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5 Reasons Why the Hybrid Working Model is the Future for UK Businesses

Hybrid working

When the number of coronavirus cases soared in a short period of time in the UK in February and March 2020, it had a great impact on how people worked and by April 2020 46.6% of people in the UK were working from home, of which 86% were doing so as a direct result of the coronavirus. Some companies across the UK found that having staff working remotely worked a lot more effectively than they had originally envisaged. 

So, with things opening up again, many companies have started to incorporate hybrid working into their business’s working model. We have come up with some reasons why the hybrid working model is the future for UK businesses. 

What the Hybrid Working Model is and How it Differs from Remote Working 

It should be noted that hybrid and remote working models are not the same. Whereas remote working means working offsite out of the office at home or elsewhere 100% of the time, the hybrid working model means employees spending some time of their time during the week working on site and in the office.

The hybrid working model simply means a work arrangement which is more flexible in regards to location, allowing employees to combine remote work with going into the office workspace in person. For hybrid working to work well and to provide clarity and structure for workers, employers and employees must agree on things such as the days an employee must spend working remotely vs in the office, the working hours, lunch breaks, holiday arrangements and so on.

The Move to Hybrid Working is Looking Like a Wise Long-Term Plan for Businesses in 2021

The pandemic has forced businesses to think long-term about how in the long-term they will organise work communication, remote working, with having employees also physically coming back into the office when things return to normal for businesses. Marco Minervini, an organisational design researcher at INSEAD business school in Singapore, believes many employers across the world are already opting to go with the hybrid working model which combines remote work with office work. 

The Hybrid Working Model Combines the Best of Both Worlds to Create a Better Work-Life Balance

Not everyone thrives when working remotely and some people dearly miss the workplace social interactions, and it can lead to some employees feeling as though they have become socially isolated. Do you miss those incidental friendly chats by the coffee machine on your breaks where you find out about how exactly your colleagues’ weekends went? Hybrid working thankfully combines the best of both working models, combining remote working with office space working. 

So, for the social butterflies amongst us who enjoy coming into the office and connecting with people in person, hybrid working is an ideal option which comes with many benefits over remote working. 

If you have a young family and want to work but also have the possibility to spend more of your time being at home and seeing your young children grow up, then the hybrid working model may be a great arrangement to suit you and your lifestyle. Hybrid working means you are able to spend a bit more time around family and friends, as opposed to spending all of your time stuck in the office. 

The Move Towards Hybrid Working is An Opportunity to Refurbish an Office Space  

A hybrid working arrangement may be scheduled in such a way so there are far less people working in the office in one day than before. As a result, hybrid working can be a good excuse for an office refurbishment or changing the office layout. 

For an office refurbishment you will need to consider the work that needs to be done (flooring, partitions, interiors etc), how you will install the wiring for the office’s IT system in the building, your timeline and a date when the office refurb needs to be completed by, the furniture to include and much more.

But one of the most important considerations in an office refurbishment will of course be your budget and how you can do your best to try and stick to it. A useful tool you can use to help you try and stick to your budget for the costs of an office refurbishment is an office fit out calculator. If you’re looking to get an office fit out at a reasonable price in the Glasgow or Edinburgh area, you may want to take a look at the company Amos Beech, as they offer a cost-effective option and a calculator to save you time and effort. 

Employees Can Save a Lot of Time and Money by Not Having to Commute to the Office 5 days a Week

Unfortunately, it’s nearly always the case that some members of staff live further away from the office than others do. 

The hybrid working model means employees are required to physically come into the office far less frequently. One of benefits of hybrid working is that it saves employees from spending hours upon hours sitting in their car in traffic jams or on delayed public transport commuting to work. Hybrid working can thus also have the positive effect of reducing fatigue in the workforce and can mean that employees come into the office feeling more energised and ready to work. 

In addition, hybrid working and not having to commute to and from the office every day can save employees a lot of money on transportation costs. If employees want to save themselves some more money on commuting costs, they can also choose to travel to work on foot or by bicycle. To frame it in the bigger picture, it is also far greener and better for the planet to take alternative methods of transport to work that don’t pump out pollution into the Earth’s atmosphere non-stop.

Overall, hybrid working could be a fantastic working arrangement suitable for businesses in the UK in the future. Hybrid working provides employees with a much greater degree of flexibility than a traditional 9-5 office job. However, some job sectors such as construction, nursing, medical surgery, and so on will always entail jobs that have to be carried out in person, and not by somebody working remotely behind a computer screen.

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