Creating effective hybrid work policies: Top tips & template

Hybrid work offers employees the best of both worlds – the flexibility of remote work and the camaraderie of in-office time. But managing a hybrid workforce is not an easy feat, which is why you need to ensure you have the right hybrid work policy.

Often, homeworkers end up working longer hours with fewer career advancement opportunities than their in-office counterparts. Additionally, a lack of a formal hybrid work policy could leave your employees anxious or demotivated. In some cases, it could also create two classes of workers, remote and in-office, with remote employees being treated as “second-class.”

‍So, once you've established your business is ready for hybrid work, you need to create a strong hybrid working policy that:

• Is equitable and fair to everyone
• Provides the right working conditions to all employees
• Outlines all available hybrid arrangements and requirements
• Sets clear rules for remote and office work, including working hours, required office presence, and communication channels and tools

We also advise you to use hybrid work software to make desk booking and attendance management easier.

Just as workplace policies or employee handbooks outline dos and don'ts for employees, hybrid working policies should lay down clear criteria and rules around hybrid work and also provide best practices for employees.

Below, you'll find a hybrid work policy template you can grab and use for free, plus our top tips on how to build a sensible flexible policy that works well for you and your employees – but first, let’s clarify what hybrid work actually is.

‍

Defining hybrid work

Hybrid work is a flexible work model that allows employees to divide their work time between the office and their home – or different locations, such as coworking spaces, libraries, or even coffee shops. It recognises that not all tasks require a physical presence in the office, and some can be effectively completed from a distance, especially if you provide your employees with the right communication and project management systems.

By implementing a hybrid work model, you can offer your people the freedom to choose where they work and enable them to strike a better work-life balance. This, in turn, can lead to better job satisfaction and retention – and improved employee well-being.

‍

Your free hybrid workplace policy template

The template below is yours to use; you can simply copy and paste it and tweak it to fit your organisation's needs. ‍

‍

Policy overview

Beginning [Date], [Company] will implement a hybrid work model. All employees are eligible for hybrid work. Schedules must fit within one of the models described below and be cleared by your manager.

Please read the entire policy and sign to confirm you have read it. Contact [name and email of contact person] if you have any questions.

‍

Hybrid work schedule

Hybrid schedules depend on your department; you have flexibility within the hybrid model below. Contact your direct supervisor with questions.

‍

‍

All departments should book office space for in-office days with Officely.

‍

‍Key performance indicators (KPIs)

Your manager will discuss with you all relevant key performance indicators and how they might be affected by hybrid work.

‍‍

In-office amenities

Employees working at the office more than 3 days a week will have a dedicated desk, parking space, and access to the company gym or childcare services.

‍

Equipment and software

For all employees, the company will provide:

• Laptop
• Keyboard
• Mouse
• Headset
• Cellphone

Employees working remotely more than 2 days a week will also receive stipends to cover internet costs.

‍

Compensation and benefits

Compensation might be subject to adjustments if relocating to a different city or area.

Employees will also receive the following additional stipends:

• Gym memberships/related health membership
• Virtual health consults
• Virtual mental health counseling
• Childcare
• [Add more benefits here]

‍

Communication tools and guidelines

Use the following tools for remote communication:

• Email for weekly updates, updates for clients, delivery of material to clients
• Slack for team-wide communication, client groups (if requested), quick announcements
• Google Meet for meetings, presentations, stand-ups
• Officely for updating your work location (remote or from the office) and booking desks

Prioritise the use of public channels of communication and be respectful of others’ time and show up punctually for meetings.

‍

Commitment to equal opportunities

We’re committed to providing a similar experience to remote and in-office employees. To ensure everyone has equal access to opportunities, managers must:

• Use public channels to announce new work opportunities and projects
• Review how often employees are promoted with respect to their work preferences

‍

10 tips for building a successful hybrid and remote work agreement

Below, you’ll find our top tips on how to manage the transition to a hybrid work model – and how to ensure that it works well for you and your team.

‍

1. Determine eligibility for hybrid work

Before you start building your hybrid policy, define the roles for which hybrid work is possible and those for which it is not.

