The Future of Work is Hybrid
The Big Themes for 2021 - Chapter One
Ride the corona-coaster and see what happens, or consider this an opportunity to design a new work mode that creates value.
Office skeuomorphism. Replicating real-world objects and rituals from an office in a virtual environment. For example, moving a face-to-face meeting onto Zoom like for like.
This is what happened back in March, a sudden and seismic shift online taking everything with us and (understandably) overlooking the opportunity to step back, consider and assess how we do work. Before Covid (‘BC’) the changing state of work was already happening, the boundaries between place, state and mode were already becoming blurred and it seemed inevitable the future was to be hybrid in nature. C19 has only accelerated this to an inflection point that we now find ourselves at: ride the corona-coaster and see what happens, or consider this an opportunity to design a new work mode that creates value. A chance to define what culture, process, management and strategy mean in a hybrid state. And of course to understand and act upon the unhidden costs and untapped opportunities that come with it.
At Fluxx we are working closely with one of the world’s largest FMCG companies; helping them to design a purposeful workplace strategy for the future. One that is employee centric in design, but equally delivers on business needs. Together, we are exploring how we can maximise productivity, culture and efficiency by reimagining, where, when and how work gets done.
A hybrid work mode is coming for good.
The great WFH experiment that many of us took part in from March proved one thing very quickly: presenteeism is no longer a thing.
The benefits of being able to work from home or, perhaps more aptly, work from anywhere (“WFA”) were quickly realised: flexibility to work around life and a focus on outcomes rather than just ‘turning up’ with no drop in productivity.
It is unsurprising then that only 9% of employees see a complete return to the office after Covid (‘AC’) and 72% of knowledge workers want a combination of office and remote work. That said, a study of 3000 office users in the UK found that 58% missed office life, with those under 35 showing the strongest desire to return in some form. Most stated human interaction and socialising with colleagues as the top reason, followed by collective face-to- face work.
It seems then that there is undoubtedly a place for both “work-from-anywhere” (WFA) and a physical meeting experience — a hybrid model that finds harmony between structure and sociability, and independence and flexibility.
But what are some of the unhidden costs and untapped opportunities of this new working model?
Jack is a Consultant at Fluxx. Click here for useful links to all things Fluxx.
Are you curious as to how Fluxx has helped companies such as Condé Nast, Mars, Thames Water, HSBC, Addison Lee Group and many more? Learn the secrets for sustained, repeatable innovation models, from expert practitioners. Get in touch now Jack.Metcalfe@Fluxx.uk.com.
Fluxx have partnered with magneticNorth for our tenth and final thought leadership series of 2020. We have shared values and objectives, complimentary skills and different industry experiences that, together, creates a powerhouse of design thinking and problem solving. Get in touch, hello@thisismn.com.
