By Tracey Hanson, LDS 434

Hybrid work blurs the boundaries between personal and professional life. A flexible workplace allows leaders to achieve organizational goals and objectives both at a fixed common physical site and offsite. Flexible hours allow employees to balance work and family responsibilities.

Prior to the COVID pandemic, the office was our second home.  Post-COVID, the workplace has changed from nearly 100% in the office, subject to AWS schedules, to varied days in the office. Today, we find ourselves operating in flexible locations and changing our culture to become more inclusive by conducting well-being check-ins to ensure productivity and get a sense for how the employee is coping.  To thrive in a hybrid work environment, organizations should adopt practices that support both remote work and in-office collaboration. This includes providing resources for remote work, ensuring work products can be completed away from a fixed office location, and fostering effective communication through virtual meetings and document sharing.

As teams disperse across different locations, fostering a sense of belonging becomes critical. Organizations must actively promote inclusion to ensure that employees have input to work activities regardless of their physical location.  Methods of promoting a culture of inclusion could be regular virtual team meeting, alternating agenda leads, regular virtual team building activities, and utilizing information sharing and document management technology to foster transparent communication.

In my experience, several colleagues indicated that they appreciated weekly check-ins or touchpoints to feel connected due to feelings of isolation while working from home during the pandemic.   Employers should prioritize employee well-being by offering mental health resources, encouraging breaks, and teambuilding. 

Leaders who adapt to the fluid hybrid work environment empower their teams to excel.  Leaders should remember to listen for opportunities for teams to excel, ask questions in teambuilding activities, and develop effective methods to achieve goals and objectives in a hybrid environment.