3 ways to maintain employee engagement in a hybrid working model

TL;DR

1. Rally your team for an office redesign

2. Meet on-site regularly (in private, professional meeting spaces)

3. Prioritize well-being, putting an end to burnout

1.   Rally your team for an office redesign

Make the office more appealing for everyone. You’ll lure your crew back and reap the rewards of having more people together more often. A concerted, group-effort overhaul that better supports key hybrid needs can lead to a happier, more productive workforce.

A relevant read: 5 essential hybrid office investments

Level-up the layout, so the office fulfills its distinct role in our hybrid world.

The office is the choice workplace for those who get sidetracked at home. It helps separate “work” and “life.” It’s a welcome constant in a fitful world. It’s where conversation and culture happen. Most notably, it’s a flexible asset that can give you more resilience in the face of change.

Treat it as an opportunity to perfect workplace acoustics.

76% say noise is a crucial factor, yet only 30% are happy with the levels in their office. The good news is: a spread of acoustic fixes can turn office clang into calm. Check out our quick, comprehensive guide to office noise for an overview. You’ll get 10 best practices for managing the noise in your space.

An ambient soundscape engages employees positively.

How to tackle workplace noise? If it echoes, bring in soft, sound-dampening treatments. If it’s awkwardly quiet, consider a sound masking system. If speech privacy is insufficient, look to speech privacy systems. If your office is outright noisy, consider work booths and pods

– says Robert Korpacki, Product Manager, Hushoffice.

By mastering its acoustics zone by zone, you make the office a spot where people ease into work and enjoy it, never losing energy fending off auditory distractions.

Be sure to accommodate neurodivergence with each retrofit.

Your brain operates differently from anyone else’s in a given space. This is because we all process sensory input in a unique way. Some are bothered by colleague small talk; others find it conducive to focus. Some find flickering lights insufferable; others don’t even notice them.

To support a diverse workforce, the office must be designed for neurodiversity.

Designing for neurodiversity is all about catering to neurological variances (using those five senses as guides). New to the topic? Check out our thorough blog, Office design for a neurodiverse workforce. It’ll give you the seven aspects to focus on in order to achieve a more universal setup.

By accommodating neurodiversity in the office’s arrangement and style, we make it a more inclusive environment where engagement flourishes, unhindered

– says Mateusz Barczyk, Senior Brand Manager, Hushoffice.

2.   Meet on-site regularly (in private, professional meeting spaces)

Weekly team meetings, monthly manager-employee one-on-ones, critical discussions with the executive board. Hybrid working depends on in-person meetings. The camaraderie they impart drives us to do our best work

– says Mateusz Barczyk, Senior Brand Manager, Hushoffice.

Meetings maintain that human element of modern work that makes it meaningful. When we’re connecting, bouncing ideas off one another on the regular, our approach to work stays nimble. Alternatively, without people — the “soul” of life as we know it — our approach can get rigid and uninspired.

People tend to be more focused when they meet in-person, face-to-face.

This explains why in-person meetings are shown to be more fruitful, turning out about 3 more ideas per pop than online meetings.

84% of executives prefer in-person meetings, saying they create stronger relationships.

A keen insight since businesses are built on relationships. Face-to-face, we pick up on more non-verbal cues and can speak more skillfully because of them. We have greater ease discussing sensitive things. We fancy casual small talk after meeting, forming more authentic alliances with partners.

Some meetings just don’t work virtually.

Fast-paced workshops. Idea generation binges. Such other lively forms of collaboration benefit from hustle-and-bustle. From employees bopping about the room, thinking fluidly through movement (rather than tethered to their desk, eyes glued to a laptop screen).

3.   Prioritize well-being, putting an end to burnout

79% of businesses reported a surge in requests for mental health support throughout 2020. Makes sense since about half of U.S. workers struggled mentally during the pandemic. Virtual burnout and social isolation certainly didn’t help. So it comes as no surprise that 73% of people want their workplace to give them social connection.

Here’s a hot take on this topic: How “isolation” pods make the office more social, not less

Open office burnout is real. Prevention is medicine.

A few adjustments can make all the difference in preventing burnout. Encourage your team to take frequent breaks. Divide the office, making each zone cozy and conductive. Soundmask, reducing the intelligibility of background speech. And implement noise-insulating materials (if the office echoes). Read more: 5 ways to prevent open office burnout.

Maintaining employee engagement in a hybrid working model– TL;DR

1. Rally your team for an office redesign

2. Meet on-site regularly (in private, professional meeting spaces)

3. Prioritize well-being, putting an end to burnout

Maintaining employee engagement in a hybrid working model – frequently asked questions

How do you engage employees in a hybrid workplace?

Involve your team in an office redesign that supports hybrid needs, improves acoustics, and accommodates neurodiversity. Meet IRL regularly in professional, private meeting spaces to keep the human element of work alive and well. And prioritize well-being, putting an end to burnout.

What does it sound like inside a Hushoffice pod?

It sounds peaceful in a Hushoffice pod. Such pods are designed to deflect and dampen a precise amount of noise, not all of it. So from inside, noise on the floor is heard as a faint muffle. The experience is relaxing. If the pod were 100% soundproofed, its interior atmosphere would feel jarring (i.e., uncomfortably silent).

What is a workplace pod?

A workplace pod, booth, or cabin is a private, acoustic work or meeting space. They’re often mobile. Though relatively new to the scene, there are already many kinds available on the market. 1-person standing call booths like hushPhone. 2-person conversation pods like hushMeet.S. 4-person team meeting cabins like hushMeet. There are even semi-open kinds (with one open face — see hushMeet.open for 4 or hushMeet.open.S for 2). These semi-open styles make fitting destinations for laid-back chats and brief breaks throughout the day.