Robert L. McKenna III’s 5 Tips to Make the Most of a Hybrid Work Environment in the Post-Pandemic Era

Even before the long-reaching social and financial repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic reshaped the world economy, a number of forward-thinking businesses were already thinking ahead to the potential benefits of a distributed workforce. Spurred by a changing dynamic that had at its core a new focus on swapping out concerns over lengthy commute times, long hours, and rising gas prices with enhanced quality of life issues, these companies began researching viable solutions geared to both retaining and hiring the best talent in an offsite/hybrid environment.

"People were biting off a two-hour commute but it was worth it to them because the trade-off was they could own a home where they could raise their kids and have a nice school district," notes Robert L. McKenna III, a California-based attorney who specializes in liability defense. "When that commute went away and you were still able to get your work done and get back 20 hours every week you didn't spend in traffic, it worked out very well for a lot of people."

While corporate honchos certainly hoped this strategy would prove to be a boon to their bottom lines, it also boded well for long-term work/life balance satisfaction and reciprocal loyalty between employers and employees. For prescient employers who'd seen the plus side of an at least partial virtual work model early on and were prepared to transition from onsite to remote/hybrid workforce, when the inevitable shift came, it went smoothly.

Well before the COVID ax fell, Robert McKenna made sure his firm, Kjar, McKenna & Stockalper, had moved its hybrid blueprint from the drawing board to boots-on-the-ground marching orders. "For firms, especially the ones that did a good job getting everybody remote early on, it became clear that most people can get their job done remotely, and without a decline in productivity or work product," says McKenna.

For McKenna, the enhanced flexible accessibility, security, and a diminished need for physical storage space to house hard files or servers, had already paved the way for a cloud-based legal practice. With a virtual working model already in place, his firm's segue to hybrid was easier than for most. Even so, as with any new endeavor, the journey wasn't without its occasional bumps and hiccups. As the day-to-day realities of the emerging model began to reveal patterns of what worked and what didn't, a roadmap of best practices soon took shape. Taken from experience, here are Robert McKenna's tips for maximizing the potential of a distributed workforce in the post-pandemic era.

1. Embrace Flexible Workforce Solutions

While certain business models (such as manufacturing and some service industries) are by their very nature, not conducive to full-on hybrid models, many companies that might benefit substantially from transitioning to a distributed workforce continue to resist the change. But refusing to let go on an ingrained "body in the office" corporate culture can actually be detrimental to profit margins.

"With the rising costs of office equipment and space, remote employees can save the average business close to $11,000 annually for even a part-time hire," notes a Linked In article from Esteemed Inc. "Organizations that have never considered distributed workforces are now facing one simple fact: Adapt, or be left in the dust."

"I think the saving grace for our firm was just not necessarily being lucky enough to be open-minded enough to recognize that change might be coming but to see it as a great opportunity to do an inventory of our processes," McKenna says. "We found out where we actually needed people and how we could streamline things. So, in a way, just being open to change really gave us an opportunity to come out on top."

2. Commit to a Designated Work Space

One of the most essential requisites to set yourself up for success in a work-from-home scenario is to create a designated work space that's separate from your living space. Even if the construct feels a bit artificial at first, being able to firmly place yourself in a professional setting will get your head in the right place to put business first, while stepping outside that zone when you're on break or finished for the day will serve as the signal to shut business mode down.

As an employee, your first work-from-home task will be figuring out everything you're going to need to maximize the functionality of your home office space. As an employer, your job is to enable your employees to work efficiently by supplying them with whatever necessary tools they require to succeed. "People needed a good chair, so we took their chair from work and got it to their home," McKenna says. "We got laptops for people who needed laptops." 

Not all of us have the luxury of setting aside an entire room for a home office but even so, establishing a dedicated work zone will help set boundaries that you, and everyone else (except maybe your cat) will eventually learn to respect - and that's bound to up productivity.

"It's like they say," McKenna explains, "don't have a television in your bedroom, don't have a disco ball. Keep your quiet space, your quiet space. I think that's important for motivation as well. You need to be thoughtful of creating a space and mindful of the time you spend in it."

3. Implement Healthy & Hospitable Work Habits

When employees transition from in-person to offsite workdays, one of the most significant changes they must deal with is the increase in screen time. While improving technology continues to keep pace with (and sometimes even anticipate) the foibles of a hybrid paradigm, in order to flourish, the human factor must also adapt both physically and mentally. That's why learning and implementing best practices for health as well well as internet etiquette are so important.

Just as establishing a designated work zone signals a professional attitude, so does maintaining an accepted standard of online etiquette for work-related interactions. Yes, there's been a huge learning curve with regard to this issue, and of course, life happens when you're working from home (including everything from technical snafus to unscheduled toddler meltdowns). Generally speaking, however, the new rules aren't all that hard to follow. 

• If you're going to be on-camera, dress accordingly (office casual is fine for most occasions). "I had one lawyer on a call, Zoom in from bed," McKenna recalls wryly. "I could see the headboard behind him. I'm thinking, Hey, Bill, thanks for waking up and taking the call. It's great to see you." 

• Use your mute button and, depending on the source or duration of an interruption, sign off if you have to. Someone can fill you in on the details later and discretion really is the better part of valor in this case.

• Give your eyes a break. McKenna says angling your laptop or desktop during Zoom meetings helps reduce eyestrain. 

• Stand up and stretch as needed. 

4. Map Out Your Day

Rather than setting up a single objective for each day, set up a series of smaller benchmarks that will lead to achieving the larger one and keep track of what you're doing and when you're doing it. 

• Plan what you'll do once you sign in and what you need to tackle before your first break. After you sign back in, know what you need to accomplish before lunch, and have your post-lunch play-by-play strategy in place as well. 

• Set up and maintain a routine schedule for daily correspondence. Checking in on a regular basis rather than randomly throughout the day will help keep you from getting distracted. 

• Be sure to sign in and sign out when you take breaks. Employees who don't keep proper track of their hours are the hobgoblins of bookkeeping. "A lot of times working from home, people don't necessarily sign out of their computer when they're taking a break," McKenna warns. "The only way you can keep a record of when people are working when they're off site is when they do something affirmatively on the software to let us know they're there."

5. Set Your Boundaries and Stick to Them

One of the prime objectives for a hybrid or fully remote workforce is creating the kind of harmonious work/life balance that blends maximum productivity with maximum personal satisfaction. The demarcation between "on the clock" and "off the clock" needs to be firmly established. In order to achieve this, setting boundaries and enforcing them is in everyone's best interest.

Now, of course, emergencies are going to crop up and it's fine to make yourself available for the occasional "All hands on deck!"  However, such situations should be considered the exception rather than the rule. 

"I've had clients say, 'We can have a virtual conference, can't we? I know you're on vacation, but you have internet, right?'" McKenna says. "Unless you set boundaries, you can end up working a significant amount of time when you're trying to take time off. It may be hard at first but you have to avoid the temptation to say, 'Yes' when you should be saying, 'No.'"

Being polite and proactive with regard to unacceptable requests and expectations from clients or employers is the best way to avoid conflicts.

• Give those who count on you a timeframe in which you will return calls and correspondence.

• Remember to use and faithfully update your out-of-office messages.

• Arrange a backup method to cover correspondence and calls when you're on vacation or have to be out of the office for a prolonged period of time.