Where once many companies were forced to embrace remote working, the switch is now forcing teams back into the office or having a mix of both in the new way of working; the “hybrid” model.

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The conversation that I'm now having is, how to make it work > which way is best for our team and business?

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As an employee:

➡️ Which way of working appeals to you the most?

➡️ Do you get asked what you prefer?

➡️ Or is it a blanket approach across the entire business?

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For employers:

➡️ What approach works best for your business?

➡️ How do you effectively manage this as a leader?

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Let’s start with two key areas to focus on for it to work with the hybrid and remote working approach, and for it to be successful.

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1. Trust
2. Communication

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As a leader, business owner and employee, the biggest piece to build is > Trust.

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It’s a fair, two-way partnership.

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If you don’t have trust built in your team, the common traits you will see is micro management, wanting to know or question what someone is doing every minute of the day, which can lead to underperformance and disengagement.
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So how do you build trust in the hybrid or remote work setting? ⤵️

As a manager, by creating a supportive and collaborative network and establish clear business processes and expectations:

➡️ Does your team have an adequate setup and access to systems to perform their role, no matter where they are located?

➡️ Set expectations (don’t leave people second guessing). Expectation discussions could happen every week, or month depending on the position and business

➡️ Provide regular opportunities for check-ins and effective team meetings for connection and collaboration (and make sure they happen!)

➡️ Create systems and ways of communication to allow someone to thrive and feel empowered to perform their role

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Which leads to the next key piece > communication.

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What is the right level of communication and how?

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Understanding your team and how to effectively communicate is the first step. Is face-to-face best? Or via video, email or phone? Understanding your team, how they work, and how often they require a check-in, and then committing to this time in your week and month, is a great way to start.

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So what is the secret to effective communication?

One secret that you may not necessarily think about….is Listening!

➡️ Ask questions and allow time for a response before speaking again

➡️ As a manager, try to speak for only 20% of a conversation and see how a relationship can improve

➡️ Set adequate time aside each week or month for check-ins and committing to them

➡️ Commit to the key takeaways or actions from each discussion

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It’s through effectively building trust and communicating well where you will find out how well a hybrid or remote work setting is going.

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By focusing on these two areas to start with, (which are free to try), I’d love to know if it has an impact to the type of working approach for your business.