Embracing hybrid working is the key to a flexible and productive workforce, but it comes with its own set of challenges. In this article, we offer 5 quick tips that will guide your employee engagement strategies to make hybrid working a success.
1.Be open to supporting different ways of working
Working patterns differ with each team and individual. It’s easy to understand that those working in finance will likely enjoy a different schedule to a web developer, for example. As a result, it’s important to ask your teams how they prefer to work – to get the best output from them. Giving them the autonomy to work the way they want, and supporting them to make this a reality, can make a huge difference to your hybrid teams.
2.Use repetitive messaging to connect with your employees
Even if you think your internal communications are clear, it’s surprisingly easy for messages to miss their target – especially with employees split between home and the office. The key to fixing this is repetition.
We all process an enormous amount of information in our day-to-day, so, understandably, a message that’s delivered only once is likely to get lost within this information overload. But if you bring a message to your employees’ attention more often, this makes it easier to process and understand the information. Also, having well-informed employees has its benefits. Those that feel well-informed are more engaged in their workplace, with higher levels of productivity than their co-workers.
3.Personalise your communications
To communicate effectively with your hybrid workforce, you need to ensure that both your office and home-workers are delivered content how, where and when they want it. Don’t know their preferences? Ask them by using pulse surveys – and listen to what they have to say, adapting your strategy accordingly. If your communications are personalised for both sets of employees, this will be much more successful than a one-size-fits-all approach.
4.Encourage a healthy work-life balance
Listen to the things that matter to your employees and enable your people to be there for the things that they love – be it for their family, kids or another priority. Giving your employees this flexibility in their personal lives enables them to be more productive and dedicated to their professional lives. A healthy work-life balance increases employee happiness, productivity (up to 15%!), creativity, and reduces the chances of burnout.
5.Embrace the rise of asynchronous communication
As much as synchronous communication (real-time interactions) has a place for brainstorms or regular team meetings, it may be getting in the way of your organisation’s success. Calendars full of meetings often reduce your employees’ output and increase the chances of burnout.
Embracing asynchronous communication through messaging tools and email threads (with adjusted expectations for response times) makes employees much more productive. This also makes your workplace a more inclusive environment for both introverts and extroverts, allowing them to contribute equally – and with the time to craft quality responses.
Hybrid workforces often have employees with different work schedules, making asynchronous communication a better fit – as real-time interactions aren’t as easy to organise.
When people are heard, teams are happy!
Stribe makes it easier for business leaders and HR teams to support the engagement, wellbeing, and mental health of their employees. To learn more about Stribe and how our employee engagement platform can help your team be the best they can be – get in touch today.