Jump to content
appogeehr logo
Sign in Try for free

Why you really need time tracking to manage a hybrid workplace

Before the pandemic, just 5% of people worked mostly from home, according to the Office for National Statistics. Covid-19 changed this, forcing employers to allow employees to work from home so that they could protect employees’ health while also keeping the business afloat. This change gave employees a taste of a different type of work-life balance, something that many aren’t willing to let go of now that we’re returning to normal life and offices are inviting them back.

However, there are a lot of benefits to office-based work that can get lost when employees work entirely remotely.

The hybrid working model offers a happy medium between remote work and office work, giving employees the opportunity to connect with their colleagues in person while also taking advantage of the often quieter atmosphere that working from home provides.

What is hybrid work?

Hybrid work is when an employee splits their time between working in an office environment and working remotely.

Employees got to experience some of the benefits of the hybrid work model during the pandemic, like saving money on fuel, parking, or public transport costs, and spending more time with loved ones. This has meant that 97% of people don’t want to return to the office full-time.

It’s not just employees who can benefit when employees work from home, though. Remote work can also lead to higher productivity because employees have more opportunities to embrace deep work when they’re not confronted with the noise and distractions of a busy office environment.

Some tasks still require in-person meetings, though, which is when hybrid working really comes into its own.

Adapting to the hybrid work model requires a cultural shift within a business, but it’s one that can reap huge rewards for employees and employers alike.

Benefits of hybrid working

One of the benefits of hybrid working is that it helps you attract a more diverse range of candidates, and potentially higher-quality candidates, too. For example, 76% of homemakers would return to work if they could work from home, and 74% if they could work more flexible hours. Homemakers have a diverse range of skills that comes from juggling the family home, one that many businesses miss out on.

Offering more flexible hours could mean that you can offer customer support for a longer period, giving you real-time support in more countries than just where your business is based.

A more diverse workforce has a wide range of benefits for businesses, including a better working environment, which creates a better employee experience and happier employees. When they’re happier, they’re more productive, which means you can make more money. A better employee experience also means you’ll have a higher retention rate, saving you money on your hiring cycle.

Diverse workforces are better at problem solving because they bring in experiences from more backgrounds, giving teams a creative and a business edge. This can give you the upper hand over your competition and help you come up with more unique, beneficial, and profitable ways to solve your customer’s big problems.

Another benefit of the hybrid working model is that it can save money on overhead costs, giving businesses the opportunity to reduce how many desk spaces they need to rent, or their overall electricity costs in an office, something that will become more important as energy bills continue to rise.

For employees, the hybrid work model offers them a far better work-life balance than working exclusively in an office, without sacrificing the social opportunities that come from being in the office.

Since hybrid employees don’t commute into the office as much, this can save them money on their commute, as well as giving them back more time – the BBC estimates that the average global commute is 38 minutes each way. They can use this extra time to develop a hobby, hang out with loved ones, or even catch up on sleep – all things that improve employee morale and happiness.

The hybrid working model gives employees the time to work with fewer office distractions, enabling them to get more done during the day, while also being able to troubleshoot with their colleagues in the office when they’re there.

The hybrid workplace really gives an employee the best of both worlds. They maintain the social interactions with their colleagues while also having more of a life outside of the workplace.

How the right tools help you manage the hybrid workplace

Efficient, effective tools can make it much easier to manage the hybrid workplace, and for employees to get the job done when they’re away from the office. Small things like a reliable laptop and software can make a big difference. They also help you manage relationships with employees, and of course, enable employees to get their work done in the most efficient way possible.

Time tracking software for the hybrid workplace

Time tracking software enables you to monitor who’s working, when, and where from. This gives you a bird's-eye view of what’s happening in your business and what’s happened over the course of the day. You can then use this knowledge to inform future decisions.

For example, when you track how employees spend their time, you can see how long a project has taken, and if it’s operating in or outside of its budget. This information gives you the power to make adjustments while the project is still in progress, preventing it from going further over its budget. You can also see which projects are running under budget and re-allocate funds accordingly.

Benefits of time tracking software for hybrid working employees

Sometimes, employees can be unsure of which task they should do next, or which order they should prioritise tasks in. Time tracking software helps them visualise their schedules more easily, keeping them on track and showing them the next most pressing deadline they should focus on. 

This empowers them to take autonomy in their role without needing to speak to their manager or colleagues to ask what they should be working on next. As a result, they feel more in control of their schedules, experience less decision fatigue, and are more productive.

The data from the software shows you if employees are making the most of their time, and what projects they’re spending their time on. Are they spending more time on one project than they should? Do you need to adjust how long something will take, or is the project more challenging than initially thought?

Monitoring how employees spend their time helps prevent employee burnout. It gives you a better picture of what each person is juggling and if someone is taking on too much or too little.

Too much or too little on someone’s to-do list can trigger stress and burnout, so being able to see what everyone is working on – and then adjust accordingly – shows employees that you really do care about their wellbeing.

If an employee is doing particularly well, you can see this with the software and find a way to reward them. This will boost their morale and give their colleagues something to aim for.

Send more accurate bills

When using time tracking software, you can send clients more accurate bills, possibly giving you more time to work on projects for them. It also means you can provide them with more specific updates, increasing their trust in you and their belief that they’re getting good value for money.

You can use the same approach to track contractors’ hours, so you know how much of their time you have left, and don’t go over budget without realising it.

Get improved data and reporting

A bird’s-eye view of all the projects that are going on at any one time means you can plan better. Previous data can be used to estimate how long a similar project will take in the future, finding time and budget savings.

It’s also helpful to see if you’re making a profit. Do you need to adjust your pricing? Is too much time being spent on less profitable jobs? The more you know, the more you can adapt.

Time tracking is great for finding efficiencies within the working day. When you can see how long a task takes, you can plan your team’s schedule more effectively, getting a more detailed view of when each stage of a project will be delivered.

If something doesn’t hit its deadline, or it’s falling behind, you can investigate what’s going wrong and provide the necessary support to get it back on track.

Conclusion 

The hybrid workplace is here to stay, which means businesses need to choose the right tools to help them and their employees continue to make the most of their time. Using a time tracking program gives businesses a big-picture view of how employees are spending their time, where the budget is being spent – or wasted – and ways to find efficiencies.

It can also help to manage employee mental health, giving managers an insight into which employees may be taking on too much, or too little, and be at risk of stress and burnout. 

All these things empower employees and managers, helping them do their roles better whether they work at home or in the office.

Find out more about how to manage hybrid working with Appogee HR here.

Why the future of work is hybrid - Appogee HR white paper