Here are some examples:

• Roles suitable for hybrid work: Most roles in project management, software development, design, marketing, finance, accounting, and admin
• Roles that require mostly in-office presence: Front desk and customer-facing roles, field staff managers, facility management staff, any role involving physical work

You might still want to offer employees in the second category some flexibility, for example by providing occasional WFH days. You might even have team members from other departments like marketing or finance cover office-based roles like the front desk from time to time to allow for more equitable access to remote work.

If your team has been working remotely but you'd like to switch to a hybrid work schedule, use an employee return-to-work survey to uncover potential concerns.

Make sure to consider resource utilisation and how exactly you'll manage your office space. One of the best ways to do that is with the help of desk booking software.

‍

2. Define the right hybrid work model and schedule

Hybrid work isn’t one-size-fits-all. 

Your hybrid work model might be remote-first, where employees are allowed to work remotely most of the time, or lean toward more in-office presence.

Because the term "hybrid" can mean so many things, outline the number of remote workdays allowed in your office and the advantages for each preference. For example:

• Remote 1-2 days per week: Because these employees are in the office more frequently, consider offering them a dedicated office or desk and parking space.
• Remote 3-5 days per week: Employees might have to surrender dedicated office desks but will be provided a hot desk or common area to work in the office. They may be eligible for visitor parking.
• Fully remote: These employees don’t have dedicated workspaces and may be eligible for visitor parking. They might visit the office on occasion for a few hours or a day and reserve a hot desk when they do. 

Desk booking software like Officely can make it easy to manage different schedules and give everyone the visibility they need to organise their work – and come to the office when others are there.

If you offer fully remote roles, specify if these roles are based out of specific countries, states, or cities. If you need remote employees to come to the office occasionally for client meetings and events, you might prefer to hire in your city or region.

For employees choosing hybrid work arrangements, specify if they'll set their own flexible schedule or if schedules will be manager-led. Employee-led hybrid work schedules usually provide better results, because employees know best where and how they work best.

Whatever style you choose, define when you'd expect team members to be available for work-related communication. Certain roles like customer support might need to work specific hours, even remotely.

‍

3. Review employee compensation

Be clear about how an employee’s location and work preference (in-office, remote, hybrid) affect their compensation and benefits, so employees can weigh the pros and cons of their choice.  

For example, if you have 100% remote positions with the option to relocate to another city or country, you might consider adjusting employee salaries to the cost of living – or decide against it. Or you could provide in-office or hybrid workers with a commute allowance.

Remote-first company Buffer has shared their salary calculator publicly, and you might want to use a cost of living calculator when defining salary ranges. However, you need to make sure you're not penalizing employees who opt for a hybrid model or those who choose to work remotely.

‍

4. Expand wellness and health benefits

Hybrid work offers ample flexibility, but it also has a few downsides. Employees who often work remotely might feel more isolated and some might need additional support to avoid burnout.

Here are some ways to safeguard employee health and mental wellbeing in remote and flexible working arrangements:

• Offer virtual health consultations on platforms like Teladoc and Wellthy and provide access to mental health services like Talkspace and Lyra Health
• Provide a few hours of free mental health counseling in addition to virtual consulting, if they’re not part of your Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs)
• Normalise taking time off not just for vacation but also for mental health and to care for family
• Offer stipends for exclusive in-office perks like childcare and gyms
• Encourage managers to make video optional during some meetings and reduce the number of mandatory calls per week

‍

‍

5. Make sure you know the legal requirements for hybrid work

Ask your legal counsel or HR department about all local and national laws you should comply with in relation to hybrid work. Explain how you’ll fulfill legal requirements in your flexible work policy.

Here are some questions to get you started:

• Where is your business legally allowed to operate? This might affect the locations from which employees can work remotely.
• Do you need to reimburse employees for home office equipment? In states like California, laws require employers to reimburse employees for office equipment like computers, laptops, and desks. 
• Do you need to reimburse employees for office travel? While daily commutes are generally not reimbursable, for employees who work primarily from home, you might need to reimburse office travel.
• Do you need to pay overtime? Federal US laws require employers to pay overtime if employees work for more than 40 hours in a week, or in some states, more than 8 hours a day. If such laws apply in your country or state, you’ll need to define how you'll track time and whether employees require manager approval to work extra hours.

