Rather than committing 100% one way or the other, many companies are suggesting that a hybrid solution – a combination of some days in the office and others working from home – is the answer. But this still presents practical issues. Who decides who should be in the office on which days? Will the office be super busy on some days and mostly vacant on others? Does the business retain the benefits of everyone being in the office if only some staff are in attendance on any one day?

It’s easy for the debate to slip into personal preferences and for business leaders to highlight the perceived problems associated with remote working prior to the pandemic. But we now have a huge swathe of data available to prove or disprove previously held beliefs such as ‘remote working is less productive’, ‘our systems can’t support remote working’, and ‘homeworking roles attract less productive people’.

So what can HR do to find a solution that works for everyone?

1. Collect hard data

The first step is to gain the evidence needed to create a working model that works for everyone. Start by using HR software to survey all your staff. Direct questions are needed, like: Who wants to return, and who doesn’t? Who wants a combination of days in and out of the office? Find out specifics. It’s an emotive issue, so it might be useful to give employees the option to answer anonymously.

Next, collect any productivity data you can. How has working remotely during the pandemic impacted metrics such as hours worked, call rates, sales, and customer service responses? Also consider showing your business leaders evidence of how hybrid working could be beneficial to your company in terms of retaining key employees, cutting out non-productive commuting hours, and recruitment.

2. Get to the bottom of concerns

Some issues that you might need to address include:

• Is working from home a policy or a people issue?
• Do managers not trust specific employees to work effectively at home, for example?
• Are some individuals relishing the idea of not working with a ‘difficult’ colleague?
• Are employees worried about distancing measures and being safe at work?
• Is home working perceived as unprofessional by customers?
• Are there concerns about how key requirements for success, such as collaboration, creativity and mentoring, are negatively impacted if employees are not in the office?

You’re likely to uncover a broad range of concerns. The key is to evaluate what the real issues are, then begin to look at how to address them.

3. Present solutions for hybrid working 

Your proposed hybrid working solution is likely to comprise of a mix of technology, practical solutions and creative thinking. For example, consider introducing office technology that shows how in-person and remote employees can work together.

Work out a timetable that allows for adequate social distancing, while also ensuring a balanced number of employees attending the office. For example, you probably don’t want everyone out of the office on Mondays and Fridays, and everyone in Tuesday to Thursday.

What is vital – both for your management team and employees – is to show that lessons have been learned during the pandemic. Moving forward presents an opportunity to create a different but perhaps better solution that works for everyone – and that’s a far more exciting prospect than simply going back to what happened before.

If you would like to find out more about how the latest HR software and tools can help build your ideal hybrid work solution – please do get in touch with one of our HR software experts.