Tag Archive for: The Future of Work

In 2021, Hybrid emerged as the post-pandemic work model of choice. In this article, we discuss the rise of the hybrid working model and look at its implications for the Future of Work. 

What is Hybrid Working? 

Hybrid working is a flexible model that allows employees to work both on-site and remotely. Hybrid work has many variations as every organisation will develop a model that caters to its own unique needs. 

LinkedIn Poll conducted by Berkley Group in October 2021.

The Rise of Remote Working 

In 2020, organisations in Ireland and around the world closed their offices in compliance with government-mandated lockdowns. As a result of social distancing requirements, many businesses were forced to embrace remote working for the first time. In October 2021, the Irish government confirmed that a full return to the office would likely take place in the Spring of 2022. 

The roll-out of mass vaccinations in 2021 means that employees can finally return to their workspaces. However, organisations are now finding that a large cohort of the workforce has developed an appetite for the flexibility and freedom offered by working from home. Today’s employees want to incorporate remote working into their work-life going forward on either a full-time or part-time basis. 

LinkedIn Poll conducted by Berkley Group in August 2021.

But Remote Working Isn’t For Everyone…

On the other hand, the work from home model does not suit everyone. For these people, the return to the office is a welcome and long-awaited development. Some groups who have found remote working to be challenging include: 

• People living in unsuitable accommodation
• Women balancing the demands of family care and work (Source: IBEC)
• People living in areas with poor internet connection
• Young professionals seeking to learn from hands-on experience (Source: Microsoft)
• People new to a community (e.g. new hires and immigrants) looking to make friends and build out a social network at work (Source: BBC)
• Burnt out professionals struggling to maintain work-life boundaries (Source: Laya Healthcare) 

What’s more, organisations also benefit from having workers on-site. Office space is still important for fostering teamwork, innovation and collaboration. It also plays a key role in maintaining a vibrant and engaging company culture. 

Hybrid Working: The Perfect Compromise

Consequently, many organisations have made the decision to adapt to a hybrid model. This model offers a perfect compromise that will enable employees and employers alike to make the most of on-site and remote work models. 

How Do Irish Workers Feel About Remote & Hybrid Working in 2021?

• 80% of Irish workers want a hybrid working model split between their home and their company’s office. (Source: Virgin Media)

• 57% of recruiters say that job applicants want to work from home for three days a week. Whereas, most employers favour two days per week working from home. (Source: National Recruitment Federation)

• 66% of surveyed job-seekers would decline a job offer if remote working wasn’t offered. (Source: Berkley)

• Remote working has saved Irish office workers, on average, an hour of commuting per day. (Source: Auxillion)

• People working from home are 4 times more likely to have a better work/life balance since the pandemic began. (Source: Aviva Life and Pensions)

• Almost 1 in 5 people would consider relocating based on their experience of remote working since Covid-19. (Source: NUIG) 

• 63% of surveyed job-seekers said they would avail of a remote working hub (Source: Berkley)

• Job-seekers ranked the following issues as the most challenging aspects of working from home: 
  • Fully disconnecting after work (38%)
  • Staying motivated (24%)
  • The isolation (23%)
  • Finding a workspace (15%) (Source: Berkley)

• 75% of Irish workers between the ages of 16 and 34 believe their ability to learn on the job while working from home has been affected by the pandemic – leading them to feel “out of practice”. (Source: LinkedIn) 

• 75% of 18 to 26-year-olds said the workplace is their number one source of meaning and social connection. (Source: The Irish Independent)

3 Benefits of Hybrid Working 

Lower Overheads

With fewer employees coming into the office on a daily basis, many organisations will need to reconfigure their office space to meet the needs of a new hybrid workforce. In fact, a global survey from Microsoft revealed that 66% of leaders are considering redesigning the company office space for hybrid work. 

Companies will benefit from significantly lower overheads due to smaller space requirements. For example, they may choose to rent out parts of their existing office to other entities, move to a smaller building altogether, or even rent a coworking space. In fact, one study estimated that companies could collectively save over $500bn per year or almost $11,000 per employee who equally splits their working hours between the office and home.

Productivity 

Both the home and the office have their respective pros and cons. For many people, working from home allows them to dedicate greater focus to tasks without the frequent distractions of an office setting. Whereas, the office allows workers to collaborate more easily and have more productive meetings with colleagues. The flexibility of the hybrid approach helps to foster greater productivity by enabling employees to make the most of each setting when best suits them.

Greater Employee Engagement, Job Satisfaction & Retention

“Giving staff the freedom to complete tasks in the way that they feel will achieve the best results will not only breed a happy workforce, it is also the best way to unleash the skills that they were employed for in the first place.” – CMD

In the age of “The Great Resignation”, organisations need to prioritise anything that positively contributes to employee engagement and satisfaction. Lockdown life revealed that for many professionals – flexibility and freedom are the keys to a happier working life. Flexible work arrangements have been linked with an increase in employee happiness, a superior work-life balance, improved wellbeing, reduced staff turnover and a more driven workforce. The introduction of a hybrid working model allows employers to instil a greater culture of flexibility, freedom and trust in their organisation. 

