5 Predictions for hybrid working in 2023

Do you know that a Growmotely survey from 2020 revealed that 97% of employees never want to return to their offices after the COVID-19 pandemic?

Clearly, the pandemic-induced emergence of remote work has left a deep-rooted impact.  In tune with the paradigm shift of working cultures across the world, hybrid working has become the norm. Over 71% of employees expect to be able to continue with a hybrid workplace even after the pandemic. The question for enterprises and business leaders is, how will the hybrid workplace evolve in 2023? What tools and methods will come to become staples of this ecosystem?

Let’s examine more.

What Works In The Hybrid Workplace?

This model combines the traditional office-based working environment with remote working to create a digital workspace. It allows employees to work from anywhere, making them more productive and engaged. Additionally, it provides them with the flexibility to balance their personal and professional lives in an effective way.

The hybrid workplace is characterised by flexible arrangements like hot-desking, open format meeting rooms that can be converted to adapt a mix of in-person and video conference meetings, and communication and collaboration platforms designed to deliver consistent employee experiences on as well as offline. As is apparent, there is a greater emphasis on technology tools and the capability of the network partner become very important enablers of the hybrid workplace.

Why Are So Many Companies Convinced That a Hybrid Work Model Works?

With the world getting back to normal after severe pandemic induced disruptions, most businesses have got back to office, albeit many are still in favour of hybrid working model.

Here are the benefits accruing to companies.

• Cost-effective – Hybrid work models because of digital workspace and remote working, require businesses to invest less in office infrastructure, administrative expenses, and other overhead costs. A McKinsey study has indicated that businesses can save up to 30% of costs which can increase revenues significantly.
• Boost work-life balance – Hybrid work model allows employees to schedule their work while maximizing their overall well-being.
• Improved employee retention –This model helps employees manage their work in the best possible manner while also staying focused on their well-being and personal life which keeps them motivated and drives employee retention in the long term.
• Better employee productivity – Most employees can find a good balance of collaboration and creativity in hybrid culture.  The hybrid setting allows them to work when and where they are most productive. This helps improve productivity and impact.

Now, let’s look at the changes this world is likely to see in 2023

Top 5 Predictions for Hybrid Work and Ways to Optimise Your Workplace

Trend #1 – Constant Technology Shifts

Whether it is communications, reporting, project management, or efficient task management, it is important to have the right technology in place to enable the hybrid workplace. It is predicted by Fast Company that remote work tools like virtual conferencing, and mobile work tools will become the most preferred form of communication. Businesses that are still dependent on on-premises resources are more likely to face difficult times in managing the hybrid work model. Given the nature of hybrid work,  the bring-your-own-device (BYOD) trend along with cloud services will help in managing work from anywhere at any time. Now is time to future-proof your business by going digital and adopting ready-to-use remote working solutions.

Trend #2 – The War for Talent

A study by Cisco in 2020 found that most employees are frustrated with overcrowded work meetings. Since the workplace is changing, it is more likely that employees will leave their jobs if they do not get the support they need from the tools the enterprise provides them. So, employers will seek to balance new working methods and evolve the company's tech infrastructure accordingly.  Clearly, the companies will need to offer the right tools on-site and at home to enhance employee satisfaction and retention. A key concern will be how to ensure that the employees working from home get access to the same tools, technologies, and infrastructure as on-site employees with no compromise in the overall employee experience.

Trend #3 – All New Policies 

Streamlined processes and enabling collaboration remains among the top challenges while working with remote employees. It is predicted that most businesses will define a specific set of guidelines for hybrid work. A powerful and robust work-from-home policy or hybrid work policy can ensure a positive work environment and better employee performance across work settings. The right policy preparation and communication can make employees connected, happy, and productive at the office and at home. Here is what policies will look to cover:

• Define who is eligible for work-from-home or hybrid work scenarios.
• Set regular working hours for salaried as well as hourly employees and modify incentive plans and variable compensation norms.
• Set standards for attendance and availability of employees.
• Streamline communication and collaboration channels with the help of technologies like Zoom,
• Conduct internal communication programs such as email newsletters, updates, milestone celebrations, and the like.
• Provide secure mobile access to essential software, platforms, and systems.

The key to success key will be to create a work-from-home policy that establishes the right communication channels and infrastructure for employees to work efficiently and mitigate the possible pitfalls.

Trend #4 – Growing Importance of Cybersecurity

According to a survey by Cisco, 85% of organisations consider cybersecurity more important now as compared to the pre-pandemic times. Most organisations were not ready for the remote work transition and found security becoming a major challenge as processes fell into place. Organisations know they need to ensure employees are not bringing malware onto the network while working in the hybrid work environment. Expect a massive escalation in the focus on cybersecurity now that remote work has gone mainstream.

The key security challenges faced by businesses are exploding in the hybrid workplace as employees access enterprise systems with unpatched or outdated devices and from unsecured locations and networks. It’s sure that security standards and controls will be specifically modified to address how people work today in the hybrid model. Now is time to invest in security solutions that can scale and evolve according to your unique business needs. Just like Vi Secure provides complete freedom to scale effortlessly without any worries of hidden cyber threats across network, device, and cloud applications.

Trend #5 – Implementing Office Management Systems 

Implementing a hybrid work model in the organisation can be a major challenge as it allows employees to work from anywhere or at the office. This flexibility is a significant benefit for employees and also allows employers to recruit global talent. On the other hand, it requires many changes related to infrastructure like a reconfiguration of office space, multi-purpose conference rooms, and flexible seating arrangements to keep employees engaged and happy in long run. Allowing for this flexibility, while still giving employees the tools and infrastructure they need to perform will be a major theme of the year. It is likely that made-to-purpose Facility Management or Office Management Systems will become the norm to allow this functionality. To ensure business continuity, it is important to adopt new technologies to stabilise operations and realise the business value in future. Considering these objectives, an integrated remote working suite allows you to connect seamlessly with team members, customers, and partners from anywhere at any time, conveniently access data across the world, manage remote operations, and a lot more.

Way Forward to Hybrid Work Environment in 2023

Businesses today are quickly adapting to a hybrid work model to ensure employee retention and business continuity. This transition started during the pandemic but has become the norm now. For enterprises looking to excel in hybrid working in 2023, now is the time to adopt innovative remote work technologies and solutions.

With this in mind, Vi Business has created a suite of technology solutions that allows enterprises to access data remotely, manage business operations conveniently, and connect to customers, partners, and employees from anywhere at any time, and a lot more. Connect with us to discuss your business requirements today.

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