Future of Work Roundup: July 14

This week’s Future of Work Roundup features author Adam Grant’s seven tips on how to make hybrid work more sustainable, plus a look inside LinkedIn’s hybrid-first flagship office.

Hybrid work is here. Let’s make it easier.

Wharton professor and best-selling author Adam Grant spoke with two remote work experts from Stanford and Harvard to identify what we can collectively do to more effectively implement hybrid work into our lives.

Because, let’s face it, it’s not going anywhere.

• The trio of experts laid out seven rules for hybrid work success, and included in the bunch is the importance of being multimodal; aka understanding the multiple tools you need to communicate effectively. 
• For instance, Slack is great for quick chats, as is Zoom for talking through things faster or to share your screen. And for your bigger meetings and events, Brandlive is built specifically for those – like your sales kick-offs, product launches, and internal Allhands (all shows that may be better suited to watch asynchronously, too).
• Other tips the group included was the importance of coordinating properly, over-communicating and not sending mixed messages about your hybrid work expectations. 

The bottom line: We are at the precipice of creating a working world that is more balanced and equitable than ever before – and it won’t cost companies a penny or productive minute more. But leaders have to start being proactive with policies that will make hybrid work successful.

Source: Inc.

A look at the future of working in an office.

On the top of everyone’s mind is how to make hybrid work successful – and aside from optimizing your tech stack, comms tools and at-home office, big businesses like LinkedIn are looking at how to improve upon that enigmatic office life.

Let’s hear it.

• Since refreshing for hybrid work optimization, LinkedIn’s flagship office in Silicon Valley cut out half of their individual desks and replaced them with more than 75 different types of seating; everything from small spaces for folks to take private calls to larger conference rooms for those precious in-person meetings.
• Plus, they’ve been intentional about creating communal spaces where employees can come in for an hour or two to work with their team and then head back home for deeper focus time.
• LinkedIn’s hybrid office project leaders say that their approach with building an office conducive to productive hybrid work is all about “[trusting] our employees to make the decisions that work best for them and their teams.”

The companies that get it, get it. The companies that don’t, don’t. LinkedIn’s refreshed hybrid-friendly office is a perfect example of orgs fully-embracing our new normal of hybrid work – because alongside the necessary comms tools to keep your hybrid teams connected, you need to have the right in-office solutions so when they do come in, they are able to work properly.

Source: Wall Street Journal