Thrive with a Hybrid Workplace: Step-by-Step Guidance from the Experts

by Felice Ekelman, Julie Kantor

Overview

With hybrid work, leaders face unique challenges to ensure employees are engaged, remote and office work is productive, and teams are collaborating; all within legal guidelines. Leadership is to be approached with intentionality.Thrive with a Hybrid Workplace delivers expert guidance to maximize growth and minimize risk in a hybrid workplace.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538171677
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	03/03/2023
Pages:	264
Product dimensions:	5.81(w) x 8.82(h) x 0.85(d)

About the Author

Felice B. Ekelman, JD is a Principal of Jackson Lewis PC, where she practices employment law on behalf of companies. She currently serves as a member of the Advisory Board of the Sheridan Libraries and Museums. Felice is a well-known employment attorney and is a sought-out speaker. She has been quoted regarding workplace trends in Bloomberg News, The Wall Street Journal, Lexology, Law 360 and other business journals. Felice resides in New York City.

Julie P. Kantor, PhD, is a business psychologist, executive coach, advisor, and founder of JP Kantor Consulting. As a sought-after expert in leadership, resilience, emotional intelligence and the interface between work and personal lives, Julie speaks and advises organizations ranging from small startups to global corporations. She has authored 50+ seminars which have trained thousands of employees in work-related topics. Julie is a regular contributor to Forbes on leadership and employee engagement. Julie resides in New York City.

Table of Contents

Introduction: The Power of “And”

Section I: Planning and Policy a Hybrid Work Policy

Chapter 1: Where and When Work is Performed and Who Decides

Chapter 2: Codifying Standard Operating Procedures

Chapter 3: Identifying the Best Approach

Chapter 4: Assessing the Work Force

Chapter 5: Drafting and Communicating the Policy

Section II: The 7 Cs of Leadership

Chapter 6: Culture

Chapter 7: Change

Chapter 8: Connection

Chapter 9: Communication

Chapter 10: Collaboration

Chapter 11: Compassion

Chapter 12: Coaching

Section III: Making Hybrid Work

Chapter 13: Boosting Productivity

Chapter 14: Becoming an Employer of Choice: Hiring, Onboarding and Retention

Chapter 15: Wellness and Mental Health

Section IV: Guardrails for Success in Hybrid Work

Chapter 16: Advancing Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) and DEI Goals

Chapter 17: Supporting DEI and Addressing Proximity Bias

Chapter 18: Avoiding Pay Equity and Discrimination Claims

Chapter 19: Avoiding Compliance Missteps

Appendix: Training

Glossary of Hybrid Terms

Editorial Reviews

The book we all need now! For anyone (which these days is almost everyone) who is struggling to survive and thrive in the hybrid workplace, this guide sets you on a path to success. The authors help you align company policy with your values and establish an intentional articulation of the why and where of work.

Melanie Katzman

Felice Ekelman and Julie Kantor's insight into a post-Covid workplace is insightful, practical, and necessary for managers and executives to consider today. It will help all executives improve their leadership, understanding and communication skills.

Randy Levine

Julie Kantor and Felice Ekelman distill complicated workplace dynamics for both leaders and employees, getting each to see and understand the others’ perspective and, most importantly, motivating all towards action and change. “Thrive with a hybrid workplace” is the ultimate and timely guidebook for all leaders trying to assess the hybrid schedule and parameters that work for their culture and company.

Marnie Black

A clear-eyed effort to grapple with the emerging challenges of the hybrid workplace. No company is average; every company needs to make considered choices about where and when their employees will work in the future. Time and again, the authors remind us of the fact that reconciling and unifying diverse points of view is the key to enlightened leadership. And while there may seem to be a near-infinite array of options, they’re all contained in what a company is and wants to be.-

Duff McDonald

Attorney Felice Ekelman and business psychologist Julie Kantor provide terrific pointers for everyone from CE's to small team leaders on building a hybrid workplace that is both super-productive and highly supportive. Brimming with insights from companies large and small, ’Thrive’ offers powerful success strategies for today’s blended workstyle culture. Strongly recommended!

