The world sees 'COVID-19' coronavirus pandemic as an event that change how people see work and story, forever.
Traditionally, people work and study by having physical and in-person interactions, as they have to attend to the office or school. With COVID-19, companies are urged to limit physical interactions to limit the spread of the virus, forcing them to have remote working possible in most if not all departments, if they see it fit.
And Microsoft is one of them.
The tech giant has been around long enough to learn what the digital world of the internet brought to the society. And as the company is again delaying the reopening of its U.S. offices, the company reveals a few key trends of hybrid working.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said that there are “two megatrends” that are coming down the line for the world of work.
Speaking to LinkedIn's CEO, as both companies released data from global surveys around the topic of hybrid working, Nadella discussed what he called the "the hybrid paradox" and "the great reshuffle."
"If [there was] any time great management was at a premium, it was last year and a half. Leaders needed to step up to create and keep the continuity of the connection.”
"If there’s any piece of advice even going into this world of the hybrid paradox and the great reshuffle, that’s what’s going to be what’s most needed."
"Flexibility is what people desire but you need to be able to discern that flexibility and then be able to really be in touch with the people that you lead so that would be care."
Hybrid working is a type of flexible working where employees split their time between the workplace in the office and remote working.
And the "hybrid paradox" describes the complexities around finding the right balance between the two.
Nadella said that while the majority of employees want to return to the office for the traditional in-person contact, the majority of them also want to retain the flexibility of work-from-home they've been experiencing since the beginning of the pandemic.
And the "great reshuffle" here focuses more on the fact that employees are having the ability to make decisions about how, when and where they work, as well as why they work.
People have been made familiar with remote working, thanks with technological advances of devices, the platforms and the internet.
With that in mind, flexibility needs to be retained to have a successful hybrid work experience.
While people need to work to make a living, companies cannot run without the brains and the brawns of their employees.
Since hybrid working is set to become a permanent feature of many workplaces around the world, flexibility needs to be retained for a successful hybrid work experience.
"Care is the new currency," said Nadella.
It's the thing that can bring the best for everyone. Not just for the company or the employees, but to everyone involved, so everybody can stay safe.