Key Points

• Hybrid work relies on some remote and in-person days.
• Remote work is 100% done out of the office.
• Proper implementation of either can be difficult to do, depending on your industry.

What are the real advantages of hybrid vs. remote work? There has been quite a bit of talk since the start of the pandemic about the merits of remote work. For many organizations, this is the only way they could exist for any period. However, there has been a push to return to the office, at least in part. So, why not compare the two?

These are ostensibly similar work philosophies, however, there are some key differences to note. With that in mind, we will examine the two approaches and compare and contrast them as necessary. You might find one of these approaches works for your organization.

What Is Hybrid Work?

When taken at face value, hybrid work is something of an ideal when it comes to work/life balance. There is certainly an expectation of some in-person appearances on a semi-regular basis, but a large chunk of the duties of a given employee can be done at home remotely. This is in stark contrast to conventional operations.

Hybrid work can be characterized as a work approach that allows for more general flexibility in scheduling. For some organizations, this boils down to allowing employees to make their schedules. However, with some approaches to the philosophy, it may still be on the organization to make out the schedules.

Hybrid work isn’t a new thing by any measure, but it has risen in prominence over the last five years or so. Things came to the fore with the COVID-19 pandemic, which sent many organizations reeling from the shutdowns. Hybrid work has been championed in the years since as a way for employees and organizations to have their cake and eat it too.

Types of Hybrid Work

Given that this is a combination approach, there are a few different types of hybrid work available. These approaches all have their merits, and it essentially comes down to the preferences of the organization in how they’re implemented.

At its core, there are some similarities between the different types of hybrid work an organization can employ. However, it comes down to the overall preferences of the organization and their workload needs as to how they choose to implement any of these types of hybrid work.

Depending on the industry, some organizations might find that more office time is necessary for the sake of collaboration. This is particularly prevalent in more manufacturing-focused industries. You need people on hand to guarantee quality, after all.

Flexible

Our first approach is arguably the one with the most leeway in how scheduling is done. A flexible hybrid work approach means the amount of in-person time spent weekly is entirely up to the employee. This could be seen as a fully remote or fully in-person approach, depending on the preferences of the employee.

This approach is built with the employee in mind, and results in a few net benefits. Since employees are capable of drafting their schedules, this can lead to greater overall happiness in the workforce. Additionally, since you’re only accommodating a set number of in-person staff, you don’t need quite as much office space.

Office-First

As you might guess, this approach is a polar opposite of sorts from the previously mentioned one. An office-first take on hybrid work means that most of the work done over a given week is going to be in person at a specified location.

It’ll be up to members of your management to determine how many remote days are provided for employees. This essentially hands the scheduling reins back over to the organization, but that isn’t always the case.

In some implementations of office-first work, there is still a fair amount of flexibility given to workers providing their schedules. As such, it comes down more to organizational needs and whatever internal policies are established for hybrid work.

Remote-First

Remote-first hybrid work takes the opposite approach to office-first, allowing for more remote days in a given week. This is different from the fully flexible approach, as the remote days specified still allow room for in-person days at the office.

It is most similar in scope to the flexible approach, giving a heavier balance toward remote work. However, for some tasks, you’ll want people in the office, so having days carved out for this sort of work helps.

Things to Keep in Mind

As with any approach, this doesn’t have to be a company-wide thing. If you choose to implement hybrid work, you can operate with it encompassing the whole organization or with differing rule sets for different departments.

I’ve personally worked at organizations where hybrid work was encouraged and I spent 99% of my time working out of a home office. When things went pear-shaped with machines, I’d usually hop in the car to go address things.

This level of flexibility in how you choose to implement hybrid and remote work is arguably one of its biggest strengths.

Advantages of Hybrid Work

Hybrid work has some distinct advantages you won’t find in a traditional office workflow. First, you’re encouraging a better work-life balance. Employees have more overall flexibility with their scheduling, leading to greater happiness on the whole. Happy employees are productive employees, as I’m sure you know.

