15 models and examples of hybrid working

Models for hybrid working: examples from Germany

Overview: Hybrid working models in comparison

Hybrid working can be implemented in many ways. Different models are suitable depending on the size of the company, the task structure and the team culture. The following overview shows proven hybrid models, their characteristics and typical areas of application.

1. 3:2 model

Description:
‍Employees work three days in the office and two days remotely. The distribution is either uniform across the company or regulated on a team-by-team basis.

Advantages
Clear structure with high acceptance. Can be easily combined with desk-sharing concepts.

Possible disadvantages:
‍Little flexibility for individuals and more complicated for part-time workers.

2. Fixed attendance days

Description:
‍Certain days of the week are designated for everyone to be present in the office, for example Tuesday to Thursday. Remote working is the norm on the other days.

Advantages
‍Strengthens team spirit and facilitates coordination, as it is clear when everyone is available.

Possible disadvantages:
Leads to peak loads in office utilisation, meaning that a separate workstation must be provided for each employee. From the employees' perspective, the model is very rigid.

3. Team rotation / cohort model

Description:
‍Employees or teams take turns working in the office. For example, week A team 1, week B team 2. The groups are fixed.

Advantages:
Very efficient and predictable use of office capacity.

Possible disadvantages:
Complex to organise, cooperation between the alternating teams is difficult.

4. Free choice with framework conditions

Description:
‍Employees decide for themselves when they come to the office, within an agreed framework, for example 4 days a month, with a booking requirement.

Advantages:
High level of personal responsibility, high satisfaction, ideal for well-functioning teams. Attendance patterns become predictable over time and can therefore be planned.

Possible disadvantages:
Requires booking systems and trust in the personal responsibility of each individual.

5. Remote-first

Description:
‍Work is primarily done remotely. The office is provided as an option, primarily for meetings or individual use.

Advantages:
High degree of location independence, access to a global talent pool, low fixed costs for the office.

Possible disadvantages:
Risk of disconnection from the company, social isolation, more difficult management.

6. Office-first with home office allowance

Description:
‍The office serves as the standard workplace, with, for example, one day per week working from home.

Advantages:
Easy to implement, few technical and organisational hurdles, easy to manage.

Possible disadvantages:
Little scope for employees to shape their working environment, can be perceived as a sign of control, culturally outdated for many employees.

7. Project-based presence

Description:
The place of work is determined on a project-by-project basis, for example for a kick-off event in the office. Implementation then takes place remotely and reviews are conducted on attendance days.

Advantages:
Adaptable to project phases, good balance between collaboration and focus phases.

Possible disadvantages: 
High coordination effort, can become confusing with many parallel projects.

8. Hybrid shift model

Description:
‍Teams work in fixed shifts, for example, in the office in the morning and remotely in the afternoon, or alternating weekly.

Advantages:
Clear planning, continuous coverage, often easy to combine with operational requirements.

Possible disadvantages:
Limited freedom to make decisions, complex shift planning, higher demands on IT and infrastructure.

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Examples of companies with hybrid working models

Many medium-sized companies and corporations have developed their own models for hybrid working, always adapted to team size, task type and location structure.

1. Taxfix: The Berlin-based FinTech company allows employees to work remotely for up to six weeks a year, even from abroad. Within Germany, teams decide for themselves how to combine office and remote working hours. This is coordinated within the team.
2. Urban Sports Club: Here, a standard for hybrid working applies: 50% office, 50% remote. In addition, the company offers up to four months of location-independent working in Europe.
3. Kaufland: Hybrid working models are now established in Kaufland's administrative departments. Office attendance and mobile working are combined depending on the situation.
4. Cisco Austria: Cisco Austria publicly advocates hybrid working models, both within its own company and in terms of social change. In a recent survey, 43% of employees in Austria were identified as staunch supporters of hybrid working.
5. SAP: Employees at SAP decide together with their team how often they come to the office. There is no universal rule, but rather a free arrangement within the framework of a global hybrid programme. Physical presence depends on tasks and collaboration requirements.
6. Allianz: At Allianz, hybrid working is regulated by a binding works agreement: up to 60% of working hours may be carried out remotely. The exact arrangements are left to the teams.
7. Siemens: Since 2020, Siemens has allowed up to three days of mobile working per week in many areas. The switch between office and remote working is based on trust and dialogue with managers.
   

Tip: Here you can find success stories from companies that work hybrid with PULT.

How do I find the right hybrid model for my team?

The right hybrid model should bring together the interests of your company and those of your employees. The most important points to clarify for this alignment are predictability, team cohesion, secure processes, employee autonomy and decision-making freedom, and a good environment for concentrated work.

1. Observe behaviour, don't assume
Before you establish rules for a hybrid model, take a look at how your team already works today. If you currently work in a very flexible model, you will be surprised at how clearly certain patterns emerge.

This is easy with PULT Presence, as employee attendance in the office is recorded as soon as one of their devices connects to the company Wi-Fi. This means no extra work for your colleagues, but you get a realistic picture of how your team actually behaves. From this, you can already learn a lot about their wishes.

2. Hold discussions, gather employee opinions
Supplement the measurements with workshops and employee surveys. Work with your team to determine what is needed for concentrated work, what is necessary for good coordination among colleagues, and what an ideal working week looks like. These answers will gradually give rise to criteria for your hybrid model.

3. Choose a model and establish structures
From the combination of data, opinions and criteria, you can deduce what your well-functioning hybrid model will look like.

In PULT, you can observe your team's attendance behaviour after the binding introduction of your model. The integrated employee feedback function allows you to easily gather the opinions of your colleagues.

The utilisation data shows you how well your model is working. You can see which structures are used frequently: specific workstations, equipment, rooms and zones. You can also see what is not necessary, can be dismantled and put to a more frequently used purpose.

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Examples of hybrid working – Frequently asked questions and answers