‍

6. Implement the right tech to uphold your new policy

The success of your hybrid work policy depends on the tools you use. Hybrid work software like Officely makes desk booking simple – and gives your employees and admin staff visibility into office attendance, making it easier to manage hybrid schedules and resources effectively.

With Officely, employees can easily reserve desks, see who’s in the office, and plan their workdays for better collaboration or focused work, all directly within Slack or Microsoft Teams. 

Other tools you should consider include: 

• Project management platforms like Asana or ClickUp
• Video conferencing software like Zoom, MS Teams, or Google Meet
• Knowledge sharing platforms like Confluence or Notion

For more ideas, check out our article on the best productivity tools for hybrid work.

‍

7. Set up information security measures for hybrid work

In your office, you're in control of all security measures like firewalls, virtual private networks (VPNs), on-premise servers, data centres, antivirus software, and authorised company equipment. And, while you can replicate most of these measures in a remote setting, your employees might need extra guidance to comply with data security measures.

When drafting your hybrid workplace policy, outline best practices for employees to keep your data safe, like:

• Set strong passwords and update them regularly
• Install security and software updates on a regular basis
• Avoid downloading suspicious, illegal, or unauthorised software
• Block suspicious websites and report any phishing attempts
• Use only work devices for work, and not their personal computers or smartphones
• Report any loss of equipment or information immediately
• Use a VPN as needed

‍

8. Create clear communication guidelines

Clear guidelines help eliminate communication silos. For hybrid teams, defaulting to remote-first online communication works best because it's equally accessible to in-office and remote employees.

‍

‍

In your hybrid workplace policy, mention:

• Channels or tools for meetings, quick messages, updates, stand-ups, announcements, and reports
• Expected response time for internal emails, client emails, and Slack messages
• Internal knowledge base tools for looking up company-related information, processes, and policies
• Who to get in touch with for common issues

‍

9. Track employee performance

In a traditional work environment, time spent in the office was often used as one of the measures of performance and engagement, although we could probably all agree that it's a horribly inaccurate one. In a hybrid workplace, the need for setting clear key performance indicators (KPIs) is even more obvious.

Define what success looks like for different roles. For instance, “Success as a sales manager means contacting X leads per month, a X% of closed deals, and $XX in revenue.”

You can also set goals for employee attendance specially for roles that benefit from in-person collaboration, and use dedicated software like Officely to measure that.

‍

10. Foster equity between employees working from home or in the office

Proximity bias is one of the most common challenges of hybrid work, or the tendency to favour in-office employees. Team members working from home might miss out on important work-related talks and decisions if they happen in ad hoc meetings or in the hallway.

To provide equal opportunities to all employees, irrespective of the specific hybrid or remote work arrangement they opt for, you might decide to:

• Measure speed of promotion by employees’ work preference to avoid bias
• Announce new work opportunities and challenges using online channels like Slack or email instead of in-person meetings
• Hold virtual ask-me-anything sessions with leadership where employees can voice concerns and ask questions
• Run anonymous employee surveys to gauge employee sentiments
• Make hybrid meetings the norm, so all employees can participate regardless of their location

‍

The benefits of hybrid work

Hybrid work is a smart way to balance flexibility with productivity. Here’s how embracing a hybrid model can benefit your team and your business.

‍

Improved work-life balance

By giving employees the freedom to split their time between home and the office, you help them to better manage their personal responsibilities and commitments while staying productive. 

Additionally, you enable them to design their own work environment based on their preferences and needs – and still share time with others in the office whenever they need to work together on specific projects. 

This balance can lead to happier, healthier, and more engaged team members.

‍

Better collaboration and focus

Hybrid work allows employees to work together in person when it matters most and focus on deep work at home or in dedicated office areas without distractions. Finding the right balance between collaboration and individual work will depend on each person and role, but giving the possibility to switch between the two will help improve teamwork and individual productivity.

