8 Things Companies Get Wrong About Hybrid Work—And How To Get It Right

Hybrid work is the future and organizations are struggling to figure out how to move forward while retaining and engaging their employees.

Unfortunately, assumptions and mistaken beliefs are common. Companies are getting some things wrong about how to bring people back, what motivates employees and what will be most important in creating the best hybrid experience.

There are plenty of examples where companies have dictated a date for people to return and employees have voted with their feet—with only 30% to 50% of people actually showing up. At the same time many people are ready to return—but to better offices than they left. Ultimately, companies must compel people back, not cajole them.

What’s Wrong and How to Be More Right

Despite not doing things perfectly, the good news is companies care enough to try and figure it out. Here’s what they’re getting wrong and how they can be more right.

#1 – Hybrid is an Either-Or

The popular press has set up a false contradiction arguing working from home or remote locations is best, or, on the other hand, arguing offices are best. But this is a meaningless debate. Hybrid work can be the best of both worlds—truly a both-and.

Companies and employees have learned a lot about what works while working from home, and what doesn’t. And these insights can help inspire more flexibility and choice about where people work and better office experiences when they come in.

#2 – Compensation and Remote Work Are Enough

As the talent revolution is in full swing and as people are leaving jobs in droves, some companies are increasing wages and making remote work more available. This is good news for employees, but it won’t be enough. Organizations are making the mistake of believing compensation and flexible working will motivate people to join or stay with their organization. But a bigger picture is necessary.

Employees are concerned about a holistic value equation which goes beyond the elements of compensation and remote work. They want leaders who inspire them, and colleagues who value them. People want cultures which provide direction and involvement as well as clear responsibilities and adaptability.

Consider the example of Evana, a long-term employee who retired early because she just didn’t feel connected with her colleagues anymore. She was paid well and loved the expanded choice of where she could work, but was feeling a void in her experience—based on distance from her colleagues and a deterioration of her company’s culture. Companies will need to consider multiple elements of what makes work rewarding for people—and be intentional about improvement.

#3 – People Don’t Want to Come Back to the Office

Another assumption leaders and organizations are making is that people don’t want to come back to the office. Despite some of the shocking or dispiriting headlines based on small sample sizes of respondents, people do want to return. They may not want to be in the office as much as they were there before, and they may not want to come back to a cube-farm—but they do, in fact, want to be in the office to some extent.

Specifically, people want to come back in order to work better when projects demand face-to-face interaction. And they want to return for the energy and emotional contagion which results from being in places together with others working toward similar ends. They want to come back so they can connect with leaders, build social capital and reignite relationships with co-workers. They value the opportunity to grow their networks and develop their careers.

Some people also want to come back because they value the distance between home and work—and want to re-establish more of a boundary between the two. And for many, the office is a place where they can get away from the distractions of home, and get work done more effectively. In addition, people want to come back for the stimulation and inspiration which result from variety in their routines and settings, and from being together with their community.

#4 – The Office Doesn’t Need to Change

Another mistake companies can make is assuming that their offices don’t need to change. If people left your offices two years ago, getting back may feel like the zombie apocalypse has ensued. The whiteboard with the “Happy St Patrick’s Day 2020” message or the empty coffee cups left on the desks will be energy drains.

Work has changed fundamentally—and the office must change as well. People are doing more remote collaboration and need better technology and spaces in the office to support it. People also expect workplaces which address their wellbeing with spaces for rejuvenation and socializing, and which feature daylight, views, and natural elements. They are demanding places which support them physically, cognitively and emotionally, and give them a sense of community.

People need and expect offices which support them all the ways they work throughout the day—not only in their collaborative work, but in work which requires privacy as well. Wise companies are making the office a magnet, rather than relying on mandates.

#5 – The Office Is (Only) for Socializing

Another mistake organizations are making as they plan for hybrid work is assuming people will do focused work at home and come to the office solely to socialize or collaborate. In reality, work is braided throughout the week and it’s a rare day when an employee is only doing focused work or exclusively collaborating.

In addition, it is short-sighted to believe everyone can focus effectively at home. Despite people doing their best to adapt over the last couple years, for some, it’s tough to get things done at home. Children, pets or the distractions of home can get in the way, and people want the office to support private work, contemplative work and heads-down work when their home doesn’t offer the ideal environment for this kind of effort.

#6 – Total Choice Is the Best Approach

Some organizations have also made the mistake of providing too much choice about where, when and how people work. Rather than offering autonomy with abandon, some guardrails help the work to be smoother and more efficient. If everyone has free rein on their schedules, it will be tough to coordinate calendars. A better approach is for companies to suggest some broad guidelines such as how many days people will be in the office, so people can plan within those windows.

In addition, companies can suggest teams plan for their processes, so they can be intentional about when they’ll all be in the office together—and what parts of their projects benefit from face-to-face, all-remote or hybrid presence. In addition, leaders of teams can coordinate together if their teams’ work intersects. When leaders help to facilitate schedules and rhythms of work, it can make it easier for team members to synch up.

#7 – It’s Not that Hard

Spending more time in the office will be a more significant transition than companies may believe. In addition, for people who have worked in the office all along, things will be different as well—as co-workers return and the dynamics shift. Transitions are hard because people tend to overestimate what they’ll give up and underestimate what they’ll gain in the future.

People will need support in making the transition back to more time in the office, and it is a mistake to assume it’s no big deal. People will need empathy, and companies will be wise to take intentional steps to manage the change.

Paving the way toward adoption will require setting a clear vision and direction from senior leaders who have linked hybrid work with business outcomes, offering opportunities for phasing the return, providing plenty of communication, ensuring leaders are modeling the way, re-orienting people to the office and the work experience, sponsoring events and the like.

#8 – You Have to Get It Totally Right

Organizations are putting themselves under pressure to get things right when people return—from policies and practices to workplaces. But no one can count on how work will shift and how things will proceed.

Companies need to be directionally accurate, but set up systems to gather feedback, measure, monitor and make mid-course adjustments to the place and the practices. The ideal approach will be starting with something that works, and then being ready to learn and improve.

In Sum

Because of the talent revolution, the stakes are high for companies to manage hybrid effectively. But organizations are wise to reflect on their assumptions and ensure they’re not erecting artificial limits to all they can achieve in creating work experiences which engage and inspire people.