In all the years I’ve been a remote-work advocate, there’s one thing I’ve consistently noticed when talking to remote workers: They almost never want to go back to the office. Recent studies have also shown that only 12% of employees are willing to work full-time from an office in the future.
Though it comes with its own challenges, it’s clear that implementing a hybrid workplace will be essential. It also requires a solid plan for getting your team on board before you decide to go back to the office, even if just for a couple of days per week.
Here are five ways of preparing your team for the switch.
Physical safety and stable mental health are the chief priorities for most employees. Health hazards represent the primary difference between the office as we once knew it and the future of the workplace. So going back to the office naturally raises concerns.
But employees are well aware of these issues by now. Many of them were seriously concerned even before 2020 whenever the flu season was around the corner. A line can be drawn between a top employer who acknowledges employees as the company’s number-one asset and one whose priorities are elsewhere.
Put together a realistic plan to tackle in-office health, including:
Rethinking office paths.
Adding more space between desks.
Periodically running health check-ups on your staff.
Implementinging a strict room-booking system to prevent overcrowding.
Having people come into the office at different times of day.
Keeping routine meetings via video calls.
Present this plan to your employees before you ask them to return to the office so they can be aware of the new changes and suggest potential improvements.
2. Place the individual at the center of your business
Remote work has been challenging enough in the pandemic. In a hybrid setting, these obstacles will only accumulate. Within a hybrid workplace, every individual is likely to struggle with making the schedule work for them. As work keeps switching between the office and their screens at home, they might lose focus and motivation.
This can put a halt on their professional-development goals, leaving them feeling like they haven’t achieved everything they wanted at the end of the year. Giving everyone the freedom to craft a schedule that suits their needs can prove a first good step to take in this regard.
Similarly, the issue of loneliness when working from home will persist for people who still haven’t adapted. Imposing a strict policy as to when people should come to the office won’t work for everyone. The few people who are feeling constricted or find it hard to focus at home will be better off with flexible choices that let them work from the office with their colleagues, even if just on a rotational basis.
To find all hidden problems, talk to your team — to every single person. Anonymous employee-feedback surveys or polls are appropriate approaches to receive the details of sensitive issues they wouldn’t want to otherwise disclose.
3. Ask employees for feedback before making any change
The pre-remote-work era was largely dependent on leadership decisions. Employee feedback was something not all organizations took seriously. Even when they did, surveys were sent too rarely. But working remotely highlighted the importance of listening to employees and meeting their demands. In turn, managers have gained relevant insights into how they could improve employee satisfaction, simply by talking to the people in their company.
Making a change within the hybrid office can always have a severely negative impact. Get everyone to come into the office and you might end up with half of your team sick. Force them to show up at strict office hours and you’ll lose them as they leave for more understanding employers.
Before you decide on anything, discuss it with everyone. Schedules, work processes, tools, concerns, team collaboration and independent wishes are all aspects to bring up before returning to your office.
4. Paving the way for new restrictions
Regardless of how strong your hybrid-workplace plans are, new restrictions are bound to appear, so don’t rely only on your office for specific project tasks. Make sure that everything you’re planning to handle in the office can be done at home too. Prepare a list of policies or guidelines, and don’t ditch a tool that might turn out to be your best on-project communication pathway.
Keep your team culture in mind at this point. Have a list of team-building activities your employees can bond over using video calls in case of a new lockdown. This is also the perfect time to tap into a global talent pool and start hiring non-locally. Bonus points for diversity right so you can benefit from fresh talent and new cultures.
Keep everyone in the loop. Have a document anyone can access to see your roadmap to the hybrid office. Be fully honest when it comes to not being able to do something. If you can’t promise everyone will enjoy using a new collaboration app, let them know. The same goes for any time you need to reduce costs or prepare for a low-sales season.
8Nearly 90% of employees expect CEOs to speak out publicly regarding any new societal or local issues. Displaying trust and interest in keeping your employees safe gives them the mental security they need to worry less about what’s to come. Transparency is the keyword to hold on to as you’re preparing your team to join a hybrid workplace. Forget that, and you’re bound to see a sudden drop in your employee retention rates.
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Ryan Buchanan, an Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) member and former president of the Portland chapter, is the founder and CEO of Thesis, a digital marketing agency, and co-founder of Emerging Leaders, a non-profit dedicated to improving racial and cultural diversity at the leadership level in Portland-area companies. He also hosts the podcast Faces of Marketing. We asked Ryan about best practices for building a diverse, inclusive workforce. Here’s what he shared:
Dozens of CEOs and human resources executives who I’ve talked to this year are sincerely focused on diversifying their company’s workforce–but in most cases, their strategies aren’t working. They are exasperated, bewildered and ready to throw in the towel. Several have shared that, “We put our job postings everywhere we can find, yet all the applicants are white or male or both.”