‍

Cost savings for everyone

Hybrid work enables businesses to downsize office space strategically and therefore reduce its associated costs (rent, utilities, and equipment), while employees save time and money on commuting and office lunches. 

Plus, it can also help reduce the environmental impact of your company.

‍

Steps to implement a hybrid work policy

Now that you have a policy template at your disposal and know what benefits hybrid work can offer, let’s see exactly how you can shift to this model, step by step. 

‍

1. Assess your company's needs

Before switching to hybrid work and flexible work hours, take the time to assess your company's needs and challenges. 

Consider factors like job roles, team dynamics, and client expectations. Identify potential roadblocks and develop strategies to address them.

‍

2. Draft the policy

Once you have a clear understanding of your company's needs, it's time to draft your hybrid policy. You can use the template above as your starting point and refine it as necessary. 

Involve HR, managers, and employees in the policy development process and make sure it aligns with both the company’s needs and your team’s preferences. 

Make sure the policy is comprehensive and easy to understand. Clearly define eligibility criteria, expectations, and guidelines for remote and hybrid work. Address issues like scheduling, time tracking, and performance evaluation.

‍

3. Share the policy with employees

Once the policy is ready, share it with everyone. Be transparent and address any concerns or questions others may have. Provide training and resources to ensure that employees can navigate the hybrid work environment easily. 

Regularly review and update the policy based on feedback and your team’s needs.

‍

Overcoming challenges in hybrid work arrangements

Now, let’s look into some of the problems you might face and see how you can tackle them. 

‍

Maintaining team cohesion

One of the biggest challenges of hybrid work is maintaining team cohesion and collaboration and reducing silos. 

Encourage regular team meetings, both in-person and virtually, to build strong relationships. Use collaboration tools to simplify knowledge sharing and manage projects efficiently. 

‍

Ensuring accountability and productivity

Remote and hybrid work may bring up concerns about accountability and productivity – but empowering employees to take ownership of their work usually yields much better results than micromanaging them.

Define clear expectations, goals, and KPIs for each role, along with metrics to measure performance. Give regular feedback and celebrate wins to keep employees motivated and engaged, and ensure they know what to do whenever they face challenges that might impact their work. 

‍

Addressing technical issues

Not all remote or hybrid employees will be sufficiently tech-savvy to tackle all technical issues on their own, so ensure that employees have access to IT support when needed. 

To maintain airtight security for your data and systems, you might also consider setting up regular maintenance checks for all company-provided equipment. Encourage employees to use secure internet connections and back up their work regularly.

‍

Boost your hybrid success with help from Officely 

Hybrid work policies help you build a work environment that's centred around your employees' well-being and work-life balance, which will help you improve productivity and attract top talent.

To implement this successfully, you need the right hybrid work policy template, which you can find above, along with the right software tools. Here's a sample tech stack to get you started:

• Communication platforms such as Slack, Google Meet, or MS Teams
• Productivity and project management apps such as Asana, ClickUp, or Monday.com
• Desk booking software such as Officely

Officely simplifies hybrid work and makes it easier for employees to reserve desks and know the best days to go into the office. Book a free demo to see how easy it can be to build a strong flexible work policy with the right software at hand – and check out Officely’s Complete Guide to Office Management in Flexible Workplaces for more ideas on how to make hybrid work work for everyone. 

The benefits of hybrid work

Now, let's explore the advantages that the hybrid office model brings to the table. From employees’ well-being to employers’ bottom line, there are plenty of benefits you should know about. 

‍

Flexibility and autonomy

One of the most sought-after perks of a hybrid office is the flexibility it offers to employees. No longer bound to strict office hours, individuals can tailor their work to fit their lives (rather than fit their lives around work), creating a healthier work-life integration.

And, let’s be clear: Employees want a sense of agency, and the best way to give them that is to show them you trust them and are willing to provide them the conditions they need to do their best work. Put simply: If you empower them to do meaningful work instead of demanding they come to the office daily, the results will follow. 

