Hybrid Office Done Right – Tips on Managing Remote Employees

It’s high time we focus on that modern hybrid office thing that shapes trustworthiness, reliability, and flexibility as never seen before

We went through a lot of changes during the pandemic. Certainly, the majority of them had to do with our perception of things – all of a sudden we began viewing health and socialization in an entirely different way.  We learned the hard way how important it is to take care cautiously both for ourselves and for others as well.

A big part of those pandemic years was the social distancing that kept us at our homes most of the time. Luckily for the people in the tech industries, we all managed to cope with the ever-changing authority requirement and began working from our homes. We surely were able to allow ourselves this luxury – in those frightening and unstable times when many people lost their jobs, we, in the IT sector, successfully continued working. All we did was just change our location.

But when you look at things closely, we had to face a lot more than relocating.

Many obstacles and issues emerged once we stayed at home and began logging in from our laptops. We all had to get used to the “new normal state” of workflow – employees had to keep their work productivity intact while employers had to master the craft of trust, lack of complete control, team management from a distance, etc.

All of a sudden hybrid offices began shaping the future of work in the IT industry

I’m sure in the beginning we all had concerns.

After all the years and decades of office work, all of a sudden we had to stay at home and work from the coziness of our living room. Sure, it was strange and bizarre at first, but at least we had the chance to continue our professional endeavors. So it was definitely worth the shot.

Sooner rather than later home offices turned out to be a very pleasant idea for the majority of the participants – employers had the chance to save up from renting office spaces while the employees felt the freedom behind executing major work duties in their pajamas.

Along with the many pros, there were no fewer cons as well. We all had to implement the power of self-management to make sure we won’t fall victim to the sudden informal surroundings. Some of us also had to learn to trust both our employees and employers that things will run smoothly. We had to realize that work is work no matter where you are – I’m sure many of you felt the need to call it quits and take a nap but then realize you are supposed to be present at your home office.

The truth is I highly suspect this remote type of work has already shaped the future of IT and technology businesses. Sure, at the beginning we were all concerned about whether or not things will work, but after a short period of time, I believe we all saw virtually no reasons for them not to. As of today, many companies out there decided to keep the hybrid office option. It turned out it was quite difficult to call your employees over back in the office after two years of remote work. The apparent question all employers met surely was:

But why do I have to get back to the office full-time when I did my work just fine from home?

And they all have a point.

Luckily, there’s nothing wrong with the concept of hybrid offices if executed correctly

My team consists both of employees at the office and ones that work remotely. As a matter of fact, I find the hybrid office environment quite handy, since it gives me the opportunity to hire whoever I want without the obstacles of different cities or even different countries.

Don’t get me wrong. I highly value the team spirit and I believe it’s best conceived live. But then again, we are not supposed to limit ourselves when it comes to inviting abroad future fellow coworkers only because they live elsewhere.

The key to a successful hybrid office is, essentially, trust and having a team that takes their job seriously. It all goes down to hiring individuals who would work with the same passion and dedication no matter where they are located. Perhaps finding such people is not an easy task, but it’s definitely worth the shot.

If you are conducting a hybrid office environment and feel you need some tips and tricks to make things work, then check down below. I’ll point out some advice on maintaining a successful hybrid office and managing employees remotely.

As a CEO/manager, what can you do in order to ensure the successful workflow even remotely?

• hire people who demonstrate trustworthiness and loyalty – you’ll definitely need a team that takes their duties seriously
• build a system where micromanaging is often avoided – micromanaging is old news; instead, make sure you build a team that knows what they are doing and how to execute tasks and duties correctly, in time, and effortlessly
• be clear and precise about the expected end results – one thing is to work shoulder to shoulder with your team, a whole other thing is to manage tasks remotely. In order to ensure a lack of misunderstanding, make sure you are really clear, precise, and to the point when handing over tasks and agendas
• frequently engage in Zoom calls with your remote employees – even though all tasks and agendas are clear, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t pay special attention to your remote employees. Conduct conversations with them on Zoom to make sure everything’s running smoothly – both in work-related issues and overall.
• use management software – Asana is a great tool where you can create boards and calendars and frequently update your team’s tasks. You can also assign duties and set deadlines.
• make sure you’re open to answering various types of questions – while working on a task, there’s a chance a whole lot of questions can emerge. Make sure you provide your employees with consultations and feedback. If you are not available all the time, schedule certain times when they can ask questions and exchange opinions with you. This strategy will greatly improve everyone’s workflow.
• be open to flexible working hours – remote offices gave us all the opportunity to choose our working hours based on our personal preferences and active state of consciousness. Your team may consist of both early birds and night owls – let them work at those time slots when their productivity is sky-high.
• don’t forget to frequently encourage them and praise their work – the lack of live contact can sometimes discourage some people. When at the office, you’re more likely to give kudos to a coworker who nailed that task. Don’t forget to do the same with your remote employees as well.

The bottom line

All in all, we could say that the hybrid office is the future. We all were there and we saw it works just fine. Of course, it comes with a whole lot of pros and cons but what’s important is to actually make sure we are able to sustain a positive and productive remote working environment. If we manage to achieve this, then I believe we’ll discover a whole another world of better job opportunities, excelling in communication, and building trust, loyalty, and reliability in ourselves.

What’s not to like about that?