So what really is hybrid working? 


The meaning of hybrid work is: having a team of employees, some of whom work from a traditional office, while part of them works remotely from home or internationally. A hybrid team in its essence is a mix of working styles and locations, creating a beautiful synergy, a work hybrid. Hybrid teams is an approach that accepts the reality: not all employees need to be physically in the office to perform well and thrive in the business world. The traditional “physical office” setup is extremely outdated and most companies simply don't need some of their workers to be in the office. Obviously, for some jobs attending the workplace physically is a must, but with most jobs in the IT sector, marketing, design, all the workers need to complete a job are their skills, a laptop and access to the internet. A copywriter from Germany, PPC specialist from the US, and a Latvian designer? This concept that seemed impossible even 10 years ago, is now more popular than ever.

That's great and all, but what are some existing businesses that have this setup? 

Here are some global giants that have a hybrid teams setup:

1. Google. This IT giant prioritises the productivity of its workers and seeks to hire talent globally, which is why it offers work options for part-time, freelance, temporary, and fully remote opportunities.
2. GitHub. Offering remote or in office work in 15 countries worldwide.
3. Zapier. Bravely stating “Join Zapier. From Anywhere” on their career page as well as “Spread across 17 time zones in 28 countries, we sign into Slack and open up our work tools on the schedule that fits our lives best. “
4. Amazon. And despite some of their work requiring to be on sight, Amazon has fully remote positions, where the employee is allowed to work from anywhere. 
5. Green Pixel itself has a hybrid working policy with a central office with free coffee as well as the opportunity to work from home or from anywhere in the world, part time, full time, or temporarily. 
   

Working from home VS a hybrid team

Working from home: 

• Probably worked in the office previously, migrated to the home office
• Local area only, usually quite close to the office
• Limited by the decision of the management, can be called to the office at any time
• No opportunity to travel and move to other places and countries
  

Hybrid teams setup:

• Initially set up to have both local and international employees
• Often international team
• As long as the work gets completed on time, the employee can move around as much as needed
  

Hybrid work culture VS traditional office culture:

Hybrid work culture:

• Most communication is online, via calls or messages, so it is effective and quick, no long and boring office meetings
• Inclusive and international community
• More creative bonding events. Because team building activities are carried out online, this oftentimes means that more effort is put into them, and they are more meaningful than those in traditional offices
  

Traditional office culture:

• Though communication happens in person, it is oftentimes inefficient and a lot of time is wasted
• Likely not much cultural diversity, due to the physical location of the office
• One advantage of traditional office culture is, however, being able to physically bond and socialise, which is difficult to do when most of the communication in the digital space is strictly professional
  

Benefits of hybrid working 


Some of the benefits hybrid working include:

1. Global talent. When the company is set up from the get go in a way that caters to many time zones, work setups and schedules, global talent applies for all of the company vacancies, instead of hiring within a 50 kilometer radius, so that the employees have access to the office. 
2. Employee satisfaction. With a humane approach to time zones and locations, employees no longer have to move across countries or continents to have the job of their dreams, or move their life around their work, so more new candidates will apply to work, and current employees will be more satisfied. 
3. Easier hiring and setup process. Office maintenance, equipment, and free coffee are all in the past. Workers simply integrate into your office systems as they are and work seamlessly with the team.
   

Here are some common myths regarding a hybrid working:

1. A hybrid working from home setup will make your employees lazy, as there is no control over them.

Reality: Although a hybrid working setup often means working from home, or a coworking space, it does not necessarily have a correlation with the laziness of your employees. Regardless of the place, there will be some employees who work diligently from anywhere, and there will be those who barely complete any tasks during their work days even while being at the office.

2. But some people want to go to the office!

Reality: Exactly, that's the essence of a hybrid working policy, people have the choice to select whatever is most suitable for them, forming a mix, a hybrid.

3. Bonding is difficult, when you are not face to face

Reality: Speaking from experience, nothing will ever replace real events with my colleagues, but the level of creativity of our team is truly unbelievable. We are even able to have “coffee breaks” over video calls, where we chat, share cat memes and play music. 

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The benefits of hybrid working are difficult to count, what are you waiting for? Maybe hybrid style work is exactly what is holding you back from achieving your fullest potential?