3 Disadvantages of Hybrid Working

Not Suited To Every Industry

The reality is that the Hybrid working model simply doesn’t work for every industry. Many sectors will continue to require an on-site presence from their employees in order to maintain business-as-usual operations. Some examples of these sectors include retail, hospitality, manufacturing, healthcare etc.  

Reduced Visibility of Remote Workers

Some have argued that a poorly managed hybrid working model will reduce the visibility of those who primarily work remotely due to an “out of sight, out of mind” mentality. Not only will this detrimentally affect their relationships with those who work on-site but it may also lead to stunted professional growth. From an organisational point of view, this could result in poor company culture and low morale. 

“You run the risk of creating in-group and out-group dynamics in hybrid teams. In other words, a mixed model can entrench a divide between those in the office and those at home (and potentially magnify the gender gap, as women are disproportionately expected to take on home-based caring responsibilities). And there’s consistent evidence to show that in-group and out-group dynamics reduce collaboration and increase conflict.” ~ Why the future of work might be ‘hybrid’, BBC Worklife

Cybersecurity 

If employers are to embrace Hybrid Working on a more permanent basis, then they will need to seriously consider redesigning their cybersecurity systems and processes to meet the needs of the “New Normal”. Some key challenges are outlined below: 

• VentureBeat succinctly summarises the key cyber risk associated with hybrid working as follows: “Employees who are working entirely remotely can have their connections firewalled away from the rest of the company system, keeping the network safe. However, hybrid workers pose a threat every time they walk into the office and reconnect their laptop to the network, along with any malware they’ve inadvertently been subjected to.”

• According to research from Citrix, hybrid working has resulted in “an explosion in the number of devices used for work, thus making the attack surface larger than it has ever been before.”

• Cloud technology has become the predominant way that remote workers access important work files. As such, it has become an even bigger target over the past year. In 2020, 61% of malware sent to companies targeted remote workers through their cloud applications.

Data from Google Trends charting the rise of worldwide searches for “Hybrid Working” over the past 5 years

Is Hybrid Here To Stay? 

In short, yes. 

Workers around the world have spoken and have revealed a clear preference for the hybrid working model. In today’s candidate-driven market, employers will have to listen. 

Of course, as with any major paradigm change, the transition won’t be smooth and there will be a steep learning curve for everyone. However, through careful monitoring and thoughtful action, organisations will eventually develop a post-pandemic model of hybrid working that works for everyone.

Shorter working weeks – just a fad or the future of work? In this article, we delve into the pros and cons of the four-day week. 

The Case for a 4-Day Work Week

In recent years, there have been increased calls from workers around the world for a four-day work week. Several weeks ago, we at Berkley conducted our own social media poll asking for people’s opinions on the matter. In our survey, a whopping 83% of respondents stated that they were in favour of a four-day working week.

In response to the growing demand for shorter working hours, the Irish Government has invited academics to submit proposals about how a four-day work week could operate in Ireland. This has coincided with a new six-month pilot programme from Four Day Week Ireland that will provide participating employers with supports, training and mentoring on how to ensure a smooth roll-out. 

How Does the Four-Day Week Work?

One option is to work compressed hours. This involves working the same number of hours over a shorter period of time. However, the employee typically has more flexibility around when they work. 

Another model is to offer reduced hours for the same pay. In this scenario, the employee would work 28 hours over four days. They may be offered a three-day weekend or a two-day weekend and a further day off midweek. 

History of the Working Week 

The model of a five-day work week followed by a two-day weekend was first introduced in early 19th century Britain. By 1908, this model travelled to America to permit Jewish mill workers to take off the Sabbath from sundown to sundown on Friday and Saturday. In 1926, Henry Ford made history by shutting down all Ford factories on Saturdays and Sundays without reducing employees’ pay. 

“Eight hours for work, eight hours for rest and eight hours for what you will.” ~ The Eight-Hour Day movement slogan 

In 1940, a provision of the 1938 Fair Labor Standards Act in the US brought in a maximum workweek of 40 hours. Over the following twenty years, many countries adopted similar models to harmonise with international markets. As of 2021, the majority of countries now have a 40-hour work week. 

Over the past century, there were several high-profile advocates for a shorter working week. In 1930, the famous economist JM Keynes predicted that advances in technology would lead to a 15-hour working week within 100 years. In 1956, the then US Vice President Richard Nixon anticipated a four-day week “in the not too distant future.” In 1998, the French government introduced the “Aubry” legislation that shortened the national work week down from 39 to 35 hours. 

Over the past decade, technological advances have enabled organisations to streamline and automate many key tasks and processes. Advocates for the four-day week argue that this technology allows many organisations to maintain similar, if not higher, levels of productivity by allowing employees to focus on outputs rather than the number of hours spent at work.  

