The world of work has transformed dramatically over the past three years.

Remote and hybrid work environments post pandemic combined with emerging trends such as the Great Resignation and quiet quitting are creating unprecedented challenges for organisations and the way they manage their workforce.

The new workplace revolution

The Great Resignation – where employees left their jobs following the post-pandemic ‘return to normal’ – was sparked by employees re-evaluating their careers . As industries closed down during the early stages of the pandemic, many workers lost their jobs. A lucky few were able to retain employment, and in some cases – especially in the technology sector – actually thrive despite the ongoing uncertainty and disruption.

Free from lengthy commutes and noisy offices, pandemic-era productivity spiked, with finding that employees were more productive during the lockdowns.

However, the intensity of work during that time arguably took its toll on employees. When restrictions lifted and companies started calling employees back to the office, huge numbers opted to retain the new-found work-life balance they enjoyed, with a record number of resignations occurred during the latter stages of 2020.

Many of those that stayed in their positions, burnt out from the intense work and social pressure caused by the pandemic and its ripple effects, then engaged in so-called quiet quitting.

Quiet quitting is perhaps one of the most alarming trends in that it reveals a deep-seated disillusionment with the status quo and a powerful desire among employees to redefine the boundaries of their careers.

One Gallup study revealed that . In fact, at one point found that 40% of the global workforce were considering quitting their jobs within a three to six-month period.

Co-creating workplaces that work

Amid this workplace instability and global economic downturn is a very real need for companies to return to high levels of productivity and innovation.

To achieve this, organisations have to find common ground with employees and an effective way to retain top talent.

The bad news is there’s no guidebook for how companies should go about this. Creating a new world of work will require courage, collaboration and clear communication with employees at all levels.

This is likely to demand a complete redrawing of some traditional workplace boundaries, namely:

1 Workplace duties

One of the benefits that employees enjoyed during the pandemic’s work-from-home phase is that they were less likely to be assigned tasks that had nothing to do with their core job. In an office environment, employees run the risk of getting pulled in to support work that falls outside their own job responsibility. This can lead to longer working hours, stress and even burnout.

While there can be upside for employees taking on extra responsibility as a way of learning or expanding their network, companies need to be realistic about expectations and keep the balance between productivity and creating an unhealthy workplace. A recognition system for those who go the extra mile is also helpful in creating some reward.

2 Cultural alignment

One of the more insidious consequences of the work-from-home era has been a misalignment between employees and the organisational culture. While this holds especially true for new employees that joined the business during lockdown, even long-standing employees will have experienced some disengagement with the broader company vision.

The effect is a lower level of engagement with non-core tasks, such as attending company events or participating in team-building activities. In extreme cases this misalignment has left some employees entirely unwilling to return to the office.

There is no easy fix for this. Companies will need to work with employees to reframe their vision and culture fit for the new world of work. Employees in turn will need to acknowledge that, in order to achieve broader organisational goals and drive the business forward, some compromises must be made.

3 Vision to reality

The past few years have exposed some of the inherent duplicity in how organisations attract and motivate staff versus what their actual focus is. While creating healthy work environments with more focus on employee wellbeing is top of mind, this must be balanced with the need to generate growing profits, to fulfil shareholder commitments and to compete effectively in tough economic conditions.

Companies need to be clear with employees on their vision and values. There is a fine line to be walked between people, purpose and profit which is ultimately linked to shareholder value. Creating the right balance between these three will likely help to attract and retain the best talent for each environment.

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Office workers, freed from the confines of corporate headquarters, now perform their tasks, meet with colleagues and customers, and maintain high levels of productivity all from their homes using cloud and other online collaboration tools.

For many industries, including IT, banking and other financial services, it is highly unlikely that workers will return to the office in the same way as before, even if current efforts at vaccinating against COVID-19 are wildly successful.

New hybrid work model beckons

Organisations that have made progress on their digital transformation journeys and have implemented the latest technologies, systems and processes to enable remote work will simply have no need to go back to how things were. In fact, most will likely continue on a trajectory of fewer face-to-face engagements, less commuting, and less need for incurring the expense of fancy offices and beautiful foyers.

Instead, organisations are likely to develop and refine hybrid working models, with a mix of office and remote work based on each organisation’s needs and the employee’s personal productivity requirements.

The shift to hybrid work models will require that organisations develop new strategies for employee engagement to ensure teams are operating effectively and that often-scarce talent can be motivated and retained.

The growing importance of EX

To achieve this, organisations will need to ensure they can deliver a consistently positive employee experience (EX).

In commissioned by Â鶹ԭ´´, Qualtrics and EY, the number of HR decision-makers that said EX is the most important aspect of their HR strategy had nearly tripled over the past two years, with EX budgets almost doubling over the same period.

Aspects such as learning, development and training, diversity and inclusion, and an open culture that encourages every employee to bring their authentic selves to the workplace all contribute to the employee experience.

It is vital that EX is not relegated to only the HR department or used as a tool to drive greater levels of productivity. Instead, it needs to be embedded in the company culture, driven by leadership across the organisation, and shaped by continuous employee feedback.

The matter of employee feedback will be critical to organisations as they shift toward a hybrid work model. The Forrester study found that 71% of organisations find it challenging to gather real-time information about the employee experience.

Experience management tools that help track employee sentiment and feedback and provide HR departments and company leaders with real-time insights will be critical to efforts at building consistent, positive employee experiences.

Culture takes centre stage

Eight out of ten (81%) employees in the Forrester study believe creating and sustaining a positive culture is the most important aspect to creating a good EX. It is therefore vital that organisations take time to clearly define their culture, and take into account the changing world, likely long-term economic downturn and the effect of the ongoing pandemic on employee wellbeing.

Organisational strategies will need to incorporate three key areas into their cultures to effectively support the new hybrid workforce:

Trust

The new realities require that organisations build trust within their teams. Companies will need to create opportunities to set expectations with employees, and then consistently and continuously deliver on those expectations.

Transparency

Top-down decision-making doesn’t work when centralisation doesn’t exist. The new world of work will require decision-making to be decentralised, which naturally requires knowledge and access to information. A clearly-defined value system can also guide decision-making even when team members are cut off from managers or executives.

Teamwork

The past year of remote work has revealed the importance of teams having access to other teams that have different skills, networks or abilities. This requires that internal silos are broken down and teamwork is prioritised. Organisations should foster a shared sense of victory to encourage teams to work together toward common goals. Teamwork can help build greater cohesion, improve decision-making and alleviate or limit unethical behaviour.

By establishing clear, regular lines of communication, and gaining access to real-time insights into employee experiences, organisations can ensure every employee works toward a common goal that contributes to the organisation’s success. Organisations that define their culture on the premise that every employee wants to work and wants to achieve something of value will be best placed to guide their teams through the ongoing disruption.

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