Article

November 6, 2024

10 Solutions to Manage a Hybrid Team in a Hybrid Workplace model

Milton Herman

10 minute read

What is a Hybrid Team?

A hybrid team is a flexible type of work structure where some employees work remotely, and others work from the company’s office or another central location. A hybrid work structure gives employees some flexibility in deciding whether they would like to work in an office or the flexibility of remote work.

Benefits of a Hybrid Workforce

A hybrid model gives employers and employees several benefits, including the following:

Allows employees to work where they are most productive
Reduced commute time for employees
Improved work/life balance for employees
Reduced stress levels; lower risk of burnout
Offices become more collaborative and creative places to work
Businesses can attract top-notch candidates from anywhere in the world
Employee engagement and productivity are likely to increase
Companies save on commercial real estate costs
The company reduces its carbon footprint

Skills for Managing a Hybrid Workforce

Managing remote teams is different from managing strictly on-site employees. Remote employees become used to working independently and collaborating with colleagues who aren’t at the next desk or down the hall. Managers may need to make adjustments to their management style considering the remote work environment.

— Make Communication a Priority

When the team is situated in multiple locations, clear and direct communication becomes crucial to its success. Select the collaboration tools that will work best for your hybrid team. Set guidelines for using e-mail, instant messages, video messages, and phone calls. You may also want to add file-sharing tools to the list.

— Schedule Regular Project Meetings

Keep the team on track by scheduling weekly project meetings. Each new project should have a project kick-off meeting to present guidelines. During these meetings, team members can discuss their progress and ask for help if needed. The manager can clarify action items and deadlines for the entire team.

— Develop a Strong Company Culture with Virtual Events

Strong company culture is a definite advantage in the workplace since it boosts employee engagement and retention. Strong working relationships are more challenging to achieve when team members work in different locations and possibly even different time zones.

Schedule some virtual team-bonding exercises so that team members can get to know each other outside of their work. The team members will find it easier to collaborate if they feel they have something in common and everyone feels included.

— Prioritize Professional Development

Whether they are working in the office or remotely, all employees should have equal access to opportunities for advancement. An employer can provide online training sessions for interested workers through “lunch and learn” sessions or funding professional development courses.

LumApps for Hybrid Workforce:

1. Establish a hybrid workplace policy

Employees need to know what to expect when their employer decides to allow employees to work in some combination of office and remotely. The hybrid work policy needs to cover:

company equipment
cybersecurity
rules for taking lunch and other breaks during the day
working hours for remote employees

The standard employee manual should already address these points:

Jobs that are better suited to being done in the office than remotely
Number of days employees should be spending in the office on a weekly or monthly basis
Whether certain employees should plan to be in the office for meetings or to collaborate with team members

2. Set clear expectations for all employees

Be sure that all team members receive information about projects, goals, and deadlines. It’s easy for those working from home to get missed when deadlines get changed since they are not working face-to-face with the rest of the team.

To avoid this situation, schedule regular virtual meetings with the entire team to review the progress of current projects. If someone has become stuck or needs help, they should promptly speak up to their manager or fellow team members to get help.
Remote workers should be online during certain core hours to remain on track with the rest of their team.
Managers can encourage their team members to suggest topics for discussion during meetings.

3. Encourage employees to share their thoughts

A hybrid team manager deals with employees who have different working styles. Each person has their work history and personality that come into play. The manager must create an environment where each person feels comfortable sharing their thoughts with their fellow team members in an open work environment.

Employee collaboration can occur in a team meeting, via real-time chat, or in online social communities where like-minded users post, comment, and like posts on various topics. The Employee Directory is a source for finding people with the right knowledge and expertise for multiple projects within your organization since it includes skills and interests along with professional credentials.

Tirer le plein potentiel d’un modèle de travail hybride

Travail Hybride : vers une nouvelle normalité ?

4. Create an environment of trust within your remote team

According to the Harvard Business Review, two kinds of trust are necessary for people to work together successfully:

Competence Trust: The belief that other people will do the work they have promised and that the work will be of high quality; and
Interpersonal Trust: The belief others have good intentions and are acting with high integrity.

