Teleworking has become a common practice in recent years. Many companies have adopted this way of working in order to reduce office costs and allow their employees to work more flexibly.
The flex office is a concept that offers employees the opportunity to work both in the office and remotely. It has many benefits for them, including a better quality of life, a better work-life balance, and greater flexibility in their day-to-day planning.
However, the flex office can present some difficulties for managers. This can make it more difficult to track project progress and manage teams when employees are working remotely.
Knowing how to managing your teams in flex office is essential to take full advantage of the benefits of this way of working.
Digitize management with the right tools
Managing your teams in flex office requires a whole new organization within your structure. In the office, your employees find themselves in different workspaces which does not facilitate exchanges, ditto for those who are teleworking. It then becomes complicated to know who is present or absent, or to quickly communicate essential information at the moment T. This is why it is important to digitize management quickly, so as not to lose track. To do this, you need to ask yourself the right questions and identify your different needs. How to manage your projects with teleworking? How to communicate effectively with your teams?
Equipping yourself with good tools is essential for this new mode of organization. For example, you can manage your meetings and video conferences with Microsoft software. Instant collaborative messaging like the Slack app is ideal for exchanging in the office and remotely.
Educate teams about workspace management
The implementation of the flex office offers your teams the possibility of choosing their workspace. For small organizations, this can be rather simple, but it is not the same for companies with hundreds of employees. The proper functioning of the company and the performance of the teams can quickly be compromised. It is therefore essential as a manager to raise awareness among your teams for a better organization. For good management, you can use the DoFlex workspace reservation app. Explain to your teams how online office booking works and the rules that apply to it. For example, you can ask your employees to indicate their telework days for the following week, so that you can hold face-to-face team meetings.
Trust to managing your teams
It’s important to make your teams feel confident in them. Trust and accountability are the first challenges of the flex office. Explain the importance of organizing their working days and keeping the progress of their missions up to date. Indeed, you will not be able to have your eyes on them at all times of the day. That’s why it’s important to talk to them about their work environment at home. Do they have the necessary equipment? What would suit them best in terms of organization… This will facilitate their autonomy and efficiency.
Clearly communicate goals and expectations
Communication is essential within a company in order to define objectives and expectations. For your teams, clearly define the ground rules to maintain proper operation. Do not hesitate to create a document that brings them together, so that your collaborators can consult them.
As for everyone’s objectives and missions, define who takes care of what, priorities, create briefs so that information is understood by all. Assign a contact person to your teams, set deadlines for projects and make regular check-ins.
By being clear and precise in your communication, your employees will be more effective and work will be facilitated on a daily basis. You can use a project tracker like Monday or Asana. They allow you to create tasks and assign them to collaborators. A note system makes it possible to communicate between employees and thus reduce demands.
Encourage communication, exchange of ideas and team building
The flex office leads to work regularly independently. However, it is essential to maintain team cohesion for more efficiency on projects. Hold regular meetings (weekly or monthly), as it facilitates communication and the exchange of ideas. This is also the time to survey your teams to find out if everything is going well in their new work organization… Bringing your teams together also means spending a friendly moment together. Do not hesitate to organize after-work, lunches, events to promote interactions between team members. This will make it possible to get to know them better and strengthen ties.