We don’t have to journey back far to a time when ‘hybrid working’ was a lofty fantasy for office staff across the UK.  Before 2020, employers simply weren’t as invested in enabling staff to work remotely.  Not due to an absence of technology – the infrastructure for home working isn’t new – rather a fear that employees working out of the office wouldn’t be able to communicate effectively, might feel disconnected from company values and ultimately weren’t trusted to be as productive as when they were office based.  

Britain’s workforce proved themselves during the pandemic, with employers quickly realising that many within their workforce thrived under the new arrangements – they found a better work/life balance, increased productivity and often enjoyed greater job satisfaction.  

As the world returns to some normality and Covid rules and restrictions slowly fade into the past, some 70% of employees are hopeful to keep their hybrid working arrangements in place.  So, with some staff working in the office, some working remotely and lots of crossover between the two, how can employers make sure it works for everyone? 

Ensuring your staff have access to appropriate technology and communication tools in order to work collaboratively, whilst being located across different sites is non-negotiable. Luckily there are loads of tools that already exist to make everyone’s work life much easier. 

Integrated Communications

Providing flexible ways for staff to communicate with one another is the first step in creating a happy hybrid workforce.  Introducing a unified system – which brings together audio, video, and email – that staff can access on any device and from any location is the ideal way to unify staff and customers scattered across the country, or even the world!

If you’d like to discuss having all of your communications tools in one place, then we’re more than happy to answer any questions you have.

Make Use of Video 

Since the pandemic hit, video conferencing has come into its own, making it just as easy for staff to meet face to face virtually as they could when located in the same office space. Whether you’re using a web based, app based or device-based video calling system, are you sure you have the technology you need at the office and that staff have all of the audio visual equipment they need to make it as easy as possible? The main question you need to ask is ‘is everyone equipped well enough to participate fully?’ 

Hang out in the Cloud

A cloud-based system can offer increased security for your company data as well as making it incredibly simple for staff working on or offsite to access at the touch of a button.  There are many cloud-based comms systems on the market that combine the usability and security every modern hybrid business needs. 

Work Collaboratively 

Virtual shared workspaces are hugely helpful for staff working across remote sites.  Whether it’s the ability to collaborate on project documents, share contacts, conduct interactive team meetings or brainstorm together wherever they may be. A system like NEC’s Univerge Blue can provide all of this functionality and so much more. 

Use the Physical Space

Hybrid working fundamentally changes the way staff and space work together.  Whilst you may have fewer bodies in the building and can do away with some desk space, you may find more and more meetings are taking place which need dedicated appropriate space. Introducing an office scheduling system to allow colleagues to book the space they need, when they need it can really help. 

Please contact us on 01237 420010 to see we can help you evaluate your systems and make sure everything is fit for purpose in this brand new hybrid working world.