Twelve months ago, companies scrambled to provide resources for their employees to work from home for what was thought at the time to be a temporary situation. However, as months turned into a year, employees and employers have come to see the benefits of a remote work structure. Even with the possibility of a safe return to traditional offices on the horizon, most organisations will never again see 100 percent office occupancy.
A mix of on-site and remote workers will be more common than ever. For businesses to thrive in this new environment, they must ensure the success of their hybrid workforce and carefully consider what is necessary to ensure equity and well-being among all employees. Although 2600Hz is headquartered in San Francisco, California, they have always operated with a hybrid employee base. Their Chief of Staff, Kate Zucchino, manages employee well-being, employee success, remote hiring, and much more. She took time with UC Today to share insight into what it takes to provide remote and in-office employees with the right technology, tools, and resources to be productive and successful throughout all enterprise levels.
“One of the things that’s important for us is providing tools for new hires so that they are set up for success on their first day,” tells Zucchino. “They get the laptop of their choosing and any other home office equipment based on their job requirements. We also like to make them feel like they are part of an inclusive team, so we always do a welcome email that’s initiated by myself. It’s great because everyone is really responsive, and new hires know that they are in a welcoming environment from their first day.”
Creating a Culture of Connection
Once a new hire is onboarded and welcomed to the 2600Hz family, there is continued attention paid to employee well-being. Leadership ensures there are weekly one-on-one check-ins with a manager or team lead. With extreme levels of isolation during the pandemic, the company's focus was to ask employees how their week was going on a personal level. People’s whole routine abruptly changed, which can be jarring. Without the option to go into the office and many social hubs closing for safety measures, isolation can affect anyone’s mental and emotional well-being. The message from the top down was to make sure people were happy, engaged, and connected.
Even though most of their employees work remotely, there has always been a focus on making sure everyone feels included. There is a huge effort to make sure that employees can meet in person at least once per year. Prior to COVID, 2600Hz held an annual conference called KAZOOcon, where employees were flown to the conference’s location. “We would also host ski trips to Lake Tahoe that allows for remote employees from all over the world to meet people from different parts of the globe as well as different departments within the company,” says Zucchino.
“We understand that physical distance sometimes creates a barrier to fully understand how everyone’s work is connected, and we want to close that gap as much as possible. Ultimately, finding ways for employees to connect helps everyone better understand company goals on a broader level”
Unique Approaches for Uninterrupted Community
The long-term impact of COVID allowed 2600Hz to take full advantage of their in-house video conferencing system. Everyone would join in at least once a month for different team members to share learning projects with the organization. Topics ranged from how to make kombucha or how to make smart investments with 401ks or Roth IRAs. Employees also used the video conferencing system for virtual happy hours and holiday parties to provide as much normalcy as possible during a period of forced distance.
