The Future of Work - Going Hybrid

It is already foreseeable that collaboration within teams and entire companies will change significantly in the future. Hybrid-working, i.e. situation-dependent working in the office, from home or at other locations, is one of the key terms when thinking about the future of collaboration.

Hybrid-working brings a number of benefits for employees and the company. On the one hand, employees are free to choose where they work, save time and money they would normally spend during their commute and on the other, the company may save office space. Furthermore, if employees no longer have to necessarily show up at the office every day, the company can set a much wider search radius when it comes to recruiting new employees. The offer of hybrid working is also a decision criterion and market advantage in the competition for the best talent.

Particularly among Generation Z (those born 1997 or later), the demands on a job are characterized by, among other things, flexibility and structuring their tasks freely and on their own. Members of Generation Z grow up as internet natives, so digital interaction is something that comes naturally to them. Companies that promote this clearly have a greater appeal than companies that are more conservative in their approach to the possibilities of hybrid working. It is also apparent that startups and smaller companies are clearly ahead of traditional, larger companies when it comes to attracting Generation Z employees.

Nevertheless, hybrid-working is only part of the challenge that needs to be mastered. Another is hybrid-leadership. As in the past, leaders continue to play a key role in the future making sure to fully utilize the potential of the individual and the team. The role of the hybrid- leader is not that different to that of the on-site leader. Nevertheless, there are some things that need to be taken into account now due to the decentralized setup of his team.

First of all, the leader should define standards of collaboration together with the team and then (of course) adhere to them. It can always turn out that some rule of collaboration no longer fits or is replaced by a better, more innovative or more efficient one. Again, it can be observed that these changes are supported by the team.

Since people no longer run into each other every day during their lunch break, at the coffee machine or in the office corridor, regular team meetings and one-on-ones with individual team members are of great importance. Under no circumstances should these be cancelled or postponed. They are the pillars of collaboration in hybrid teams. In meetings, the rule should be then either everyone is on site or everyone is online. The dynamics in meetings where part of the team meets on-site in the meeting room and another part is connected online don’t contribute to a constructive, successful meeting. From my experience, I can say that it brings the team much closer together when everyone is on the same page. Of course, the cameras are on during the meetings, just to protect yourself from the distraction of the internet and emails, but also to show yourself and your surroundings. Even if your cat jumps on the desk, your dog begs for attention or your little daughter has to show her new handicrafts. It is precisely such things that bring a team closer together.

To strengthen the team, it is just as important to have a common goal and to celebrate the achievement of goals or individual milestones accordingly. The same applies, of course, to the birthdays and anniversaries of team members.

For the hybrid leader, it is necessary to be approachable and available outside of meetings. This is a challenge that needs to be managed in light of the meeting flood that is becoming more common. Here, it is important that buffer times and breaks are worked into the calendar of a leader. But sometimes even a short chat in a messenger service (like Google Chat or Skype) will do the trick.

One big difference between hybrid and on-site leadership is the visibility factor. To the leader, the team member is invisible. Here, there should also be no attempt to measure employees by their working hours, but by their results. hybrid-leadership makes it easier for the manager not to be influenced by how long the employees are "glued" to their desks.

The basics of leadership remain the same in hybrid-leadership. However, the implementation needs to be more planned and standards of collaboration need to be created to make hybrid-working successful.

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