Hybrid Work Needs Employee Buy-In on Office Purpose

Hybrid Work Needs Employee Buy-In on Office Purpose December 12, 2024

Benefits and Challenges of Hybrid Work

As hybrid work continues to shape the modern workplace, businesses must navigate the complexities of balancing remote and in-office work. Jeff Williams, former Vice President of Enterprise and HR Solutions at Paychex and current President and CEO at Aptia, did an interview with me to share his insights on the benefits and challenges of hybrid work, emphasizing the necessity of employee buy-in regarding the office’s purpose.

The Benefits of Hybrid Work

Hybrid work arrangements offer significant advantages for both employees and employers. Williams outlines these benefits, noting that hybrid work is crucial for employee well-being and cost management. “Our research tells us that maintaining hybrid work arrangements is really important for workers’ well-being,” he explains. “In an inflationary environment, it’s also vital for helping workers control their costs of work.”

Employees appreciate the flexibility hybrid work provides, leading to higher job satisfaction and better work-life balance. From an employer’s perspective, hybrid work opens up a larger talent pool by addressing geographical constraints. “In a very tight labor market, being able to recruit from a much larger applicant pool is a real benefit,” Williams says. This broader access to talent can significantly enhance a company’s ability to find the right skills and expertise.

The intersection of employee and employer benefits is where the true potential of hybrid work lies. Williams highlights the concept of “presence with purpose,” where in-person interactions are reserved for activities that require deep collaboration and strategic planning. “It’s not just about being somewhere to be present,” he notes, “but being somewhere to drive a better employment experience and better business performance.”

Challenges in Hybrid Work

Despite the benefits, hybrid work also presents several challenges. Williams points out the difficulties in long-term planning for facilities, recruiting, and business strategy. “It still feels a little unsettled,” he admits. Companies are grappling with how to maintain productivity and cohesion when employees are not always physically present.

One significant challenge is the “if I can’t see it, maybe it’s not happening” mindset among managers. This lack of visibility can lead to concerns about command and control. Williams emphasizes the importance of training managers to handle hybrid teams effectively. “Many companies celebrated their ability to withstand going home over a weekend and standing up the company” in a remote setting, he says, but now they face the challenge of maintaining productivity and engagement in a hybrid environment.

Employees also face challenges, particularly related to mental health and isolation. Pre-pandemic, about one in five employees experienced mental health challenges at work; now, that number is closer to one in three. The lack of daily human interaction and support networks can exacerbate feelings of isolation. Additionally, practical issues such as equipment malfunctions and tasks that require in-office presence add to the complexity of hybrid work.

Addressing Managerial Challenges

To address the concerns of managers who struggle with hybrid work, Williams suggests focusing on the purpose behind in-office days. “Why do I want people here Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday?” he asks. By aligning in-office presence with activities that drive business performance and employee engagement, companies can create a more compelling reason for employees to come into the office.

Williams also advocates for a level playing field for remote and in-office employees. “If you’re making social time for those in the office, make social time on Zoom for those that are out of the office,” he advises. Ensuring fairness and equity in monitoring and performance evaluation is crucial. “You need to have a sense of fairness and balance across all your populations,” he stresses.

Co-Constructing the Future of Work

A critical aspect of successful hybrid work policies is involving employees in the decision-making process. Williams emphasized the importance of getting buy-in from team members.

Leaders should consider employees’ feedback and prioritize their needs when designing hybrid work policies. For example, commuting is a significant concern for many employees, particularly those with long travel times. Williams suggests flexibility in scheduling, allowing employees to avoid peak commute times while still working their designated eight hours. “We’ll allow that eight hours to be 7 am to 3 pm or 10 am to 6 pm,” he proposes, highlighting the importance of balancing business needs with employee preferences.

Overcoming Proximity Bias

Proximity bias, where employees who are physically closer to their managers receive favorable treatment, is a real concern in hybrid work environments. Williams advises grounding decisions in data and performance standards to mitigate this bias. “You need to be transparent about what you expect from work and have fair reward and incentive systems in place,” he says.

