How human-centric hybrid work is transforming businesses

It’s easy to see why 83% of workers see hybrid as the future of working. As well as the greater freedom, flexibility, and autonomy it offers employees, it can also help to make business operations more profitable and sustainable by reducing overhead costs and the time people spend commuting.

As well as boosting the bottom line and aiding sustainability, hybrid working tangibly benefits the employee experience. When done correctly, it empowers businesses to put their people first, giving workers more of what they want and need.

We look at human-centric hybrid and the transformative effect that it can have on business operations. 

What is a human-centric hybrid?

When discussing flexible working, it goes without saying that location is essential. But human-centric hybrid working is as much about ‘who’ as it is about ‘where’. Research by Gartner suggests that a well-executed hybrid system should allow for greater malleability in terms of where employees spend their time. However, it also identifies intentional collaboration and a different type of management as key to the hybrid experience.

“Human-centric work design goes even further than hybrid-flexible to include opportunities for intentional collaboration and empathy-based management [...] increased employee performance, intent to stay and reduced fatigue — widely correlate to greater levels of location flexibility, intentional collaboration and empathy-based management.”
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Human-centric hybrid combines the philosophies of people-first business with hybrid working. It is an approach designed to elevate the employee experience, giving them the autonomy to decide where, when, and how they work, depending on their needs.

Three facets define this approach:

It is rooted in employee well-being, giving them more of what they want from their employers and enabling them to address their work-life balance adequately.

While this is its own reward, it also has a transformative effect on business operations, bringing a host of benefits to the company.

How does this approach to hybrid benefit businesses?

It goes without saying that a human-centric hybrid approach can be highly beneficial for a company’s workforce. There’s growing evidence that the approach is highly conducive to employee well-being, team cohesion, and retention. Thus, by prioritising people, companies ensure that productivity and performance virtually take care of themselves.

Here are just a few of the ways in which businesses benefit from a human-oriented approach to hybrid:

Improved employee performance

It’s a universally acknowledged truth that happier, healthier employees perform better than their overworked, over-stressed and burnt-out counterparts. Gartner’s latest study backs this up, stating that companies that offer flexibility, empathetic management, and intentional collaboration are 3.8 times more likely to enjoy higher employee performance and 3.1 times more likely to experience lower levels of employee fatigue. Research from IWG found that 31% of employees reported being more productive under the hybrid working model.

Furthermore, this approach to working can drastically reduce ‘productivity theatre’, where employees feel the need to look busy rather than focusing on doing their job in the way that suits them best. Employees are allowed to work asynchronously, approaching tasks in their preferred hours using the methodologies that suit them best.

Increased employee retention

High levels of employee turnover can be both disruptive and expensive for companies. Gartner’s study reveals that businesses with a human-centric approach to hybrid working are 3.2 times more likely to enjoy higher levels of employee retention. This backs up findings from Regus itself, with hybrid work helping to retain the best talent in an increasingly competitive employment market.

Improved recruitment

Data from IWG’s HR Leaders & Hybrid Working Report suggests that adopting a people-first approach to hybrid working not only aids retention but makes it easier for companies to recruit top-tier talent. 95% of HR leaders surveyed believed that hybrid work is an effective recruitment tool, 60% claimed that it increases employee retention, and 80% agreed that it boosts employee satisfaction.

Happier and more harmonious teams

Human-centric hybrid working necessitates a new approach to management. One that is rooted in empathy and focuses on keeping dispersed teams happy, healthy, united, and motivated. Aided by the right technology and robust automation, managers can expend less effort on time-consuming admin and more on developing the soft skills that ensure teams feel cared for, nurtured, stimulated, and challenged.

About IWG PLC ​

IWG is the global leader in hybrid work solutions and workspace brands. We create personal, financial, and strategic value for businesses of every size, from some of the most exciting companies and well-known organizations on the planet to individuals and the next generation of industry leaders.

They all harness the power of IWG's hybrid working platform to increase their productivity, efficiency, agility, and market proximity. IWG’s unrivalled network coverage includes approximately 3,500 locations across more than 120 countries, and 83% of Fortune 500 companies are amongst our growing customer base.

Through our brands, including Regus, Spaces, HQ and Signature, we help millions of people and their businesses to work more productively. We provide the world's leading hybrid work platform with professional, inspiring and collaborative workspaces and digital services, all available via the IWG app.

For more information:

Visit www.iwgplc.com and for more information on partnering with IWG, see:

https://www.iwgplc.com/develop-a-location