Making any big transitions in business is difficult. Implementing a hybrid workforce model can seem especially daunting. Applying some of these ideas can help make the process a bit less overwhelming.
Downsizing Your Current Office Space
Downsizing your current office is a great place to start when transitioning to a hybrid workforce model. As you work on downsizing, it’s important to not take this step too suddenly. Without the proper preparation, downsizing your space could actually scare some of your employees and send the message that the company is failing.
Instead, work with your PR team to develop a clear message about going hybrid that keeps the team upbeat as you downsize buildings.
Set Up Satellite Offices
Another way to help with the shift from a largely in-person office to a more hybrid model is to rely more heavily on satellite offices as opposed to one large office. Building satellite offices will vary heavily from company to company.
But know that you might find different levels of need in different geographical areas and for different employees. For example, while you may have enough employees in one geographical area to merit building a new smaller branch, you might not have enough employees in another area to do the same.
In those situations, get creative and use a coworking space. With a coworking space, you get the address and access to meeting rooms that you would in your own office. But the costs are much less because the space is more shared.
Build a Transition Plan
In addition to taking steps like downsizing your office space and creating smaller satellite offices in different locations, it’s important that you zoom out and think carefully about your business’s specific situation. Depending on the size of your company, you might need to take your transition to a hybrid model in phases.
For example, you may already have clumps of employee teams that are working largely remotely already—they may be able to have a more accelerated transition while other teammates might require more steps. Consider the specific needs of your employees and then build clear steps that are tailored to your needs.
As you work to move your company to a more hybrid model, be sure to get input from your employees along the way. Knowing how they feel will help you get them resources they need. If you have the right resources available to them to help them adjust, you’ll have a lot more success over time.
Ensure the Proper Equipment is in Place
Moving from a centralized location to satellite offices or work-from-home setups requires right-sizing your equipment. Make sure all of your employees have access to the tools they need to get the work done. This might include smaller multifunction devices, a secured document portal, efficient conference calling, etc. At Offix, we offer work-from-home products and work-from-home bundles designed to recreate a flexible, easy-to-implement office environment, and Voice Over IP (VOIP) telephony for business, which allows a business to move extensions with the location of the employee, without having to wire anything or move hardware.
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