It is not about the leap but about the lunge in 2022 Companies will be tested on their hybrid focused priorities. And it will come into play while evaluating options, dealing with ambiguity and in showing flexibility and agility
New policies will have to be formulated especially around leave and compensatory off, which suit all three types of roles. Also, administration will have to factor the randomness in the utilization of facilities like meeting rooms, work areas, etc.
C OVER
STORY
By Y Shekar
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f ‘Covid’ was the word most often used in 2020, ‘hybrid’ will be that word in 2022! Hybrid – a mix of two distinct elements – will augur permanent changes around us in the coming few years. The ‘Hybrid’ word will also find new connotations and contextual references, making it a very versatile word too! Currently, in the business context, ‘Hybrid’ refers to work from home and from office. However, it is not going to be limited to the physical aspect of the workplace. ‘Hybrid’ will come into context while evaluating options, dealing with ambiguity and in showing flexibility and agility. It will also be an important factor in making policy decisions at the country level too. | DECEMBER 2021
Here is some context: It is evident – from surveys and common-sense – that when offices open, there will be three categories of people – those whose roles demand them to be at the workplace every day of the week. Some roles may need a frequent visit to the office – twice or thrice a week, perhaps. And then there will be roles that require a rare or occasional visit to the office.
While homes, during the pandemic, got transformed to become the workplace too, work-from-home (WFH) is poised to get a professional touch. For those wishing and able to WFH, they need to ensure that they have good acoustics, background and connectivity, which give a professional appearance to their digital presence. This also means having good computing systems with high pixel cameras and decent ambient lighting. Most of these may be part of a onetime cost for the employees. At the workplace, the proposition gets flipped.
The pandemic has taught us a multidisciplinary approach. Although the event was a subject of the healthcare domain, the solutions had to come from several other domains too – politics, economics, sociology, supply chain, customer relations, finance