‍

Cost efficiency

From the employer's point of view, a hybrid office can help you save money – and ensure every square foot of your office serves a purpose. 

With fewer employees permanently based in an office, you can opt for smaller, streamlined office spaces, reducing rent and utility expenses.

‍

Talent acquisition

Adopting a hybrid office model helps you expand your talent pool, because you can recruit top-notch professionals regardless of their geographic location. 

This opens up new opportunities for innovation and collaboration.

‍

Greater levels of productivity

Hybrid work gives employees the flexibility to work when and where they want (in the office or remotely) and choose the tasks they want to focus on in each location. Such levels of flexibility boost overall employee productivity.

Employees prefer coming to the office for collaboration, training, and spending time with colleagues and work on individual and admin tasks at home. But fully remote or in-person models don’t give employees the flexibility to choose in the same way they can do that with hybrid work.

‍

Better collaboration and communication  

Some in-office time gives the opportunity for chance encounters at the watercooler, after-work meetings, or casual chats in the office. All of those help employees network outside of their immediate teams, which helps spark innovation.

‍

‍

One survey found that while working remotely, most employees’ connections to their immediate work teams strengthened, but their interactions with distant networks diminished. And, as lockdowns eased and employees started returning to offices, communication with coworkers from other teams improved.

‍

The challenges of hybrid and remote work

While hybrid arrangements are undeniably exciting, it comes with its fair share of challenges. Let's explore some of the hurdles organizations might face when implementing this model.

‍

Communication and collaboration in a hybrid setting

One of the primary obstacles lies in maintaining effective teamwork between remote and in-person teams. Without intentional efforts to bridge those gaps, teams might become siloed, which brings overall productivity down.

Use communication platforms, define clear expectations, and set up regular check-ins to ensure that everyone feels connected, regardless of their physical location.

‍

Managing performance and accountability remotely

Evaluating employee performance and maintaining high levels of accountability might be challenging in a remote or hybrid work environment. It can sometimes be difficult to assess productivity levels for hybrid employees, especially if tasks are not linear and don’t always lead to specific, measurable results. 

That’s why it’s important to implement meaningful performance metrics, offer regular feedback, and promote a results-oriented culture.

‍

How to assess your level of readiness for a hybrid work model

While there might be a growing demand for hybrid work globally, you’ll first need to consider what your employees want, whether you have the resources to go hybrid, and if there are any legal issues you need to resolve. Here are some questions to ponder: 

• Are your employees ready for hybrid work? Run surveys before you impose hybrid work to understand employee preferences. Tackle any employee concerns upfront, and help ease up concerns by openly sharing proposed changes and plans.
• How will your leadership demonstrate support for hybrid work? Ask leaders if they’re willing to work from home two or three days a week to reinforce support for hybrid work. If not, employees might still believe the office to be the center of important conversations and opportunities – and fear they might be left out if they don’t come in daily.
• Are there any legal requirements you need to fulfill as a hybrid employer? Think about remote work laws that may also apply to hybrid work. For instance, ask your legal team if you need to reimburse employees for home office equipment and commutes and how to deal with overtime work laws, if they apply in your state or country.  
• Will you need to redesign your office for hybrid work? Consider the activities your employees will use your office for, like collaboration or deep work, and the spaces required to accommodate these needs.

‍

Tips for implementing hot desking and desk sharing successfully

If only part of your workforce comes to the office each day, it makes sense to have employees use desks on a rotating basis instead of giving everyone an assigned space. This practice is called hot desking.

Your employees might be averse to hot desking due to the loss of personal space or a perceived desk shortage. Address employee concerns directly and implement a desk booking software to make desk sharing a success in your office.

