Scotland’s first comprehensive hybrid working training

By Lisa Gallagher, co-founder and director of Flexibility Works

We’ve now launched Scotland’s first comprehensive hybrid working training programme to help managers or teams successfully embed hybrid working for the long-term.

Developed, of course, in response to the unprecedented rise in home working during Covid, and the fact 80% of UK workers who worked from home during the pandemic say they prefer a hybrid working model.

Apart from a few high-profile detractors (think Elon Musk), most sensible employers are equally keen to embrace hybrid working.

But even among the converted, both employers and workers have some concerns about how to get hybrid right. Top concerns include:
• How to maintain feeling part of a team
• How to build a strong, positive culture
• How to ensure people are happy and healthy when working remotely
• How to communicate effectively when working in a hybrid way

These are all valid concerns. It would be more worrying if people weren’t mulling these over.

Smart business leaders know they can’t afford to lag behind, and that they need to switch, permanently, to a hybrid model or risk disengaging their workforce. But they want to get it right, so investing in some support and training makes sense.

Cue our new training – last year we developed and trialled a new programme to help managers and teams get the very best from hybrid working – showing them how, if managed effectively, remote and hybrid working can boost productivity and wellbeing as well as helping teams handle some of the challenges that can arise. The interactive training supports employers transition to permanent hybrid working that’s beneficial for businesses, employee wellbeing and the environment.

What is the training?

We’re providing a choice of up to eight workshops covering the following aspects of hybrid working:

• Working in a hybrid team
• Connection and collaboration
• Diversity and inclusion when hybrid
• Communication in a hybrid environment
• Wellbeing and resilience in a hybrid working environment
• Organisational culture in a hybrid world
• Motivation in a hybrid working environment
• Sustainability

The workshops are a mix of in-person and online.

Who is the training for:

The training is aimed at managers, though it also works well for teams as a whole too; in fact in the pilot, we had an entire workforce participate.

100% positive feedback

During our pilot, we delivered workshops to people managers and employees from across three very different companies. These were: PR agency Muckle Media, maritime software and technology firm Seebyte, and Harbour Homes (formerly Port of Leith Housing Association).

All participants agreed the training will lead to a range of behaviour changes in their work practices to better embed good hybrid working. They also said it provided new knowledge in an interactive, relaxed and fun style.

The project was funded by sustainability charity, Paths for All, and we’re delighted to report that more than 70% of participants said they’d consider how they travel, and travel less for everyday journeys, compared with before the pandemic. We calculated that our training and subsequent changes to people’s behaviour will save a whopping 82, 000 miles in business travel.

Feedback so far

As a pilot project we grilled our participants for feedback, and we were thrilled by how positive they were.

A participant from Harbour Homes told us: “I feel now that hybrid working is a choice, a preferred option, as opposed to something that was forced upon us by external factors. There was a slight guilt or feeling that working in a hybrid way was a benefit, something we maybe shouldn’t be doing. This training has definitely made me more confident in being able to communicate hybrid working arrangements as well as flexible working arrangements.”

While Muckle Media said: “We’ve definitely all taken away a positive impact, particularly in ensuring our communications work virtually and getting people engaged in our online channels. We have further initiatives to look at in 2023 from the training. One colleague called the training the best training they had ever attended!”

Seebyte was really honest about where the team had started from. One of the managers said: “Since the training we have stopped thinking that if someone isn’t in the office and is at home that they aren’t working or as productive. We have also embedded some agreed remote work habits as a result of the training which have been really useful. We are more aware of people who are calling into meetings remotely and make more conscious efforts to include them and get their input.”

100% positive feedback

During our pilot, we delivered workshops to people managers and employees from across three very different companies. These were: PR agency Muckle Media (pictured), maritime software and technology firm Seebyte, and Harbour Homes (formerly Port of Leith Housing Association).

Get in touch

You can find out more about our hybrid training here, or contact us on 0141 378 8330 or hello@flexibilityworks.org