Instead, they choose to maintain an office and require employees to spend some time in it. Some employees may even want to spend more time there than is required.