Hybrid working – tips and tricks for 2023

According to a 2022 survey by the Office of National Statistics (ONS), 8 out of 10 workers who were forced to work from home during the 2020/21 pandemic said they planned to continue hybrid working for the foreseeable future, with the proportion of workers working from both home and their usual office location steadily rising.

The study also revealed some other interesting stats, such as:

• Hybrid working was most popular amongst the UK’s highest earners (32% of the entire hybrid workforce)
• Hybrid working was most common amongst workers aged 30-49
• The most common benefit of remote working was an improved work-life balance

3 years from March 2020 and the directive to work from home, the adoption of hybrid working is unsurprising. Employers and employees alike have adapted to this new way of working, enjoying benefits such as wider recruitment opportunities and fewer distractions in the office. Organisations that have successfully adopted hybrid working have transformed their offices into hubs where people can meet face-to-face, making the office a more engaging, fun environment that enables team collaboration.

So, as another year of hybrid working starts, what are our favourite tips and tricks that we can share to improve hybrid working for your teams in 2023?

Technology

Improved communication and collaboration tools are vital for a successful hybrid working environment. Organisations must ensure that teams have the right technology to enable them to move seamlessly from their remote locations into the office quickly and efficiently.

Consider a technology audit for all your employees and meeting spaces to ensure everyone has the best possible meeting experience, regardless of where they are accessing the meeting from. Investing in enterprise-quality audio and video delivers meeting equity, whereas tools like wireless sharing devices enable meetings to always get started quickly and on time. Office locations might also benefit from room and desk booking systems to manage meeting room and desk space usage.

Apps

When it comes to making teams more productive when hybrid working, many apps and tools are available. Here are three productivity apps that will help your teams in 2023.

1. Project management or task tracking tools like Monday, Asana and Trello are great for helping teams organise and manage their work and keeping on track of progress and upcoming deadlines.
2. File sharing and cloud storage platforms enable teams to access, share and collaborate in real-time on documents, presentations and other files at any time, regardless of where they are located. Our favourites are Dropbox, Google Drive and Box.
3. Time tracking and attendance management tools like Toogl Track are also helpful for managers to monitor and manage hours worked by remote team members.

Health & Wellbeing

Maintaining the health and well-being of staff is a critical factor for successful hybrid working environments. Investing in the following simple practices will help contribute effectively to the overall well-being of your employees and avoid burnout or exhaustion.

1. Ensure you have clear channels of communication and that information is readily available. It’s also critical for managers to lead and have regular update meetings or 121s with their staff.
2. Trust, trust, trust! If you have adopted hybrid working across your organisation, it’s important that you give teams clear direction on the output you expect and then let them deliver – don’t micro-manage!
3. Invest in well-being solutions apps like Welbot that focus on daily physical and mental health exercises that pop up at intervals during the working day.
4. Consider your employee benefits programme and whether additions like free gym membership can be added.
5. Start team competitions like cycling or running challenges to get people away from their desks and start moving.

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