How to succeed in a hybrid work environment
As most offices have now settled into something resembling post-COVID normalcy, it seems three trends have emerged:
Some companies, particularly start-ups and those with distributed workforces are embracing a fully-remote stance
There are some businesses that are mandating 5 days a week in office, but this is quite rare, limited to industries like Real Estate & Trading
Most companies seem to be embracing the “Structured Hybrid” as I predicted 18 months ago
I am seeing and hearing that the following norms are emerging in the Structured Hybrid model
Generally 3 days in office seems to be the average
People try to schedule group activities around days when most will be in the office
Either companies are mandating or teams are organizing to structure the days when they will be in office, usually either Monday - Wednesday or Tuesday - Thursday
Adoption is still not universal but generally most employees are on a schedule & regularly sticking to it at this point
Even at 3 days a week, attendance in office typically lags 50% in aggregate as a new culture norm of staying home if feeling even slightly unwell or if inclement weather or other inconveniences make going to the office difficult on a particular day
In this “new normal,” I thought I’d share three key behaviors I’ve found are separating outperformers from the rest:
Write a weekly status report
I’ve previously written about my biggest career mistakes and though the lesson learned from a mistake I made at Accenture didn’t make the list, it influenced me to start a new, good habit which I wish more would emulate. I lost my job in 2009 in part because I received a bad rating on one of my last projects and the key reason they cited to ding me was that they said they didn’t know what I was doing. My immediate response initially was to express frustration. I was in an independent role, I didn’t need a lot of guidance and I thought I had done a good job by doing what was asked on time to everyone’s satisfaction. And I thought if they wanted to know what I was doing, they could have asked. But then I realized:
They shouldn’t have to ask
If you leave a vacuum of information others may fill it for you and typically that doesn’t work to you benefit
It’s not that hard to write an email and tell my leaders what I’m doing
Beyond avoiding criticism, writing a weekly status report has other benefits:
Even if you’re not on the hook for a regular status report, chances are your leadership will be. Helping your leaders with their jobs is always a good thing and will help ensure your accomplishments get the credit they deserve
Going through your agenda on a weekly basis will help self-organize and ensure you are tracking to your goals. It also will create the confidence that you’re on top of everything
It’s a great way to get ahead of performance review processes. By starting with a documented history of what you’ve accomplished you can ensure you have a comprehensive view to save time later
I often get the question about what a weekly status report should include. Here’s my list:
Top priorities
What recently accomplished last week
Key blockers
Upcoming schedule & other key logistics
One last tip: don’t be afraid of length. Generally emails should be brief and to the point, but a lengthy compendium will never be perceived as a bad thing, particularly if you’re efficient with the your colleagues’ time. It’s up to them how much to read and by leading with top priorities & accomplishments, first you can get the most important points across without generating frustration. Even if a weekly status report doesn’t drive a high amount of engagement with your leadership there is zero downside to getting in this habit.
Be thoughtful & strategic about being in the office
Unless you are a great performer, in an indispensable role and/or have a personal situation what would have allowed for grounds to work from home prior to the pandemic, I can’t recommend enough how important it is to be in the office AT LEAST as often as mandated. Many companies are tracking badge swipes. Being on a list of people who are at the bottom of ‘in office’ compliance is a distraction no one needs and can be an automatic blocker to an outperform rating. Whether fair or not, when evaluating performance, I can’t help but look at ‘in office’ stats to draw judgments as to who is engaged and who is not. If someone asks for an exception to policy or is struggling in their job, one of the first things I will research is how regularly he/she/they has been attending in the office. It may be unfair but this can be a big tie breaker in saying yes to supporting an HR exception or being more receptive to someone’s personal challenges.
Though I am a big believer that 90% of life is just showing up, being thoughtful about when to be in office is equally as important. Even if compliant with policy, if you are conspicuously absent for important meetings, it will not reflect well on you. If COVID is a concern, no one will give you side eye for wearing a mask in a group setting.
It’s also smart to be be a culture carrier for in person meetings when you can. Schedule meetings if you can when you and your colleagues will be in the office and if you join a virtual meeting and notice that all or most participants are co-located, being the one to encourage everyone to get together in a room is a great way to demonstrate commitment to a better office environment. After so many years of ‘Zoom fatigue’ I’ve observed much more satisfaction, engagement & productivity out of in person meetings when they happen.
By the same token, nothing here requires you to spend your full day in the office. If an alternative schedule that cuts down on traffic or allows you to conduct ‘heads down’ work in the environment most conducive for your work style, I strongly encourage it. Most (good) bosses are not looking to see who’s in the office when they arrive and when they leave. Rather they care about who’s there when they need to find someone, key meetings & whether the important work gets done.
Have well-organized weekly 1:1’s
I always felt this was important but nothing drove it home as well as Andy Grove’s “Only the Paranoid Survive.” I find as a leader that a well-organized 1:1 is among the most effective management tools because it’s a massive time-saver in ensuring alignment of expectations and serves as a natural, safe environment to share bi-directional feedback. Some other things that I think are really important about 1:1’s:
They need to be regular. Nothing can frustrate a subordinate or make them feel like they are not important than having their 1:1’s cancelled or rescheduled frequently
They should be organized and led by the subordinate. As a leader you certainly have the right to go over an area of importance but only in rare circumstances. It’s often a good idea to give someone a heads up in advance if there’s an issue for discussion. I like to organize my 1:1’s in the following order:
Inform - What do I think it’s important for your to know?
Inquire - What do I think it’s important me me to know?
Discuss - What do I think is important for us gain alignment on
They should be scheduled so as to occur in person as much as possible
If you are working for someone and do not have a regular 1:1 you should push really hard for one and if there is resistance, it may be a sign you should be thinking about finding another job.