Responsibly Returning to Work – Finally!

All business leaders are grappling with how to return to the office in a safe and responsible way. The questions of when and how to safely return while still meeting the needs of the business, staff, and clients looms in the mind of management.

After months of review, thought and planning, Noisy Trumpet Digital & Public Relations is moving forward with a hybrid return to work plan initially, beginning May 3. The beginning of May was selected as our target back to the office date because of the decreased cases of Covid-19 locally, along with the availability of vaccines for all age groups starting at the end of March.

Our hybrid work format will bring employees back to our office setting for three days a week while still allowing remote work two days per week. The goal for our planning was to safely have our staff at the office while being cognizant of client needs and our employees’ health and safety.

By strategically planning a detailed calendar, we were able to schedule teams who collaborate regularly together, while still giving our employees variety in who they see throughout the week. It was important as an agency to still have full access to different team members for input and brainstorming on various projects. So, schedules were staggered to provide this access.

In addition, we also planned for one day per week for all staff to be in the office for maximum collaboration and staff meetings, and one day per week where everyone works remotely. We didn’t want to lose our leadership edge in our business category. Our staff embraced this plan because they wanted the flexibility to continue to work remotely for part of the week while transitioning back to the office.

This gradual return to office plan seems to be a good fit for Noisy Trumpet team members. The feedback I have heard is our team is ready to have some level of normal work time at the office, while still having some remote work options to maintain a healthy balance. The pandemic has forced all businesses to rethink how they approach staffing and office space. Being flexible and adaptable is just one more layer to staying competitive in an ever-changing market.