Before the novel coronavirus hit the world and the pandemic became the new normal, people in the workforce would rush their way through traffic to make it in time to their offices and begin their day.

Cut to 2021 and we have employees taking major decisions in their comfortable clothing, sitting in their homes on video calls. The pandemic has given rise to different working styles and now it seems there’s no going back.

When companies adopted the work-from-home (WFH) option, it was a contingency plan. Most people believed that it was just a matter of a few months before everyone would be back to their office desks.

One-and-a-half years into the pandemic, the realisation has dawned that this is far from the truth. All companies are now looking at a hybrid work model, which is essentially the best of both worlds — working from office and work-from-home.

Google has taken the lead and already announced a hybrid work life plan. Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, on May 5 this year, sent employees an email about the company’s decision to create a “hybrid workplace” — a model wherein around 60 percent of the employees would come together in the office a few days every week, another 20 percent would work at new office locations, and the remaining 20 percent would work-from-home.

Google is developing more remote roles “including fully all-remote sub teams.”

However, most employees will have to visit the office thrice a week, and work from “wherever they work best” twice a week.

Employees will also have “work-from-anywhere weeks”. What does this mean? “Going forward, Googlers will be able to temporarily work from a location other than their main office for up to four weeks per year, with manager approval,” Pichai explained.

Also read: Your work from home salary won't be same as your office pay. How Google is paying

Desks sit empty inside the Grand Army of the Republic Building as employees continue to work remotely in Detroit, Michigan, United States on June 8, 2021 (Image: Reuters)

At the core of a hybrid model is the ability for employees to combine working from home with working from an office or another location.

In a hybrid workplace model, employees can work in different spaces, including corporate offices, coworking spaces, public spaces and from home.

It’s important to note that while working from home has its benefits — attending meetings in your PJs (pyjamas) to not wasting time on commute — workers have also experienced drawbacks as well, such as distractions at home, a lack of face time with colleagues, diminished work-life balance and a tendency to work more hours.

Therefore, it's important to figure out a working style that brings out the best of both options.

McKinsey survey

McKinsey conducted a survey in May to understand what is the future of hybrid work. From December 2020 through January 2021, they surveyed and analysed responses from 100 respondents at the C-suite, vice-president and director level, evenly split among organisations based in Asia, Europe, Latin America and the United States, and among a variety of industries.

Company revenues ranged, on an average, from $5.1 billion to $11.0 billion per year.

From the survey of 100 executives, they found out that nine out of ten organisations will be combining remote and on-site working.

Another survey by WeWork partnered with independent research firm, Workplace Intelligence, revealed that most workers expect to continue working from home at least a few days a week, and businesses intend to support this arrangement.

However, people also desperately want to have spaces outside of their home to work from, and companies recognize this need.

The survey was a blind one conducted with 1,000 C-suite and 1,000 non-C-suite employees. It examined the benefits, drawbacks, and requirements of the hybrid model.

Amina Woods, program director for a foster care agency and a psychotherapist for a private practice, works at her home in New York City, United States on March 3, 2021 (Image: Reuters)

Capgemini report

The Capgemini Research Institute in its report titled, ‘The future of work: from remote to hybrid’, surveyed 500 organisations and 5,000 employees around the world and spoke with academicians and executives.

They found that remote working is the new normal — 75 percent of the organizations expect at least 30 percent of their employees to work remotely. As they transition, organizations are finding that remote work boosted productivity and cost savings by up to 24 percent in Q3 2020.

When a hybrid working model comes into consideration, many parameters need to be considered, but a specific one that comes into play is the productivity of employees. It's important to understand that a hybrid working model is not a ‘one size fits all’ option. While for some individuals, productivity has been noted to increase, for some others, there has been a decline as well.

For example, the McKinsey survey points out that during the pandemic, most organizations have seen rises in individual and team productivity and employee engagement.

It also puts out an interesting finding - organizations with the biggest productivity increases during the pandemic have supported and encouraged ‘small moments of engagement’ among their employees, moments in which coaching, mentorship, idea sharing, and coworking take place.

Space Matrix survey

These organizations are preparing for hybrid working by training managers for remote leadership, by reimagining processes, and by rethinking how to help employees thrive in their roles.

That’s one end of the spectrum. On the other end, there are also individuals who consider their productivity to have declined in the work-from-home scenario.

Nearly 85 percent of employees want to get back to office, but with the flexibility to switch between the two options, a survey by Space Matrix showed.

One-third of the 1,000 employees surveyed said working from home made them less productive because of inadequate technology and resources as well as domestic distractions, which affect focus and quality.

