The covid-19 pandemic enforced all industries and organizations to think differently to sustain in the disastrous market and have business continuity. It was an emergency situation, then.

Not all industries could survive. IT Industry and other process-based support industries tried to help the core industries to have some percentage of business continuity, using a different Model called Work-From-Home (WFH). This model supported the staff and contributed towards the sustenance of their line of business for their organization for almost two years.

Employees who adapted to WFH, who contributed, could sustain and didn't lose their employment.

Things started returning to normalcy almost after two years, and employees got used to and were comfortable working from home.

Later, many industries, especially the IT and support industry, introduced a new working model called the Hybrid Work Model. It combines Work-From-Home (Remote) and Working in Office (Onsite). It is a very flexible work model in which the employees, employees-supervisors/managers, and the organization can decide onsite and remote working days for the employees.

There are many benefits and challenges of adapting this hybrid model for an employee, organizations, and their end customers/clients.

Benefits 

Employees

• Flexible working time
• Saving on travel costs and efforts
• Independent contribution highlighted
• Work-life balance and improvement in the efficiency of work
• Get enough time with family and family support and socializing
• Employees saved on house rental, which is a high cost as they started working from their respective natives and hometowns
• Employees benefited from good salary hikes, bonuses, and even promotions, as some percentage of cost saved on commercial expenses and infrastructure was passed on in recognizing the deserving employees

Organization

• The organization is benefited big-time as it can build a more stable, efficient, and productive work-force
• Extended hours availability, beyond and 8 hrs shift or work-time
• Availability of key resources in the office (In-person) for high-priority and crucial tasks whenever required
• Saving in office infrastructure and commercial expense
• Global talent acquisition
• End Customers benefit from quality deliverables, right on time and affordable, as the cost of engaging a Hybrid Project Team would be lesser than a full-time office-based project team

Challenges

• Difficulty in managing Hybrid and Non-Hybrid split teams
• Difficulty in collaborating and working together with employees located in remote locations
• Loss of In-Person value and impact, especially for leadership roles
• Loss of Inter-personal rapport and professional office culture
• Daily communication-related issues with Hybrid Work-Force
• How to measure the productivity of the employee
• Sometimes, non-availability of crucial/Key employees for business meetings due to flexible-working hours
• A hybrid work model cannot be applicable and suitable for all industries. Industries like manufacturing and supply chain, health care, education, transportation, airlines, In-Person banking, etc, need onsite employees' presence full-time

Nevertheless, this new Hybrid-Work Model is a highly acceptable current industry working standard and model, especially for IT industry and other support industries to the core industries. 

Survey reports from reputed survey agencies also say there is sizable acceptability of hybrid working in many industries, and many companies workforces are working in the Hybrid Work Model.

Work models, processes, and standards are continuously evolving, and any change for the benefit of the organization, its end-customers, and employees should always be accepted with an open mind and practiced.

This article was contributed by our expert Nishit Patil

Frequently Asked Questions Answered by Nishit Patil

Q1. How do you lead a hybrid team effectively?

• Have frequent team meetings and effectively involve both hybrid and non-hybrid (office-based) teams so that the hybrid team members feel the importance of their inclusion and ownership of the project w.r.t their tasks and activities and are accountable
• Create a strong bond and a good team culture to keep all the team members connected
• Effective and frequent communication and collaboration through e-mails, WhatsApp groups, and GoogleMeet/Team Meet to keep the teams tightly bonded and no one feels left out
• Regularly take stock of the work and workload of all team members and how they perform and take cordial and win-win corrective actions for optimistic results

Q2. What is the key to a successful hybrid work model?

• Prepare and publish best practices and processes and code-of-conduct for the hybrid work model
• Use an appropriate framework and remote-work tools to practice the hybrid work model effectively
• Review productivity using the hybrid work model framework and remote-work tool of teams and team members
• Engage team members in work and also team-based remote fun events
• Give more benefits and special perks to hybrid teams as they may lose on in-person benefits and advantages

Q3. What are the most common hybrid work models?

• Company-based fixed hybrid work model, where the company decides and fixes days of the week and times for employees to work remotely and in-office
• Employees-based hybrid work model, where employees choose the work timings and location (remote or in-office) to work based on the need of the hour, schedule, and their project priorities and precedences
• Primary-office based hybrid work model- employees work primarily from the office most of the day and work some days remotely
• Primary-remote-based hybrid work model- employees work remotely mostly and come to work in the office sometimes

Q4. Is the hybrid work model here to stay?

Yes, the hybrid work model is definitely here to stay. Both the company/employer and employees are benefited

• It is cost-effective as it saves infrastructure and its operating costs which are substantial (saving on fixed and current working capital expense/cost/investments)
• Gives employees a good work-life balance. They save on travel time to the office and can use it more productively for work and family. Employees are more productive and overall improve the hybrid team's productivity
• Affordable project-cost of engagement for the company's clients as the billing rates will be less and affordable for clients compared to total office-based billable employee rate cards offered for client projects