Leaders should also be mindful of socio-demographic differences that affect who can work from home effectively. Ensuring that performance standards are clear and measurable, regardless of an employee’s location, helps create a fair and inclusive workplace.

The Future of Flexible Work

Looking ahead, Williams believes flexible work is here to stay. “Access to larger labor pools, more accommodation for big commutes, and a variety of roles as you grow a career—these trends are here to stay,” he asserts. 

He acknowledges that the physical workspace will need to adapt. “The physical footprint that’s left is designed to operate at capacity, and we’re not filling it with capacity,” he notes. Future office designs will likely focus more on collaborative spaces and less on traditional walled-off offices.

The continued globalization and automation of work will also play a significant role in shaping the future of work. While these changes can be disruptive, they also offer tremendous economic opportunities. Williams encourages both business leaders and employees to embrace resilience and adaptability.

Conclusion

Hybrid work offers numerous benefits but requires careful management and employee buy-in. By focusing on the purpose of in-office days, involving employees in policy-making, and ensuring fairness and transparency, companies can successfully navigate the complexities of hybrid work and create a thriving, flexible workplace. Williams’ advice on this point aligns well with the suggestions I give clients in consulting with them on how to overcome the frustrations of hybrid work, and I hope leaders will adopt the wise words shared by Williams in our interview.

Key Take-Away

Hybrid work fosters flexibility and access to talent but requires purpose-driven in-office collaboration, equity, and employee involvement to overcome challenges like proximity bias and managerial adaptation…>Click to tweet

 

Image credit: Tima Miroshnichenko/pexels


Dr. Gleb Tsipursky was named “Office Whisperer” by The New York Times for helping leaders overcome frustrations with hybrid work and Generative AI. He serves as the CEO of the future-of-work consultancy Disaster Avoidance Experts. Dr. Gleb wrote seven best-selling books, and his two most recent ones are Returning to the Office and Leading Hybrid and Remote Teams and ChatGPT for Thought Leaders and Content Creators: Unlocking the Potential of Generative AI for Innovative and Effective Content Creation. His cutting-edge thought leadership was featured in over 650 articles and 550 interviews in Harvard Business Review, Inc. Magazine, USA Today, CBS News, Fox News, Time, Business Insider, Fortune, The New York Times, and elsewhere. His writing was translated into Chinese, Spanish, Russian, Polish, Korean, French, Vietnamese, German, and other languages. His expertise comes from over 20 years of consulting, coaching, and speaking and training for Fortune 500 companies from Aflac to Xerox. It also comes from over 15 years in academia as a behavioral scientist, with 8 years as a lecturer at UNC-Chapel Hill and 7 years as a professor at Ohio State. A proud Ukrainian American, Dr. Gleb lives in Columbus, Ohio.