When questioned why they would want to return to office, 43 percent of the respondents in the survey on the future of workspaces, said they would be able to collaborate and work as a team with greater efficiency.

Another 37 percent felt working from an office gave them flexibility of choosing from a variety of individual and collaborative workspaces as well as greater access to technology.

Thus, it's important for organizations to bear in mind whether the nature of work, their employees and resources can adapt to a hybrid working model, instead of just jumping on the bandwagon.

Holistic therapist Denise Vieira Souza de Almeida, 52, works using her computer at home in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on May 6 2021 (Image: Reuters)

Organizations must understand that at the core of a hybrid working model is the freedom of flexibility and greater control on working styles. It may have taken a pandemic to reveal that giving workers what they want is also beneficial for the bottom line.

The survey by WeWork, in fact, showed that employees want flexibility so much that they’d be willing to give up some of the most valuable benefits and perks they receive from their employer.

Nearly, 75 percent would give up at least one benefit or perk, including healthcare coverage, cash bonuses, and paid time off, for the freedom to choose their work environment.

Everything mentioned above seems to indicate a hybrid work model to be the future and it may as well be, but the transition is not simple.

Companies will have to address the challenges of burnout, blurred work life boundaries and mental health issues. Organizations must focus on the employee – on their changing needs and behaviours.

It is only by changing the way they manage and lead, by reframing employee touchpoints, and by rebooting the role of the physical workspace – that they will create a truly hybrid model and see improved productivity, lower costs, refreshed managerial roles and strengthened cultural fabric, which can be the outcome of this new normal.

During the months of April and May this year, the second wave of COVID-19 was at its peak in India. There was so much collective grief that functioning efficiently in a workspace may have become increasingly exhausting.

During this phase, many companies stepped up to provide their employees a four-day work week, giving them more space to deal with their personal grief, emotions and mental health.

Read: In-Depth | Resurgence of COVID-19 sparks fears of another wave of mental health problems

When Swiggy announced its four-day work week plan in May, Girish Menon, head of human resources at the company, wrote in a mail: “As a mark of respect for the efforts and the month that May can be with COVID cases escalating, we want to offer a four-day work week to all of you. Please decide the four days that each of you would work and utilise the extra day to take rest, take care of yourself, take care of your family and friends. As many of you are aware, we have put together a COVID task force and we can definitely do more with more hands on the deck. Hence, if any of you would like to volunteer and actively help on the break day, you're welcome”.

Ritesh Agarwal, Founder and CEO of OYO Hotels, also announced a four-day work week for its employees saying: “Starting today (May 12), we are moving to a four-day work week but implementing it slightly differently, making Wednesdays off to let OYOpreneurs have a mid-week breather. We also launched a no questions asked flexible infinite paid leaves”.

"Take off when you want, no need to log then, just let the manager know, no reasons needed, none asked. We are not going to stress about business impact and deadlines," he added.

Many advertising agencies like DDB Mudra, MullenLowe Lintas Group and WATConsult also did the same for their employees.

All these companies opted for four-day work as a well-being measure for their employees, but the model is not something that was born out of the pandemic.

People work as they sit in a cafe in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on February 1, 2021 (Image: Reuters)

In fact, the idea was proposed as a part of the new labour codes that were formulated in February this year. Though the implementation of the rules was deferred from April 1, the Ministry of Labour and Employment was considering offering flexibility to companies to have four working days while retaining working hours at 48 hours a week.

Thus, if implemented, a four-day work system in India would reduce the number of working days in a week, but it may result in an increase in daily working hours to 12 hours a day.

So, are people in favour of a four-day work week?

According to the report by desktop virtualisation leader Citrix, more than three out of four young Indian workers believe that employers should offer the opportunity to work a four-day week to promote employee well-being, post the pandemic.

These Indian workers belong to the category called ‘Born Digital’ made up of millennials (born 1981 to 1996) and Generation Z (born after 1997) workers. They are the first generation to grow up in an entirely digital world, and now account for most of the global workforce.

Entrepreneur Andrew Barnes who started 4 Day Week Global, a not-for-profit community, in New Zealand, and is the self-declared architect of the four-day week movement, told Quartz that the idea seems less far-fetched now, given the pandemic.

He said companies are finally understanding that productivity can be measured in terms of output rather than the hours spent in an office. Barnes reiterated that a flexible schedule doesn't have to hurt an employee's productivity. Seems like his words may be coming true.

Therefore, at the core of both the working models lies the basic principle of giving employees the freedom of being flexible with their work while still making sure that goals are achieved.

It seems that companies are slowly getting around to the understanding of keeping their employees first and building an environment in which they can thrive professionally as well as personally.

The cover image was created by Suneesh Kalarickal.

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