The Hybrid Fatigue

According to a TinyPulse survey report, more than 80% of human resources executives say that hybrid is proving to be exhausting for employees.

Employees demand flexibility in when, where, and how they work. Responding to this growing employee need, organizations quickly evolved. Hailed as the future of work, hybrid work was expected to bring together the best of both worlds – part-office and part-remote. To a large extent, this turned out to be true. But while the initial reaction to hybrid work was positive, employees and people leaders across the globe were quickly confronted by some unique, interconnected challenges. Below are some of the key reasons why the future of work is tiring employees and HR teams.

• Lack of consistency
  A hybrid arrangement requires team members to rearrange their work schedules every day. There is a sense of stability and consistency when one maintains a predictable routine. Whether it is working from home or the office, having a single workspace requires less planning and coordination, reducing the psychological and often, physical stress.


• Negative impact on work-life balance
  One of the employee well-being risks associated with remote work also applies to hybrid working—it makes employees feel always on. While going to the office clearly lays out work schedule boundaries, working from home blurs these lines. Employees might also feel pressured to prove that they are not slacking off on the days they work from home. This leads to them spending more time at work and as a result, also increases psychological stress.


• Collaboration can seem complex
  While hybrid models have encouraged organizations and their HR teams to adopt technology as a way of boosting collaboration, some practical challenges still need to be overcome. Some of these hurdles may be simply attached to a lack of technical know-how across teams. While this can be tackled with training, many would agree that it is still not as effective as in-person collaboration.

As much as it is in demand, the present reality is that hybrid work is still not second nature for team members or employers. But let us also remember that it is for the first time in decades that organizations are reinventing at this large a scale. The road ahead will be full of learnings. As we have said before, the future of work is not just restricted to ensuring a successful hybrid working model. It also includes making businesses more human. How can organization leaders do that given the current concerns of employee exhaustion?

1. Encourage employees to switch off
   Blurry work-life boundaries and the feeling of having a ‘never-ending’ workday hamper an employee’s well-being as well as their levels of productivity. Leaders must focus on creating work practices that encourage people to disconnect. Managers need to pay close attention to how their team members are balancing work and their life outside it. If required, they might even want to formalize it by defining strong guidelines for everyone regarding when and how work-related communication should take place.
2. Introduce the idea of deep work
   In short, help employees work smarter. It is good for the well-being of the individual and the organization. What are the time periods when energy levels are higher, or employees are at their productive best? HR and business leaders should invest time, frequently, in learning and analyzing this data by way of one-on-one communication, quick surveys, and personal observations. Only then should leaders move forward with prioritizing work that is demanding and critical during these high-energy periods. The more mundane, regular tasks can be scheduled for the time when employees are lower on energy levels.
3. Build a psychologically safe culture
   One cannot stress enough on the importance of creating a safe, open organizational culture. This is where communication makes all the difference. Remote work has opened the doors to talent from across continents, and this means being respectful to the different time zones, cultures, and beliefs that now co-exist in a hybrid workplace. Psychological safety entails having an environment where one is not afraid to disagree, express concerns, or share unique perspectives. Leaders need to step up and demonstrate how it is all about the willingness to listen and understand each other.

Thinking long-term

While both, employees and organizations, want to make hybrid a success, this new way of working needs a lot more time and patience to take shape. For leaders, this is a great opportunity to empower their employees to do their best at work and beyond. This is the time when they must take the lead, and set ethical, sustainable hybrid work practices. It is important to remember that better communication between managers and employees can solve many of these present challenges plaguing team members due to hybrid work.