Here’s what else you need to consider:

• Share hot desking plans to garner support: Talk with your employees about your hot desking plans, the potential benefits, the rules, and the tools you want to use to manage desk sharing.
• Use advanced desk booking to avoid desk shortages: Ask employees to book desks on the days they’ll be in the office and specify the desk type they’ll use or the area in which they want to be seated. The best way to simplify desk booking is to use software like Officely.
• Set rules around desk etiquette: Ask employees to avoid eating at desks and to keep workspaces clean. Employees should also leave workstations as they find them and with all equipment properly stored for the next person. Find out more about the best desk-sharing etiquette rules to implement in a hybrid office environment.
• Design ergonomic workstations that fit different needs: Provide equipment like double monitors for employees who need them. Ensure all workstations are designed to prevent issues like back pain, eye strain, and headaches.
• Provide lockers to store belongings: Allow employees to store keepsakes like photo frames and calendars to make their temporary desk feel like their own.

‍

How to write a clear hybrid work policy

Clear policies for both remote and in-person work will help create an equitable hybrid workplace where everyone’s treated fairly – and will help you share the details of employee benefits designed specifically for hybrid work.

• Explain hybrid eligibility for different roles in your office: Outline scenarios where onsite or customer-facing roles might request to work from home some of the time.
• Set your hybrid work model and schedule: Specify the number of remote workdays per week allowed in your office. Specify if employees can decide on their work-from-home days or if managers will set the schedule.
• Discuss employee compensation: If salary will be affected by an employee’s location or work preference, you need to be very clear about this in your policy – and check with HR how to do this in a fair way.
• Add additional wellness and health benefits: To help employees thrive in a hybrid environment, you can offer virtual health consults, on-demand stretching and yoga classes, access to running or other workout apps, and free mental health counseling.
• Summarize IT security measures: Explain that employees need to set strong passwords, use antivirus software and virtual private networks (VPNs) as needed, and activate two-factor authentication.
• Explain how you’ll track employee performance in a hybrid environment: Define success in terms of output or performance instead of hours worked. For example, “success for a content writer means X articles produced in Y weeks.”
• Emphasize equitability among workers: Implement measures like tracking employee promotions and announcing all advancement opportunities publicly, to everyone, to help combat any proximity biases.
• Set clear communication guidelines: Define what channels and tools to use, expected response times, and who to contact for questions.
• Review reimbursements to support hybrid work: Provide an adequate budget to set up a home office and reimburse employees’ internet connection and, potentially, some of their electricity costs.

‍

Tools for creating a successful hybrid workplace

Whether onsite or remote, your employees will need technology to enable collaboration, productivity, and communication.

This isn’t an exhaustive list of tools for hybrid teams, but it’s a good starting point to help you work more efficiently.

‍

Desk booking software

Desk-booking apps help avoid shortages of company resources like desks, amenities, tools, and conference rooms. Employees can reserve needed office space and equipment in advance, and managers can track attendance and manage capacity.

What to look for in a hybrid work app:

• Scalability: Consider if the software can accommodate the size of your team and the locations you need to manage.
• Top features: Apart from desk booking, look for the ability to log and measure attendance, and provide instant visibility to employees about who else is in. Also consider if it allows employees to book other amenities, too, like conference rooms and parking spaces (or spots for their pets).
• Ease of use: Make sure you pick software that’s easy to learn, navigate, and adopt. Ideally, the software should fit into your employees’ day-to-day workflows, so they use it consistently. Officely is available as a Slack add-on, which means employees don’t have to download or use another app.

‍

Officely enables employees to book desks, meeting rooms, parking spaces, and more – and gives admin staff the ability to oversee office usage and ensure the office serves you and your employees well. Plus, it’s all in Slack or MS Teams. 

‍

Tools for hybrid events and meetings

While you don’t need new tools to make your hybrid meetings or events successful, some software and hardware built specifically for hybrid collaboration can be really helpful. 

Tools like Meeting Owl are equipped with a 360-degree camera, speaker, and mic, so all remote attendees can clearly hear and see everyone in the room. 

Portable speakerphones like Jabra Speak can be placed at the center of a conference or boardroom, so in-person attendees’ voices are clear to remote participants.

And, if you need something extra for larger events, we recommend hybrid event platforms like Webex to help you manage event registration, onsite badge printing, check-ins, set up video breakout rooms for networking, and allow participants to access event details and schedules from a single platform.