COVID & The Four-Day Work Week 

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has triggered more conversation about the feasibility of a four-day working week. Numerous governments are looking into reduced working hours as a way of “sharing work more equally across the economy between the unemployed and the over-employed” (Source: Silicon Republic). This would benefit the many overworked and burnt-out remote workers who have increased their working hours since starting to work from home. While also helping out those whose employment has been negatively affected by the pandemic. 

What’s more, the rapid change to remote working models brought about by the pandemic has revealed that is easier than previously thought to bring about a massive paradigm shift in modern working structures. The pandemic has also highlighted the benefits of more flexible working models. Having had a taste of more flexible working models, many employees in 2021 are reevaluating how they balance their work and home lives. 

Case Studies 

Perpetual Guardian, New Zealand

In 2018, a New Zealand based estate planning firm called Perpetual Guardian trialled a four-day work week for a period of six weeks for its 250 staff. The trial was monitored and evaluated by academics at the University of Auckland Business School and the Auckland University of Technology. 

According to Andrew Haar, one of the researchers working on the project, “Supervisors said staff were more creative, their attendance was better, they were on time, and they didn’t leave early or take long breaks… Their actual job performance didn’t change when doing it over four days instead of five.” There was a 24% improvement in the number of employees who said they could effectively balance their work and home life. Employees also reported less stress with a decrease of 45% to 38%. There were also clear improvements in job satisfaction, teamwork, work-life balance and company loyalty. 

Microsoft, Japan

In August 2019, Microsoft Japan launched the “Work-Life Choice Challenge Summer 2019” initiative. Under this new programme, their entire 2,300-person workforce would receive five Fridays off in a row without decreasing pay. Explaining the concept, Microsoft Japan president and CEO Takuya Hirano wrote: “Work a short time, rest well and learn a lot.” Following the experiment, 92% of employees said they liked the shorter week. In addition to boosting staff morale, the trial also led to a 40% bump in productivity. There were also environmental benefits, for example, electricity costs fell by 23% and the company printed 59% fewer pages.

ICE Group, Galway

Closer to home, the ICE Group in Galway introduced a four day work week in 2019 . Under the new system, employees work from Monday to Thursday or Tuesday to Friday with no loss of pay. While the working day is slightly longer, there is an overall reduction in the working week. Since introducing the four day week, the company has seen many positive results, including: 

• 12% decrease in costs
• 30% increase in sales
• 27% increase in productivity.
• 30% improvement in employee engagement and wellness ratings

Pros of the Four-Day Week

Productivity

The theory underlying the four-day work week is that fewer working hours will lead to happier employees who are more engaged, focused and productive at work. It ties in with the idea of diminishing returns i.e. after an employee has worked over a certain number of hours they actually become less productive due to stress, burn-out and fatigue. Data from Stanford University backs this up and reveals that overworked employees are less productive than employees working an average working week. 

Gender Equality

The mass adoption of a four-day working week may also help to promote greater gender equality in the workplace. A 2021 study from IBEC found that the pandemic has widened the caregiving gap between working men and women in Ireland. According to their research, 48% of respondents said that more women than men had requested changes to their working patterns to facilitate caring responsibilities during the pandemic. The introduction of a four-day work week would help to mitigate the “motherhood penalty” by making it easier for professionals to juggle care and work commitments. 

Environment 

Implementing a four-day work week would enable organisations to significantly reduce their carbon footprint. It would take cars off the road as employees would not need to commute as much. One study estimates that introducing a four-day week in Britain could take up to 27 million cars off the road. Closing the office for one extra day in the week would also lower energy consumption and waste production. One UK study found that a 32-hour work week could help fight climate change by reducing emissions by more than 20%.

Employee Morale

A shorter working week has been shown to result in greater staff morale, increased loyalty and higher retention rates. A shorter work week fosters a better work-life balance which in turn helps employees to feel more engaged in their work. It has also been shown to improve employee mental health and physical wellness by warding off burnout and giving employees more time to spend on healthy activities. 

Cons of the Four-Day Week

Unsuitable for Every Organisation

A four-day work week simply isn’t feasible for many sectors e.g. education, hospitality or manufacturing. Many organisations have no choice but to work five days a week in order to maintain their workload. For this reason, four-day work weeks are only a do-able option for businesses that have the ability to reshape their working structure. 

Difficulty of Collaboration

Following on from the previous point, organisations working off differing schedules may struggle to collaborate effectively. In today’s competitive landscape, many clients and customers will likely choose to work with a company that is available during the same working hours as their own employees.

The Risk is Expensive

Experimenting with the four-day week might require a costly investment from employers. For example, they may need to take on additional staff to make up for the shortfall in hours. A two-year trial in Gothenburg, Sweden experimented with reducing a 40-hour week to 30 hours while continuing a five-day structure. While employees showed greater satisfaction, the trial was deemed to be too expensive to roll out across the wider municipality. But it is not all pluses. Daniel Bernmar, a Gothenburg City Councillor explained why these costs were prohibitively high: “Overall, hiring more people drives costs up by 20 or 30% for the local authorities. But in the long run, it drives down collateral costs associated with unemployment and healthcare by 15%.”