Hybrid Work as a Key Strategy, not a crisis response
- Zoe Lim
- Jun 29, 2021
- 3 min read
Now, is the time for organizations to start moving towards positioning hybrid work as an enabler in achieving strategic goals, rather than a response to a crisis, urged the authors of the article. The pandemic has reminded us how well and quickly organizations and individuals adapt when "push comes to shove". We have proven once again that the sky is the limit when we are determined. With renewed confidence and accelerated innovation supported by better infrastructure, it is crucial for leaders to carry out organizational changes as soon as possible.
However, the authors remind leaders to take note of nuances and hidden tensions in their planning. They interviewed 38 top leaders of various industries from multiple Nordic countries to find out about the challenges of hybrid work. The findings highlighted key imperatives leaders must take note of. Here are some findings that I resonated with.
1. Increase Managerial training and Mentoring
Having been a middle manager for the past 6 years, I must say, it is challenging. Managers have to manage incessant demands from the leaders and manage the performance of team members. Naturally, the pandemic made it tougher to manage the diverse needs.
A very real example are virtual meetings. Leaders, who are highly self-directed, confident and well-equipped with soft skills prefer virtual meetings. On the other hand, employees further down the hierarchy tend to struggle with the onslaught of information without physical guidance. This leads to tension within the organization that ultimately impact the work of managers. Therefore, upskilling managers to master people management and becoming better mentors should be priority.
2. Not all meetings are suitable to take place virtually
The authors reminded leaders that a huge part of effective communication comes from reading the body language. Therefore it is imperative for leaders to identify which meetings require body language. These are the meetings that should be conducted face to face, while the rest can be conducted virtually. I had never thought of it this way!
3. The model of Central coordination with local entrepreneurs
I'm an advocate for autonomy and risk-taking at the workplace. I believe it increases ownership, a sense of belonging and improves staff engagement. It's always a pity to witness employees who take initiative but are not given the opportunity to try our their ideas because the leaders didn't like it. Over time, they become jaded and simply go with the flow. The potential is left untapped.
Therefore I do like this model, where local responsiveness and initiative is enabled within the boundaries defined by a central coordination team. However, for that to take place effectively, the authors encourage organizations to have a clear, shared vision and put in place effective performance management coupled with regular follow up. Spending time to fine tune such mechanisms allows local flexibility to achieve long term goals. Moreover, such mechanisms and processes should be robust enough, tried and tested (in the pandemic) so as to ready organizations to cope with future emergencies from a vantage point and use it to their benefit.
If I were summarize the gist of these findings into a word, it would be COMMUNICATION. Humans are social beings and how we communicate has always been the cornerstone of all relationships. Covid didn't change that nor did social media take that away. We are communicating more than ever through these platforms and Covid only further emphasized our basic need to interact and mingle. We cannot stand any further lockdowns. Focusing on contextualized communication will therefore put organizations in the best position for success.
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