Flexible Well-Being: Navigating the Transition to Hybrid Work Models in 2023

2024-03-12 07:54:47

The mass transition to remote work in March 2020 upended the norms of where. However, true flexibility is much greater than the freedom of working remotely. Many companies began the path back to in-person presence in 2023. But the requirement for a flexible framework adapted to specific needs that guarantees the balance of personal, family and professional life has also become the basis for the physical and emotional well-being of the staff.

As much of the debate continues in the hybrid environment, where most organizations operate and where individual employee experiences can vary wildly, consulting firm McKinsey has created a Organizational Health Index to evaluate the impact of these work organization models on well-being.

The index is based on the cultural standard established by organizations that telework 100% of the time, taking into account two key factors:

Work environment: How effectively and in what manner the organization cultivates a clear and consistent set of values ​​and norms that foster an efficient, enjoyable and productive work environment while working remotely.

Motivation: How effectively and in what manner the organization develops employee loyalty and enthusiasm, and inspires people to make extraordinary efforts to perform at their best.

The index, which has analyzed more than 2,600 companies from 100 countries, has revealed that companies that have maintained 100% of remote work and have taken care of these two parameters, have achieved exceptional rates in the assessment of health and well-being by part of its employees. In view of this data, the question arises: strategically, is it a wise move to return to full presence?

Three areas to advance in flexibility

The alternative is to risk losing people and not attracting crucial talent at a time when human resources departments face the challenge of finding talent, above all, for critical positions. According to the consulting firm, 44% of people who temporarily left work during the pandemic returned because they were offered a flexible work environment.

Since competitiveness is extraordinary, globalization transcends all types of organizations thanks to technology and the talent that a company needs can be anywhere in the world, McKinsey recalls that there are three areas in which companies can work on their flexibility. There are forms of work organization that offer employees a feeling of control over their professional and personal lives, whether they are working in person, hybrid or remotely.

• Where you can work.
  • This is the element that is most ingrained in the way companies view flexibility. Among employees who left the workforce and then returned, nine in 10 said having control of where work can be done was an important factor, regardless of whether the role was in-person, remote or hybrid. Leaders should consider ways to give employees a sense of control over where they work. Hybrid work models, with fixed days in the office, are falsely flexible, and not all parts of an in-person job have to be done in person. For example, a large technology company adopted a model called “Retail Flex,” which allows its in-store employees to work remotely when performing technical support or online sales tasks.
• When you can work.
  • This element of flexibility may include employees setting their own work days and hours, giving sufficient advance notice of overtime and schedule changes so that work remains predictable, and allowing people to take time off when appropriate. necessary. Three in four employees, whether in-person, hybrid, or remote, reported that having control over when they work was a key factor influencing their decision to accept their current job. To retain employees, organizations must find ways to reset expectations of 24/7 availability and stop imposing rigid schedules on employees. They must trust that the job will get done and leave employees with enough time and energy to attend to their personal responsibilities and well-being. A large automotive company instituted digital shutdown periods and disabled employees’ ability to send and receive work emails on weekends and company holidays.
• How it can work.
  • This third element of flexibility means putting employees in the driver’s seat of their daily work activities, from allowing them to control their workload to empowering them to decide how to perform work tasks. Three in five in-person employees and four in five hybrid or remote employees reported that having control over how work is completed was an important reason for accepting their current job. A technology, media, and telecommunications company rewards employees for improving efficiency. When a smart employee automated a time-consuming task and saved four hours a week, the company not only expanded his job responsibilities to fill the four “extra” hours, but encouraged him to spend the recovered time on a lunch prolonged, to work on a personally meaningful project or to socialize with peers.

This is the image of flexible well-being

According to McKinsey, the Emotional Health Index has shown that companies that offer a flexible workplace with a high level of well-being carry out the following practices:

The six characteristics of flexible well-being

1.- Clarity regarding work practices. They set expectations, clear and consistent meeting protocols, and incorporate asynchronous work practices, enabling collaboration without real-time communication, through role clarity and operational discipline.

2.- Performance expectations. They create an environment where colleagues inside and outside the office feel on a level playing field, through performance goals and reviews.

3.- Transparency. They have a single source of information for all managers and employees (for example, a regularly updated manual that establishes rules and regulations), through the sharing of knowledge and process-based capabilities.

4.- Management adapted to the hybrid model. Hybrid organizations encourage informed and intentional decisions to work together in person, focusing on the moments that matter, helping employees understand work rules and why they are asked to come to the workplace. When work is 100% remote, these companies start from the same principle.

5.- Trust and commitment. These organizations build a welcoming work environment that generates a feeling of belonging, trust and well-being.

6.- Learnability. They make agile decisions, evaluate regularly and define what works and what needs to be improved. The culture generated shares the lessons learned, including failures, and establishes a leadership model that is characterized by digitalization and data-based decision making.

The time has come for a multifaceted understanding of flexibility. Gaining the competitive advantage in attracting new talent means embracing the where, when and how of flexibility. But you must have a strategy that generates an adequate work environment and keeps staff motivated. From a business point of view, the dilemma is very clear. Maintain flexibility to retain talent and grow; or return to face-to-face and see unwanted turnover increase.

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