Since the Government’s Covid-19 restrictions have been lifted, many workforces have continued to practice home working, either in full or partial (hybrid) measures across the working week. 

Some argue this is for good reason, others are not so sure.

We’ve been weighing up the benefits and have decided to practise our own style of hybrid working at Conspicuous. Let’s discuss.

Why do employees want to continue working from home?

Most employees chase the perfect work-life balance. According to Business News Daily, ‘work-life balance is the state of equilibrium where a person equally prioritises the demands of one’s career and the demands of one’s personal life'.

Remote working has proven to be one solution for achieving this highly sought balance. Apparently the average time UK employees spend on their daily commute is 1 hour and 38 mins, so cutting the commute gives this time back to workers. 

Why do employers want to continue remote working?

1. Productivity

 A good work-life balance is beneficial for employers too because happier employees tend to be more productive. 

Interestingly, research shows that employees are more likely to work extra hours when working from home. According to the Guardian, this is because home workers take shorter lunch breaks, are more willing to work through sickness and since the division between working hours and leisure hours has become blurred, employees are reportedly always switched on.

Team members are happier to take on bigger workloads as a result of the comfort, flexibility and other benefits that come along with home working.

2. Decreased expenses

The costs of running a business have decreased due to home working too. Less electricity is being used in offices and some companies are even downsizing their headquarters or getting rid of them completely.

3. Increased profitability

Reduced travel is more profitable

Reduce your travelling time, increase your profitability -- Some McKinsey departments are 70% more profitable due to lack of international travel during the pandemic. 

The UK has clients looking to reduce mileage from 30,000 to 10,000 miles per year, so remote working could be a positive step in the right direction.

4. Better hiring

Another great benefit of home working has to do with hiring. If employees work from home, home can potentially be anywhere in the country or even the world. This means hiring just became a whole lot easier. The talent pool is much wider when you remove geographical location from the requirements. 

Offering flexibility to potential candidates makes organisations appear more attractive too, so this can be a candidate’s deciding factor between you and another employer.

How do Dynamics Partners encourage collaborative learning and team cultures with everyone working remotely?

There are lot’s of serious benefits to consider around remote working. That said, the transition to home-working isn’t all plain sailing for employers. There are lots of downsides to having a scattered workforce, mainly because it can be more difficult to sustain team collaboration and morale. There is an undeniable sense of ‘we’re all in this together that comes with working side by side, physically. 

That said, a balance of working remotely and in-person can save on office space and save on time travelling, so it really is a balance.

A middle-ground

Working in the office and working remotely both have considerable benefits. Striking a balance that draws from both could be a great solution in this post-pandemic world. That’s what we’re trying to establish here at Conspicuous.

We’re trialling a four day week approach over the summer to see if we can ascertain the best of both worlds. Monday-Thursday we will remain in the office and then on Fridays the consultants have to be on hand for clients' requirements - but can work from anywhere they choose. 

The idea is that by working effectively in four days, our team can complete all their new business, searching, marketing, account management and admin in that time, leaving Friday for working in a reactionary manner.

On this day we have no internal meetings and management is asked not to send emails unless they are also involved with solving clients’ needs.

Our goal is for the team to gain some flexibility and freedom that comes with out-of-office working, whilst also reaping the benefits of a collaborative Monday-Thursday and the structure that comes with it. 

Is this approach viable? We’ll see.