Hybrid work also benefits from the social element, it is an environment that promotes collaboration and communication. Further, the occasional in-person day leads to increased engagement. This is particularly helpful if you’re going through a project and need in-person feedback and communication to get the ball rolling.

Disadvantages of Hybrid Work

Any approach to work isn’t without flaws. As such, there are a few disadvantages to keep in mind when looking to implement hybrid work. If you’re a fully remote operation or you’ve got multiple in-person locations, transitioning to hybrid workflows can be somewhat difficult.

Further, you’ll have to factor in operational costs. Offices aren’t free, and neither are the utilities running them. This can be an additional expense that some organizations simply cannot justify as time goes on. As such, it becomes crucial that you drill down and figure out what your organization needs.

What Is Remote Work?

Remote work is an employment approach that takes the workload and turns it over to the employee at their home. For some, this amounts to having a dedicated home office, an approach I use daily. For others, this allows them to pursue a more nomadic lifestyle, embracing travel.

It comes down primarily to how workers choose to pursue their work as to how they approach remote work. At the end of the day, this can be a more flexible approach depending on the industry for both employees and employers alike.

Advantages of Remote Work

One of the biggest advantages of remote work is that it allows for greater overall employee happiness. Since employees aren’t required in the office, they are able to tailor their work experience to better fit their needs. This can lead to increases in productivity, among other things.

Further, some industries simply don’t need offices. Software design firms for example, likely are going to be mostly remote. Code, even when peer-reviewed, doesn’t necessarily need people in the office to do so.

As such, it can be a way to increase employee morale while minimizing operational expenses.

Disadvantages of Remote Work

As with hybrid work, no system of work is flawless. One thing that doesn’t get highlighted enough in remote work is the loss of the human connection. You’re essentially letting employees function as they need to, but you aren’t opening lines of communication between team members.

Additionally, remote work isn’t suitable for many industries. Manufacturing is one area where remote work isn’t even a consideration. While the lack of office space can be a boon, many organizations own their buildings or the lot the building sits on. This can lead to a scenario where an investment isn’t being fully realized.

One aspect that doesn’t get discussed enough is the establishment of firm boundaries. If your home is your workplace, how do you make that clear to the other residents in your home? I’ve personally gone to great pains to emphasize to my children and spouse alike that my home office space is off-limits during my work hours.

Hybrid vs. Remote Work: Which One Is Better?

We’ve discussed both of these at length, but what’s the real winner? Honestly, there isn’t a clear-cut winner, at least in a traditional sense. The implementation of either of these work approaches is going to be entirely down to your organizational needs. If you’re an industry that specializes in manufacturing, then something like hybrid or remote work isn’t going to be a good fit.

However, if you’re running a software development house, managed services, or any number of industries, then hybrid or remote work might be a solid fit. As a former cybersecurity professional, I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt that there are ways to maintain your work and guarantee security on the whole.

As such, it isn’t so much a clear winner, but rather what works best for your company and your employees alike. We’ve seen clearly in the years since the pandemic the impact that hybrid vs. remote work has had on the workplace.

It might not be the best fit for every company, but it could very easily see your productivity soar when properly implemented.

Other Useful Tools and Concepts

Now that we’ve discussed workflow in-depth, it’s time to take a look at a few other concepts to get your business operating as it should. Learning how to incorporate the Harada Method with other techniques in Lean Six Sigma can see your employees gaining self-reliance while maintaining product excellence.

Additionally, you might want to consider how artificial intelligence can impact your projects in Lean Six Sigma. Artificial intelligence is all the rage these days, and it certainly applies to the likes of your Lean Six Sigma projects. Our guide covers how it works, and why you want to consider implementing something like ChatGPT or a custom language model in your organization.

Conclusion

Anyone working in a leadership position knows the difficulties of managing a team. You have to consider their morale while also maintaining the course with your current projects. As such, it might be worth considering hybrid or remote work, depending on the capability of your team leads. It might result in greater results than you anticipated when properly implemented.

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