4 Key Elements and 5 of the Best Free Tools for Successful Hybrid Work

I am still haunted by the stories I heard in the early days of the pandemic of

parents struggling to do the best they could by their children and their employers. There was the bus driver who left her house in the morning to perform an essential service, closing the door behind her as her 11 year old attended school online, alone at home. There was the mom and her elementary school age daughter who collapsed into each other’s arms in tears after arguing about when mommy was available while at home, which used to be always.

When the pandemic hit, I was managing a team of health educators who had the responsibility of promoting the well-being of a 15,000 person county government that would face unprecedented challenges in the weeks and months ahead.

We were supporting people like the public health workers on the frontline of the pandemic, the bus drivers and wastewater plant staff keeping essential services running, and the courts who kept the wheels of justice turning by shifting to online proceedings.

Prior to the pandemic, we relied heavily on in person interactions to promote the connectedness we believed supported well-being. What we learned in the coming months was that as we moved to hybrid work, people had the same need for connection but the barriers were different and required different practices and solutions.

Our employee engagement data revealed this same learning across many dimensions of engagement.

Managers still needed accountability, follow through and creative problem solving. Employees still needed to feel valued, supported in their career growth and get clear, transparent communication. In fact, these needs became more acute during the pandemic. What was getting in the way was using the same systems and practices for remote work that had been used for in-person work when what was needed were new ways of delivering the clarity and connectedness people crave.

I think it’s good to remember as people forge a new future of hybrid work that remote work is not just doing things in the same way from a different location. It requires new skills and practices to achieve better outcomes.

These are the 5 elements of successful hybrid work:

1. Create a culture of well-being, inclusion and belonging through communication, trust and autonomy.

• • Set up avenues for two way communication that are used regularly to keep a pulse on how things are going, get input on important decisions and inform people about decisions impacting them.

• • Allow flexibility during the day, where possible, for people to balance work and home life. There are many models for this, but the basic premise is the same: establish clear expectations and timelines so employees can deliver results while managing their time to best achieve focus and work life balance.

• • Manage to outcomes instead of tracking tasks. Asking someone to have an impact on a strategy is more engaging than asking them to deliver a series of tasks. It helps them understand the value of their work in the context of the goals of the organization.

2. Ease change fatigue and build resilience by using change management strategies

• • Seek input into strategy and decision by those impacted which is one of the best ways to ensure people feel like they matter and their ideas are valued.

• • Communicate authentically and transparently including why decisions are made.

• • Offer hope and a vision for the future that builds enthusiasm and anchors people when things are rapidly changing.

3. Equip managers with soft skills that are more important in a hybrid environment

Our research shows managers have taken on an even more central role in the employee experience since the pandemic. This makes sense when you consider the interactions that shape an employee’s experience and how those narrow during hybrid work, further emphasizing the manager role as the connector to the strategy and culture of the organization. With this is in mind, the soft skills that are often more important to the relationship between the manager and employee become more important:

• • Empathy to be able to understand an employee’s thoughts and feelings which builds trust, better communication and motivation. Interactions grounded in empathy enable us to transcend the distance with humanity.

• • Coach to help someone grow and develop so they understand their contribution to the organization, building their sense of purpose and connection to the overall strategy.

• • Ability to have difficult conversations so hard issues can be addressed in a way that strengthens trust and understanding instead of fracturing alignment.

4. Be intentional about time spent together in person. Rather than require people to meet a quota for time in the office, think about the unique benefits of being together and seize the opportunity.

To help with these elements, I’ve compiled a list of the top 5 free tools to facilitate hybrid work.

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