(Re)building The Hybrid Team Experience

Rebuilding the hybrid team experience is one of the greatest challenges facing business leaders today. Learn what these executives advise.

Does hybrid work encourage a balance between personal life and work? And how do leaders support this change for a better hybrid team experience?

The age of five days a week commuting has ended and a new transition into hybrid working is creating an innovative approach to social connections and organisational success. This is encouraging a new system in which business leaders and employees got to have a more balanced work and personal life, whilst accomplishing targets and business performance. 

The speakers debated the hybrid team experience and discussed the impact and growth of their businesses, and how it affected people working for them.

With Trish Lynch moderating this roundtable, the speakers include:

• Amitabh Apte, VP Global CIO, Mars Pet Nutrition
• Dane Warren, CISO, Intertrek
• Robin Hamerlinck Lane, SVP CIO, Shure Incorporated
• Tendayi Chirokote, CIO, Nyaradzo Group

Innovation and change 

Tendayi Chirokote said that there were great long hours of work that he and the team did to continue the business. They faced the issue of keeping customers interested and drawn to the business as well as keeping up to date with employees to truly drive and hit the set targets. 

“Our customers all of a sudden were forced to be digital, so you now had to train not only your staff but also to train your customers because now they couldn’t walk into the office anymore, they had to communicate to us through digital channels.”

Amitabh Apte shared his point of view on the massive changes in the digital world that have impacted the hybrid team experience. He stated the obvious problem with digital communication; the digital management among people are not strong enough in handling it. 

“So, it was not such a big challenge for digital natives,” Amitabh said, “but when it came to dealing with manufacturing associates, supplier associates, who probably were more used to working in the physical environment—factories, warehouses, and offices—it was a big gap for them to work on.”

He believes that the best way to gain better performance is to help employees and put yourself in their shoes to truly understand how they can make a drastic change and improve a better work style. 

Leader’s and the hybrid team experience

When it comes to the new environment, it is important that all people including the staff feel validated and comfortable. If the business wants growth, it has to let some room for people to feel free and exceed business performance. 

That’s something that Robin Hamerlinck talked about when mentioning that she and her team did some pilots of what the future workplace looks and feels like, for a better hybrid team experience.

It is people’s choice and will if they want to work remotely, in an office, or hybrid. What makes one person does not mean that everybody functions the same and that’s something that Robin does not forget to mention and leaves as a reminder to all. 

“Just about three months ago, we formalised that program,” Robin said, “so that people can work remotely, they can work three days a week or two days a week, and that they should just collaborate with their manager to evaluate what they need to do to get their job done.”

Communication and support

As adaptation is a part of the change, a leader’s communication and support are the main factors contributing to the action of adaptation. If there is an element worth discussing, it is that everyone has their preferred method of work, said Dane Warren, and their effort along with the process is what will affect the business. 

“So our role as leaders in this is to help people understand what their destination is, what their purpose is, help to remove those barriers to success, making sure that there are all the tools, equipment, and support they need, and then we enable them to deliver in their way,” Dane said. 

“Connect to your people, understand the way they operate, the way they operate at the optimal performance.”

This roundtable on the hybrid team experience was created in partnership with Shure Incorporated.