‍

Communication and collaboration tools

Teamwork is essential in a hybrid workspace, so you don’t end up with silos or bottlenecks – and for this, you need the right tools. Here are some of our favorites: 

• Slack: We probably don’t need to introduce the most famous chat platform for businesses. Slack allows teams to set up channels to discuss different topics and projects and also offers add-ons like Donut, which help remote teams stay connected.
• Microsoft Teams: If you’re using Microsoft’s office suite to collaborate, MS Teams is the logical expansion to that. It’s a tool that integrates seamlessly with it and offers calls, chats, group channels, and more – and allows up to 10,000 participants to join a video conference call.
• Google Workspace: Professional email tool to create a corporate email account associated with your domain for all employees. Also offers file storage and sharing as well the ability to start voice and video calls.
• …Or Proton for Business: If you’re looking for a privacy-first alternative to Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, Proton is currently building a business suite that offers airtight protection to your business data and doesn’t use it to train LLMs or other algorithms.
• Notion: Notion allows teams to build a company wiki or an internal knowledge base. You can use Notion to store employee information, policy documents, company goals, and manuals.
• Soapbox by Wistia: Soapbox is a webcam and screen recording tool for Chrome to share videos with your team, and allows teams to explain processes and tasks to employees or clients.

‍

Finally: A quick guide to successfully managing hybrid teams

Managing hybrid teams can be tricky because managers need to cater to in-office and remote employees simultaneously, while providing them with a consistent work experience.    

To support your employees in a hybrid environment, you need to give sufficient resources for remote work, offer employees the flexibility to set their schedule, and provide ample feedback.

‍

Provide consistent benefits and resources

To keep employees’ experience consistent across locations, provide the same equipment – laptops/computers, internet connection, firewall, and a VPN – for their home office, too. You can also provide a monthly stipend to cover work-from-home expenses, along with a home office setup budget. 

If you provide in-office benefits like gym rooms or childcare, make sure you offer similar benefits to your entire workforce.

‍

Let employees set their hybrid work schedule

We firmly believe that hybrid schedules should be employee-led and not manager-led, in order to boost employee productivity and happiness. 

By allowing your people to choose their workplace depending on their tasks for the day, you give them autonomy and ownership over their work – and encourage a healthy work-life balance.

To make the most of employee-led hybrid scheduling:

• Use desk booking software, so employees can book space in advance and avoid overcrowding the office
• Schedule specific times for social interactions to encourage team bonding
• Ensure employees have access to meetings and events, irrespective of office presence 

‍

Make hybrid meetings the norm – and design better meetings

Hybrid meetings allow all employees to be part of decision-making and brainstorming, regardless of where they’re working. 

As an added perk, hybrid meetings also offer complete flexibility for employees with their hybrid work schedule since employees don’t have to be in the office for meetings.  

To host better meetings, ensure that: 

• There’s a clear meeting agenda – we all hate endless meetings or invitations to calls without any predefined goals, right? 
• You’re able to stick to the start and end time
• You have the right tech so that everyone can hear and see everyone else

‍

Specifically, if a few people are joining from the same room in the office, you’ll need:

• External cameras
• Microphones
• Speakers
• A large screen

‍

For specific recommendations, check out our best tips and tools for hybrid meetings.

We also advise you to assign a moderator or facilitator (someone other than the meeting host) to keep an eye on comments from remote participants and cues like hand-raises or someone unmuting themselves. 

In large meetings, moderators can also relay feedback and questions from in-room participants to virtual attendees and vice-versa. To encourage remote attendees to participate, open questions and discussions to them first, and then to the room.

‍

The future of work: Embracing hybrid office design

The hybrid office represents a major shift in how we all work – but to create a hybrid environment that works for everyone, you need the right workflows and tech. 

Officely can help you design a hybrid workspace thanks to its powerful features like desk booking, office attendance visibility, and resource management, all built into the platforms your team already knows, like Slack and Microsoft Teams. This makes it easy for everyone to adopt it and start using it on day 1, without any steep learning curves. Book a demo to find out more and get started. 

‍

Want to take a deeper dive into creating a flexible and productive workspace? Check out our Complete Guide to Office Management for Flexible Workplaces.