Our first virtual roundtable with speakers from Sixt and Osram was a great success! We believe that we are not the only ones who have learned a lot from the discussion between Chris Bieri, CEO of Seatti, Anna Schmitt, Senior Property Manager at Osram and Anica Willman, Executive of New Work at Sixt.
Like virtually all other companies, Sixt and Osram, two of our biggest customers, had to switch to remote work during the pandemic. The typical presence culture before the pandemic and the 1:1 workplaces were completely redesigned, as employees had to work from home.
But as these regulations changed, both companies, like many others, found ways to combine their newfound preference for remote work with the benefits of the office.
The exchange, which was moderated by our co-founder, Chris, included topics such as new work task forces, the set-up of home offices and hybrid work communication. And although we're a company that specializes in shaping the future of work through desk sharing and flexible office management, we too have learned some new tips and tricks from our speakers.
And since we're anything but selfish at Seatti, we'd like to share with you what we've learned so you can adapt it to your own new hybrid work model.
1. Try to bring back the “spirit culture”
Many employees appreciate the typical office culture: standing around and drinking a cup of coffee, having lunch with colleagues, walking to the subway together. Due to COVID, they have also lost many events that bring a lot of enthusiasm and fun to work.
That is why it is very important to focus on restoring the “spirit culture” in a company when switching to hybrid work. That means thinking about how to motivate employees to get excited about work again — and more importantly, get them excited about working together.
Perhaps that means investing in a tool that enables “virtual offices” in which you can virtually collaborate with colleagues. Or to concentrate more on organising (corona safe) events in the office. Perhaps it also means organising small outings for teams.
2. Give your team and yourself time
Changes are usually difficult and always take time. Above all, you need patience to get everyone involved used to a new situation. You may feel overwhelmed and overwhelmed with this new attitude. So remember to give yourself time to adjust.
This includes open communication with the entire team — including all employees from all departments. Ask the team: How are they coping with this change? What can you do to make the transition easier? What is still missing from management to facilitate the transition?
Create an open line of communication in which employees can provide feedback about the current situation. And what is even more important: Before the changeover starts, you should ask all employees how they imagine the new structure — what are their wishes, demands, needs? Remember to include as diverse and broad a range as possible, because everyone has different needs that you may not have even thought of.
3. Create a New Work Task Force
That brings us straight to our third point. To manage this new transition, it is good to set up a working group that can deal with it. But this task force shouldn't just consist of three people from one department. It should be set up as wide and varied as possible.
Involve people from different departments — facility management, IT, HR, procurement, etc., to really have a comprehensive idea of what needs to be changed and done. Different departments have different ideas about the requirements and needs of new and hybrid work. This is how you ensure that your solution is as broad and comprehensive as possible.
Try to hold monthly meetings to discuss the new change, get feedback, and also analyze that feedback. Involve the concerns and concerns of all employees and decide together how they should be addressed.
4. Think about the ideal office set-up
For the new hybrid model, you have to ensure that the office equipment is optimal for all employees. For example, what do you need in meeting rooms to optimize hybrid meetings — video cameras, headsets, microphones? Or what kind of set-up do you need for desk sharing?
This also means considering how to offer employees who work remotely optimal office equipment. Does that mean setting up a budget for everyone so that everyone can buy what they need? Or should you rather buy everything you need yourself and make it available to employees?
It is also possible to set up mobile working, i.e. to give employees the opportunity to work from anywhere and not limit them to their own office at home. However, this also entails the need to buy a wireless device (headset, mouse, keyboard), for example.
5. Create “hybrid hacks” on
Once this feedback has been collected, you can also set up “hybrid hacks”: specific rules that should be incorporated into the new hybrid working model. For example, an overarching work policy — how many days should employees come to the office.
Make sure these rules are the same for everyone. The same guidelines and regulations should apply to all employees. This includes avoiding “proximity bias,” favoring those closest to you, such as those who are in the office more often.
And although rules are good for maintaining order and structure, you also have to learn to react flexibly to changes. If something doesn't seem to be working, consider together what needs to be changed. When a new suggestion comes up, consider how you can incorporate it. Always be open to change.
We are very grateful to Anna and Anica for giving us such valuable insights into their new work strategies. As we move into the future of work, we believe we can learn from thought leaders and innovative experts like them in this field how we can make all of our new work strategies a success.