Jay Walker

This book gets right to the questions every leader I know is wrestling with: should we fully embrace a hybrid workplace? If we do, what should our approach be? The authors offer a practical and refreshing take: hybrid workplaces are the new norm; to make them work, employees need to be listened to and trusted and leaders need to rise to the occasion. Executives should start by defining the culture and employee value proposition they want, and then decide what hybrid approach will support that. Following what the competition is doing or looking for cost savings won’t get you a thriving workplace. I love the clear call to action for leaders: name your own biases and take a good look at your own feelings, attitudes, and behaviors. And I also love how much support leaders will find here – action steps to guide them through this important challenge, one step at a time.

Cathy Boeckmann

Ekelman and Kantor’s practical guide helps leaders through the hybrid work maze to avoid the pitfalls and landmines that could occur if decisions around work are not aligned with company culture and process. They cover the whole employee value proposition, from hiring to talent management to goal setting to leadership training, that will enable a company to grow and thrive in ways consistent with its values and strategies.

Lynne Biggar

A much needed dive into uncharted territory as leaders debate and employees navigate the post-covid workplace. The days of executives looking across the floor counting head as a proxy for productivity and power are over. Julie Kantor and Felice Ekelman are building a new playing field, with new rules, where not just some—but all—people can win.

Allyn L. Shaw

In their recently published book, Felice Ekelman and Julie Kantor help to prepare leaders to guide their companies in a business world that is today more volatile, more uncertain, more complex, and more ambiguous than at any prior time that I can recall. They provide in their book an abundance of invaluable information, insights, and counsel that can help these leaders to respond effectively to the challenges that are certain to emerge, with or without prior indication.

Blogging on Business

Thrive with a Hybrid Workplace is smart, well organized and insightful. Even more important, it's practical. Giving highly relatable, straightforward observations and advice is its super-power. As someone who thinks about the mental health of my colleagues in my day job, and mental health in our society more broadly during my volunteer time, I was particularly struck by the chapters on Compassion and on Wellness and Mental Health. Many people spend the majority of their waking time working, and the teachings in this book could potentially be a powerful tool for work leaders seeking to bolster the mental health of their people.

Brian C. Offutt

The authors accurately foresaw that in the post Covid world employees would still expect a hybrid workplace. The book presents an excellent framework for leaders searching for equitable and consistent policies that will benefit all constituents. While the health of our cities depends on a return to the office, the five day commute may be a thing of the past.

Lawrence B. Wolfe

This book is a timely Must-Read for all levels of leaders who want to learn how to navigate the new hybrid work world. It provides a practical framework that breaks down the complex challenges every leader faces today. The particular focus on culture (1 of the 7 Cs of Leadership in the book) is an eye-opening, step-by-step guide on how leaders can’t just communicate team values, they must embody them as a leader. Also, the new concepts of interpersonal glue and intentional communication offer creative advice on how leaders can engage and retain their teams. Every leaders should read this today!

Ed Mangis

Authors Ekelman and Kantor address the need for leaders to consider what a hybrid workplace means for their unique organization. From deep examination of what different types of work demand for employee effectiveness and productivity to identifying criteria for exceptions and possible legal ramifications, leaders are provided with concrete guidance. For example, attention is paid to the need for physical office space and related considerations, such as whether everyone will be in the office for set days, or if days in office may vary and a smaller space is sufficient. Diving more deeply into that smaller-space example, how will employees be assured that a space is available for them whenever they are in the office? This level of guidance through the challenges of defining hybrid work will not only result in solid outcomes but can serve a model for decision making in other areas as well. A valuable resource for any organization struggling with the challenges of finding balance between employee and organizational needs, Thrive with a Hybrid Workplace will find an audience in both public-library and business-school collections

Booklist

12/01/2023

Few disagree that hybrid work is here to stay—hybrid work schedules in addition to hybrid work settings. Business psychologist and executive coach Kantor and employment attorney Ekelman embrace this notion, offering strategies and action steps to help business leaders and managers navigate the hybrid workplace. They outline key components of successful policies, including intentionality, trust, DEI mindfulness, and compliance. VERDICT Written to help leaders draft and iterate hybrid workplace policies that promote employee satisfaction, productivity, and retention.

Library Journal