The migration away from the office and towards remote and hybrid working have presented businesses with a blank canvas on which we can totally recreate the way work is done. It’s an incredible opportunity, and one which has the potential to give employees greater flexibility, autonomy and control, making them more productive, yes, but happier and healthier too.
Hybrid is where the heart is
Remote working was born out of necessity during the pandemic, but when you ask workers what they prefer the answer is a clear call for hybrid and flexible models of work. A McKinsey survey of employees found that over half would prefer a more flexible working model post pandemic. While Accenture found that 83% of employees it surveyed said hybrid working would be optimal in the future.
Positive and productive
The posititive impact of hybrid working on productivity is clear. In McKinsey’s survey of C-suite executives 58% said that individual productivity had improved. And employees would tend to agree. In a Lenovo survery of 4,000 end users, over half said that working from home improved their productivity.
The positives don’t stop there. Workers also reported that the increased flexibility had improved both their productivity and their quality of life. Of the 9,000 workers surveyed in Accenture’s Future of Work report, 31% said remote working gave them more flexibility to take more productive breaks when they needed them and 32% said working remotely gave them a better quality of life.
But this uptick in productivity and wellbeing hasn’t been universal. So how should businesses reimagine work and how can they empower employees to stay happy, healthy and productive, wherever they’re working from?
Collaborative connections
There’s a real need to find new ways to keep employees connected. The first priority is clearly to prevent people from feeling isolated: Lenovo’s The Future of Work and Digital Transformation report found that 63% of 18-34 year olds felt the lack of physical interaction caused them anxiety or added stress.
But making it easier for employees to connect and collaborate is also a major factor in unleashing business productivity. In its survey of C-suite executives, McKinsey found that an increase in collaboration and the number of small ‘microtransactions’ between employees were strongly correlated with productivity.
It means businesses need to think carefully about how they can encourage and promote these kinds of interactions, from their approach and policies right down to the technology they use. Now that our screens are a vital point of connection with colleagues and friends, displays with built-in VoIP, webcam, microphone and speakers can make a big difference to productivity and wellbeing.
The right resources for productivity?
Accenture surveyed 9,000 office workers and found that what separated those who were productive whether they were working onsite or remotely was access to resources. This includes personal resources like positive mental health and strong social bonds with colleagues as well as organisational resources like agility and digital maturity.
Thinking constructively about the technology resources your workers have access to can make a dramatic difference to their wellbeing and their ability to focus. Something as simple as having comfortable, high-quality displays can:
- Improve employee’s focus on tasks and allow them to set up their ideal workspace, wherever they are
- Keep them comfortable with ergonomic design and reduced blue light emissions
- Reduce desk clutter with built-in accessories to improve focus and stop the office taking over the home, for a better work life balance
- Give them more flexibility to work well on the go, with lightweight, portable monitors
With 83% of IT decision makers now actively preparing for a hybrid model, equipping your people with the technology they need is the key to unlocking productivity.
Learn how ThinkVision displays can support productivity and wellbeing
Lenovo is here to give you the right resources for productivity.
Discover how Lenovo is accelerating the modern workplace
The future of work as we know it has never been more exciting. To find out more about the bigger picture Lenovo has in store, click the link below.
