Currently, many companies have implemented the hybrid work model as their main methodology, especially for organizations with a workforce made up of people from different parts of the world.
What are the advantages of this model in commercial equipment? What challenges do entrepreneurs and managers face with this methodology? And how can we manage those challenges?
We tell you everything in this article.
From teleworking to the hybrid model in sales
With the arrival of the pandemic in 2020 and the lockdowns, companies were forced to radically change their method and way of working, adapting their employees’ positions to remote work.
But once the first months of adaptation by managers and teams had passed, this work system began to work and many were aware of the numerous advantages that this modality had.
They discovered that, for some tasks, it was not strictly necessary to go to the workplace in person and that this did not affect efficiency.
It has been proven that some workers are more productive due to free schedules.
Other advantages are, obviously, the resource savings it represents for both parties and the possibility of having people from any geographical area on the team.
And, while for many workers flexible hours are an advantage, for others it is a source of stress since self-management of time is difficult to control and can lead us to unpleasant situations if we do not know how to do it.
For this reason, because the current pandemic situation allows us to return to in-person positions and take all these pros and cons into account, many companies have chosen to implement a hybrid work model in their companies.
The main risk of the hybrid work model
The hybrid or mixed work model is based on a combination of in-person work and remote work.
This hybridization can occur completely equitably (50%-50%), but these percentages may vary depending on the work system established by the company.
In this way, the best of both systems is selected, maintaining the positive effects mentioned above and trying to reduce the negative ones as much as possible.
However, there is a whole area that is negatively affected and that this hybrid system cannot alleviate: we are talking about the social factor.
The isolation and feeling of loneliness caused by little interaction with colleagues daily causes relationships to weaken and work dynamics to be affected.
On the other hand, workers are less committed to the company, since by not physically attending, they do not feel completely part of it.
Consequently, the difficulty of keeping work teams motivated, coordinated, and aligned increases, and in some cases, it can even affect the business culture.
For this reason, managers must consider making greater efforts to implement this mixed modality in their organizations without this implying a drop in the commitment of their workers.
4 tips to maintain and increase the commitment of your workers in a hybrid work model
Below we tell you the 4 tips you can follow to bring your company closer to a safer hybrid model.
1. Create a good work environment
When an employee feels comfortable within a company, they will most likely have a greater willingness to work.
Although everyone has their work methodology, the one in which they are most comfortable, there are a series of measures that managers can adopt to ensure that their employees perform their tasks with greater efficiency and less wear and tear.
To find out, consult directly with your team. Ask them about their preferences, what they need to work better, and how the company can help them achieve this, for example through measures that promote digital disconnection and work-life balance.
Depending on the size of your workforce, you can carry it out through personal interviews with different workers or through anonymous surveys in which teams can express themselves freely.
2. Facilitates communication “outside the company”
As we have said, one of the disadvantages of remote work is isolation and the feeling of loneliness.
For this reason, it is very important to make available to workers other means of communication that they can use to establish relationships outside of work, for example, creating an alternative chat to talk about any topic unrelated to work, in a colloquial and relaxed environment.
The tools for making video calls are very useful for carrying out informative communications about the business and the projects you are working on, but you can also take advantage of them to create a more informal communication channel, giving your team a space of trust so they can vent and talk about what you need.
3. Keep your team aligned with the company
A team that works in coordination pursuing the same objectives is a team committed to the company.
To do this, the key is to establish from the beginning the objectives to be met and make it clear that to achieve them the company needs the collaboration and commitment of its entire team, regardless of where each of them is working.
On the other hand, it is essential to involve the entire team in the achievements so that a feeling of detachment does not occur.
You can use tools that facilitate internal company communication, such as messaging platforms, or establish a schedule of video calls for team members, where they can share specific aspects of the project, doubts, or new proposals.
To learn more about the concept of alignment, you can take a look at our post “ Brand alignment: what it is and how to know if your brand complies with it .”
4. Recognize the work of your employees
When a worker or a team meets the established objective, it is essential to recognize a job well done and encourage the team to continue along that path.
Workers feel proud knowing that they contribute value to the company and this makes them want to get more involved. In this way, the feeling of belonging increases and, consequently, your commitment.
If, on the other hand, we have to communicate that the objectives are not being met as planned, we must let them know in an assertive, close, and private way.
The future of the hybrid work model in the commercial world
The hybrid work model has arrived suddenly and almost unexpectedly, but it is here to stay.
Now it is the responsibility of companies to learn to adapt to this new methodology, overcome the challenges, and take advantage of the advantages to offer a good customer experience.
One of the quickest ways for salespeople to adapt to this new model is for them to learn how to sell value.
