Brian Corcoran and Audrey Shull connect at a recent Collaboration Lunch.According to Harvard Business Review, a hybrid work environment is the ideal. Splitting time between a home office and in-person work makes employees happier and their managers happier with the employee’s work. Everybody wins.
In the office, connections are made, relationships are nurtured, and creativity takes root. In our home offices, less-structured time often leads to more focused work.
On the surface, it seems like a simple balance to achieve: Some work at home and some in the office. But a haphazard approach can lead to the worst of both worlds.
Allison Hines waves on her way to the Collaboration Lunch
So, how do we achieve the best of both worlds and make a hybrid work environment successful? Each region, each office has different challenges and opportunities, of course. But here are tips and tricks that have worked for my team at our headquarters in Cary:
- Decide how much time you want to spend in a JMP office versus in a remote workplace. Studies show that somewhere between 25-40% of your time should be spent with your colleagues.
- Figure out how to get that colleague-connection time. If you're not far from your team, plan on weekly or bi-weekly togetherness. If you’re too far away for that cadence, see if you can make monthly or quarterly get-togethers work. Talk to your manager about what this might look like.
- Settle on predictable schedules so people know how best to meet up. Consider adding your work location to your Outlook calendar and making it visible to all. Looking at calendars is the new equivalent of walking by an office.
Shannon Conners and Wendy Murphrey catch-up in office.
- Don’t leave meetups to chance. Be deliberate about how you spend office lunchtime and coffee breaks by sending meeting requests to the people you most want to connect with.
- If rush-hour traffic, child- or elder-care obligations, or early morning/late afternoon meetings keep you at home, rethink what a day in the office might look like. While the 9-to-5 workday is a thing of the past for many of us, spending even a few hours in the office is better than no hours.
- If your colleagues are hybrid or even remote, reconsider how you schedule recurring meetings. If you’re in Cary, for instance, set up in-person meetings (one-on-ones and team gatherings) for Wednesdays or another day that most team members are together. Schedule remote meetings for Mondays and Fridays, since many people work from home on those days.
This is how we work to help new employees feel connected and for seasoned ones to remain excited about working at JMP. Now it’s your turn. How do you maximize a hybrid schedule? And what are your tips and tricks for staying connected while working remotely?