As remote work becomes normal, team members spend less face-to-face time together. They don’t have the opportunity to observe how their co-workers prepare for meetings by making detailed notes. They don’t see evidence of fellow workers having burned the midnight oil to meet deadlines with takeout containers littering their office in the morning.

Instead of monitoring team members closely to determine whether they are doing their work, decide to trust them as a default status. Workers who are constantly monitored feel their employee engagement drop with the number of times their manager checks in on them.

5. Ensure everyone feels included

One of the challenges of managing hybrid teams is making sure employees feel they are being heard and appreciated as team members. It’s crucial not to treat certain groups differently or “less than”, such as cleaning staff or anyone with reduced mobility. There may also be an unconscious bias against the remote workers on the team, so make sure they have the same opportunities as the employees who work in the office. Work-from-home employees are just as valuable as those who work face-to-face with their co-workers, and they may need to be reminded of this fact from time to time.

The Employee Recognition Center is a place to recognize workers who have distinguished themselves by going above and beyond at work. It can be used to recognize individuals, groups, and excellent content.

6. Move away from tracking “hours worked” to measuring progress and deadlines

If you are thinking about best practices for managing hybrid teams, one aspect that needs to go is the idea that everyone must put in eight hours a day at their desk. Someone paid to do a job that involves thinking about or visualizing something doesn’t necessarily have to be at their desk to be “working.” When evaluating their effectiveness as remote employees, consider whether they are progressing on their projects and meeting deadlines on time.

The LumApps Mobile Intranet app makes it easy for remote teams to make the most of their flexible work arrangements. Employees can jot down notes from anywhere, connect to their co-workers to ask questions or share ideas, and search the company intranet for required information and documents with ease

Tirer le plein potentiel d’un modèle de travail hybride

Travail Hybride : vers une nouvelle normalité ?

7. Use an integrated communication and collaboration software option

When employees are working in a hybrid model, there is a combination of remote workers, hybrid workers, and full-time in-house workers. All of them can communicate using integrated software like Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace.

This option is one of the best ways for managing hybrid remote teams. It allows employees to access their e-mails and files in OneDrive or Google drive, using Google Meet or Microsoft Teams, etc., from a single platform.

8. Establish a mentorship program

Mentorship is a crucial part of supporting employees and helping them to develop their abilities. With hybrid working arrangements, mentorship programs can run from a distance.

To set up a mentorship program, pair new or junior-level employees with top performers. The mentors and mentees then work together to set skill goals and career objectives (short-term and long-term). The mentors are also available to talk about subjects like maintaining a work/life balance when working from home.

Launch a Leadership Corner in conjunction with the mentorship program. Employees can gain access to company news and initiatives. Allow workers to get to know the company leader through the CEO’s blog.

Drive Employee Engagement - LumApps Play Desktop and Mobile

9. Set aside “meeting-free” time

No one can do their best work if they are over-scheduled with team meetings. There needs to be some time set aside throughout the workweek where employees can focus their attention on their work.

When there are blocks of time designated as “meeting-free,” it forces workers to think about the necessity of scheduling team meetings at other times. Could e-mail be used instead? The entire team can be more productive when meetings are reserved for crucial or urgent issues.

During designated “meeting-free” time, employees can still send instant messages through Slack or other apps as needed. The sender can indicate how urgent their message is at the time.

10. Help your team understand their work style

Digital platforms can gather all kinds of information about how remote workers do their jobs. Part of managing a hybrid workforce is sharing with employees where they are working well and coaching them in areas for improvement. The manager can point out how the team can improve its communication strategies, improve focus, and work together to increase overall productivity.

For individual employees, the manager can suggest ways to reduce distractions when working from home or using the online platform more effectively to get the most out of this powerful online resource.

Tirer le plein potentiel d’un modèle de travail hybride

Travail Hybride : vers une nouvelle normalité ?

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