How to thrive in your hybrid workspace
7 December 2020 at 8:32 am
We share some tips on how to balance new working arrangements
As Australia slowly emerges out of the worst of the pandemic, many organisations are beginning to return staff to their physical offices.
But with nearly half of the Australian workforce working from home for most of the year (showing employers that this kind of flexible work is in fact possible) the future of work looks a bit different. It’s unlikely that we’ll all return to the office full time.
Research has shown that nearly seven in 10 Australian workers believe their job satisfaction and work-life balance has improved since the shift to remote work.
But the same piece of research also found that 77 per cent of workers spent more time coordinating and organising projects via email or social media platforms, and 50 per cent miss the social aspect of being in an office environment.
With that in mind, many organisations are looking towards a hybrid approach, where workers will be given more freedom to spend part of their week in the office, and part of their week working from home.
To help you adjust for the (possible) future of work, we’ve rounded up some ways to help you settle in.
Pick your days
To avoid wasting your time jumping from Zoom meeting to Zoom meeting on your days working from home, try to map out your week so that the days you have team meetings, or you need to collaborate with a colleague on a project are the days you are in the office.
That way, when you are left to your own devices at home, you will have the space to work uninterrupted on your own projects and tasks.
Keep technology the same
Use the same technology (laptop, phone, communication platforms) whether you are working from home or from the office.
This will ensure that everyone in your team is communicating in the same way and there is no confusion around how to get in contact with team members or whether you left important files on your office computer.
Sync up your environments
Consistency is key, so try your best to recreate your office environment at home. This means finding a space where you can store all your work needs (as you would in the office) and where you can actually leave when you’ve finished work for the day.