I listen to each reason why recruiting diverse employees seems unattainable, and then I pose the question that was asked of me four years ago when I began my equity journey: “When professionals of color or women go online to look at your company’s senior leadership team, what do they see?”
It seems counterintuitive and time-consuming to start from within–to actively build inclusivity into the company culture before turning our focus to external recruiting. But it’s a more effective strategy for the long-term success of a high-functioning, equitable, diverse workforce.
The business case for diversity
Regardless, let’s examine the situation around race and equity. The business case has been proven repeatedly: Diverse teams perform up to 35% better than homogeneous ones. Diverse teams are more profitable, more adaptable to change, and the best brands in the world are demanding that their agencies represent the diverse consumers they serve.
Before reading any further, you should know that I’m a privileged, straight, white, male CEO writing an article about equity in the workplace. You can decide whether I’m a hypocrite who lacks awareness–or an ally and advocate for equity.
At our digital agency, we have plenty of work ahead of us to create a more inclusive workplace, but we’re making progress. We’ve grown from 12 percent people of color to 33 percent in just four years since becoming intentional about diversification.
What changes have we made? Well, there isn’t a quick fix when it comes to improving workplace diversity. It begins with changing the corporate culture.
Here are four steps for building a more diverse workforce:
1. Commitment from the top
If I had to single out the most crucial step along the journey to diversification, it’s that the entire leadership team must be deeply committed to racial equity, and willing to uphold these values with sometimes unpopular decisions. Change starts by talking about it. The transformation requires difficult conversations and embracing being uncomfortable–but the upside is a company culture that’s strong, deep and inclusive, and a business that thrives because its clients are getting the diverse talent they seek.
2. Make a point to talk about it, regularly
I grew up in a white society that taught us not to see the color of someone’s skin. But silence about race in dominant culture denies employees of color a safe space to share daily experiences where race is an ongoing factor.
When we openly–and privately–participate in conversations around race, it can lead to significant personal and professional growth, as well as business benefits. Ensure these conversations are happening by hosting company-wide Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) training or by bringing in a trained DEI consultant to facilitate recurring group conversations. Extending an invitation to the greater professional community could attract outside talent who share similar values around the importance of equity.
3. Build relationships with communities of color
You can’t identify new channels without building relationships with underrepresented groups. Be more intentional about your outreach to communities of color by attending networking events, partnering with culturally specific community organizations, or getting coffee with leaders of color. Many cities have organizations and initiatives dedicated to helping companies connect with resources and like-minded businesses that have made diversity and inclusion a priority, such as Partners in Diversity and TechTown Diversity Pledge in Portland.
Involvement with local leaders and organizations like these is a stepping-stone to building fruitful relationships and connections.
4. Institute workplace programs
A study by the Kapor Center examined why tech workers leave high-paying jobs. It found unfairness was the primary driver of turnover, with underrepresented men being the most likely to leave due to unfair treatment. Still, many companies think their job is done once employees are in the door.
But retention is an ongoing challenge that reinforces the need to make complete corporate culture shifts. When I asked one of our employees why he chose to work here and, more importantly, why he stays, he said: “Seeing other employees of color who are excellent at what they do professionally, while being fully themselves, without having to code-switch–I’ve never felt that at any other company.”
Mentoring programs can also be critical to leadership development, helping to identify rising leaders of color while providing them with valuable support and feedback.
These are just a few of the actions we’ve taken so far, but there’s still much to do. Making sure these changes stick will require an ongoing commitment from the top-down, but it’s an investment that’s well worth it for both our business and employees, now and in the long run.
Arwa Mahdawi on “The Surprising Solution to Workplace Diversity” at TEDxHamburg (http://www.tedxhamburg.de) Arwa Mahdawi is the founder and Chief Minority Officer of rentaminority.com, a revolutionary new service offering diversity on demand. The site has gained worldwide attention and been covered by the likes of the BBC, Le Monde, the Huffington Post, NPR, and the Atlantic. Arwa is also a partner at cummins&partners, an independent creative agency with offices in Australia and New York. She is a regular speaker at advertising/tech/media conferences, so if you need a minority last minute, give her a call. Arwa is also a freelance writer and writes regularly for the Guardian on issues including marketing, technology, cryptocurrency, and lesbians. Frequent comments on her articles include “Was someone really paid to write this?” and “This comment was removed by a moderator.” This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx
hbr.org – February 26
futurumresearch.com – February 26
realtynxt.com – February 26
designerati.co.uk – February 26
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