About Dr. Gleb Tsipursky
Known as the Disaster Avoidance Expert, Dr. Gleb Tsipursky is on a mission to protect leaders from dangerous judgment errors known as cognitive biases, which devastate bottom lines and bring down high-flying careers. His expertise and passion is developing the most effective and profitable decision-making strategies, based on pragmatic business experience and cutting-edge behavioral economics and cognitive neuroscience, to empower leaders to avoid business disasters and maximize their bottom lines. You can learn more here https://disasteravoidanceexperts.com/glebtsipursky/ The bestselling author of several books, Dr. Tsipursky is best known for his national bestseller on avoiding disasters and achieving success in business and other life areas, The Truth Seeker’s Handbook: A Science-Based Guide. His next book, Never Go With Your Gut: How Pioneering Leaders Make the Best Decisions and Avoid Business Disasters, is forthcoming with Career Press in November 2019. It’s the first book to focus on cognitive biases in business leadership and reveal how leaders can overcome these dangerous judgment errors effectively. After that he’s publishing The Blindspots Between Us: How to Overcome Unconscious Cognitive Bias and Build Better Relationships with New Harbinger in April 2020, the first book to focus on cognitive biases in professional and personal relationships and illustrate how we can defeat these dangerous judgment errors in our relationships. See more information here https://disasteravoidanceexperts.com/author-page/ Dr. Tsipursky’s cutting-edge thought leadership was featured in over 400 articles he published and over 350 interviews he gave to popular venues that include Fast Company, CBS News, Time, Scientific American, Psychology Today, The Conversation, Business Insider, Government Executive, The Chronicle of Philanthropy, Inc. Magazine, and many others, as you can see here https://disasteravoidanceexperts.com/media/ Dr. Tsipursky's expertise comes from over 20 years of consulting, coaching, speaking, and training for businesses and nonprofits. He serves as the CEO of the boutique consulting, coaching, and training firm Disaster Avoidance Experts, which uses a proprietary methodology based on groundbreaking research to help leaders and organizations maximize their bottom lines by addressing potential threats, seizing unexpected opportunities, and resolving persistent personnel problems. His clients include Aflac, Balance Employment Assistance Provider, Edison Welding Institute, Fifth Third Bank, Honda, IBM, International Coaches Federation, Ohio Hospitals Association, National Association of Women Business Owners, Sentinel Real Estate, The Society for Human Resource Management, RealManage, The Columbus Foundation, Vistage, Wells Fargo, the World Wildlife Fund, and over a hundred others who achieve outstanding client results. You can learn more about that here: https://disasteravoidanceexperts.com/about Dr. Tsipursky also has a strong research and teaching background in behavioral economics and cognitive neuroscience with over 15 years in academia, including 7 years as a professor at the Ohio State University and before that a Fellow at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. His dozens of peer-reviewed academic publications include journals such as Behavior and Social Issues, Journal of Social and Political Psychology, and International Journal of Existential Psychology and Psychotherapy. His civic service includes over 4 years as the Chair of the Board of Directors of Intentional Insights, an educational nonprofit advocating for research-based decision-making in all life areas. He also co-founded the Pro-Truth Pledge, a civic project to promote truthfulness and integrity for individual professionals and leaders in the same way that the Better Business Bureau serves as a commitment for businesses. He serves on the Advisory Board of Canonical Debate Lab and Planet Purpose, and is on the Editorial Board of the peer-reviewed journal Behavior and Social Issues. A highly in-demand international speaker, Dr. Tsipursky has over two decades of professional speaking experience across North America, Europe, and Australia. He gets top marks from audiences for his highly facilitative, interactive, and humor-filled speaking style and the way he thoroughly customizes speeches for diverse audiences. Meeting planners describe Dr. Tsipursky as "very relatable," as "a snap to work with," and as someone who "does everything that you would want a speaker to do." Drawing on best practices in adult learning, his programs address the wide spectrum of diverse learning styles, as attested by enthusiastic client testimonials and references. He regularly shares the stage with prominent leaders, for example recently speaking on a roundtable panel with the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, Secretary General of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies Elhadj As Sy, Chancellor of Austria Brigitte Bierlein, CEO of Penguin Random House Markus Dohle, and billionaire philanthropist and Chair of the Bertelsmann Management Company Liz Mohn. You can learn more about his speaking and see videos here: https://disasteravoidanceexperts.com/speaking/ Dr. Tsipursky earned his PhD in the History of Behavioral Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2011, his M.A. at Harvard University in 2004, and his B.A. at New York University in 2002. He lives in and travels from Columbus, OH. In his free time, he enjoys tennis, hiking, and playing with his two cats, and most importantly, he makes sure to spend abundant quality time with his wife to avoid disasters in his personal life. Learn more about him at https://DisasterAvoidanceExperts.com/GlebTsipursky, contact him at Gleb[at]DisasterAvoidanceExperts[dot]com, follow him on Instagram @dr_gleb_tsipursky and Twitter @gleb_tsipursky. Most importantly, help yourself avoid disasters and maximize success, and get a free copy of the “Assessment on Dangerous Judgment Errors in the Workplace,” by signing up for his free Wise Decision Maker Course at https:// DisasterAvoidanceExperts.com/Subscribe You can read more about the author here.
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