Everyone’s Talking About Hybrid Working
A couple of years ago no one used the term hybrid working. Remote working, sure, but even this was still seen as the preserve of freelancers or a handful of usually tech sector employees who visited HQ in California once a year and otherwise worked fully remotely. Now hybrid working has become the default mode for many office-based workers.
The burning platform that was the COVID-19 pandemic has radically changed the way businesses and individuals think about the office. For those jobs that can be carried out remotely, it is now widely accepted that productivity is at least as good when working remotely, that reduced commuting makes everyone happier, and that for most people the increased flexibility that remote working affords is a game-changing benefit.
There are acknowledged downsides for some groups, especially younger employees, who miss out on direct, regular interaction with more experienced colleagues. They are also more likely to value the social environment of the office more highly than the ability to do the school run, but many companies are working hard now to understand how these problems can be mitigated so that the pros of hybrid working far outweigh the cons.
While the concept of flexible working has been around for yonks it hasn’t always been a legal right. In the UK we’ve had some form of right to request flexible working for almost 20 years now. It was first introduced to some parents in 2003 and was gradually tweaked until 2014 when all employees were given the right to request flexible working arrangements. In September 2021 the government announced new proposals to deliver on their promise to make flexible working the default (although some believe those proposals won’t in fact achieve that objective).
Research by the TUC has shown that more than four out of five (82%) workers in Britain want to work flexibly in the future, rising to 87% amongst women workers. So the idea of flexible working as the default mode where possible is popular even if the reality is some way off.
Hybrid work and coworking
Coworking has officially been around since 2005 when Brad Neuberg set up a space in San Francisco. Since then the concept has become a global phenomenon and an essential resource for all sorts of businesses and individuals. Coworking space operators are now seen as pioneers of office space provision and flexible working practices.
Under the umbrella of the term coworking, there are many different space providers from corporate behemoths like WeWork to independent cafes that welcome coffee-guzzling laptop labourers.
We created a coworking space to understand how people work individually and collectively through the connection between physical environment and social structures. Workshop has been running since 2016 and is a living breathing prototype that we’re constantly adapting to members’ needs, ensuring they can do their best work. The space is fluid; while it’s now home to 80 members representing 40 businesses, flexible plans mean the profile of members is constantly evolving as needs fluctuate. As for community, we’ve learnt that working in a room with other like-minded people — even if they aren’t actually part of your team or company — makes a huge difference to the workday. It’s about having in-person social connections to balance out all that screen time. And meeting people you wouldn’t have necessarily had the chance to meet otherwise — some great collaborations have been created at Workshop.
While effective hybrid working is still being defined both at an organisational and individual level, we’ll keep experimenting on our end and understanding what our community of Workshoppers need to do their best work.
Learn more about Workshop here
