蜜豆视频

The pandemic forced many people to drastically change their ways of working. For 蜜豆视频, it meant being almost fully remote, with over 95% of employees enabled to work from home right at the start of the pandemic, including client advisors.

After seeing what was possible when working remotely, we鈥檙e now committed to offering employees the flexibility to work both at home and in the office, where job role and location allow. For clients, this hybrid working model builds on the success of聽Remote Sales & Advice that expanded rapidly at the start of the pandemic in the Swiss home market, and gives them a choice on how they interact with the firm, while offering first-class, top-quality advice, no matter where their advisor sits.聽

We鈥檙e focusing on fulfilling our client promise as an outcome of hybrid working by, among other things, looking at how we can hold efficient and effective virtual meetings, finding new ways to engage with new clients and build on trusted client relationships both virtually and in person, and creating pathways to more flexible work schedules. To succeed in implementing a hybrid working model long term, we need to operate with agility and care, while also taking factors like regulation, risk, and productivity into consideration.聽

Digital interactions offer different and even additional benefits to in-person meetings, encouraging more innovative thinking, and giving clients and employees more flexibility. But, while there鈥檚 certainly value to this side of the hybrid model, the importance of in-person interactions shouldn鈥檛 be underestimated, and will remain an important component of our relationships, both internally and with our clients.聽聽

David James, Head Global Banking UK, Malcolm Gordon, Head UK Institutional Client Coverage, and members of their teams told us how a well-balanced approach helps us meet the needs of both employees and the business, and further evolve into a more agile organization.聽聽

Having both operated fully from the office pre pandemic, David and Malcolm鈥檚 teams were among the many that faced a shock to the system when the pandemic hit.聽

鈥淢y team has 40 people in it, mostly more senior employees, due to nature of our investment banking business,鈥� David explained. 鈥淏eing forced to work from home certainly opened our minds to alternative ways of working 鈥� there was a huge discussion about what the right thing to do was, for us and for our clients 鈥� once the necessity to work from home full time was gone.鈥澛�

Being forced to work from home certainly opened our minds to聽alternative ways of working.

Another important aspect, he noted, was acknowledging that this was new for everyone; no employee or client knew how to operate in a hybrid model officially. And, as with everything, there would be a period of testing out options and making mistakes, but still recognizing that there鈥檚 definitely something here that could work 鈥� for both sides.聽聽

鈥淲hen we were deciding how our work pattern would look on return to office in 2021, we got together as a team 鈥� when it was safe to do so 鈥� and just talked at a very human level, focusing on what works and what doesn鈥檛, based on our experiences in the 2020 lockdown,鈥� he explained. 鈥淭hose meetings were really constructive: you could almost sense that, after each one, we were inching closer to something that actually works now and for the future. Everyone agreed that whatever we did, one hard requirement was to enhance the client experience of 蜜豆视频.鈥澛�

I had to learn to trust my team in a way that I didn鈥檛 have to聽consider before.

For Malcolm鈥檚 team, the issues 鈥� and dynamic 鈥� were different.聽聽

鈥淲e鈥檙e only five people, sitting within a broader client coverage unit, providing asset management services to clients. In some ways, having a smaller team makes it easier to make decisions, but, in others, it makes it harder, because everything and every person is more visible,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 had to learn to trust my team in a way that I didn鈥檛 have to consider before because, in a smaller, close-knit team in the office, having an overview of what people are working on simply by walking past or overhearing conversations is naturally easier than it is when you鈥檙e all at home. Not having that in the same way doesn鈥檛 mean things can grind to a halt, though, because their clients still need to be served and business has to continue.鈥澛�

鈥淥ne thing I would say without doubt, is that the joke of 鈥�Working from home? Enjoy your day off.鈥� is definitely no more!鈥澛�

Like all good plans, the proof isn鈥檛 on paper, but rather in reality. For David and his team, this meant being particularly aligned with their time management.聽聽

鈥淲hen we do go to the office, we try to all go in on the same days. We lean towards a Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday pattern, with more flexibility on Monday and Friday,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut the big difference is evening work. Whereas, previously, we鈥檇 spend long hours at our desks in the office, often waiting around between emails and replies, now, I don鈥檛 see any reason why that work can鈥檛 be done in a more condensed way at home, after using the waiting around time to travel.鈥澛�

The focus, as always, is on being available to talk to clients and address their questions at a time that works for them, either during the day or in the evening at a convenient timeslot for both.聽

鈥淭here鈥檚 definitely a balance to be struck between flexibility and retaining some structure,鈥� agreed George Dracup from David鈥檚 team. 鈥淚 do see the benefits of being in an office and do also see a keenness to get back some of the structure and team culture that comes with all being in the one place. But, I鈥檓 equally glad to still have some flexibility, particularly when it comes to managing sometimes-long hours more flexibly.鈥澛�

There鈥檚 de铿乶itely a balance to be struck between 铿俥xibility and聽retaining some structure.

For Malcolm, keeping the team spirit up in split locations was top of the agenda.聽

鈥淒uring the first lockdown, we started having a team huddle every morning and have kept it post return to office to make sure no one feels left out wherever they鈥檙e working and everyone can ask questions that they need to before everyone gets caught up with the day,鈥� he explained. 鈥淭wo of the team members actually joined during lockdown, so, as well as the huddle, we tried to meet in person when we could to welcome them into the team properly.鈥澛�

One of them, was James Rogers.聽

鈥淚 started in July 2020 after accepting the job offer in March, of course, being fully remote at the beginning,鈥� he said. 鈥淚鈥檇 done my fair share of networking at my old job, so I tried to replicate that virtually. The morning call, as a mix of a work and social touchpoint, was definitely helpful to get to know the team.鈥澛�

鈥淥ne thing that I think probably happened quicker virtually than it would have in the office, was learning about a wider variety of products at a faster pace in the very beginning, because people took the chance to have proper introduction calls instead of just a quick hello while passing in the office.鈥�

During the 铿乺st lockdown, we started having a team huddle聽every morning and have kept it post return to of铿乧e to make sure no one feels left out wherever they鈥檙e working.

鈥淥ne of the biggest challenges in my case was making sure everyone felt comfortable with the return to office arrangements,鈥� said Malcolm. 鈥淎 couple of team members were more hesitant to come back as soon as it was announced that we could, so we delayed until everyone felt ready, so that we could start this new approach to working together.鈥澛�

From dealing with comments on why other people aren鈥檛 in the office to expectations of availability: moving from everyone at home, to some, if not all, venturing back to the office took some getting used to. And, with timetables changed once again, the idea that everyone should be available during the same, 鈥榥ormal鈥� working hours was up for question when it came to everything from team calls to client events.聽

鈥淚n my opinion, communication, almost overcompensating in your communication about where you are and when you鈥檙e available that week to your team and clients, is key to keeping things run smoothly,鈥� David added.聽聽

While in-team logistics and talking are certainly a big part of working in a hybrid model, it鈥檚 only half of the story. With people in the office less frequently, and, so, less available for face-to-face meetings, clients and prospects have also had to adapt.聽聽

鈥淲hen it was clear that the situation wasn鈥檛 only going to last a few weeks, there was a frenzy of client activity,鈥� said Malcolm. 鈥淣ow, further down the line, while clients might be settling more into their own hybrid working habits and in-person meetings are possible in most cases, there鈥檚 still definitely a consistent increase in virtual meetings, with clients less inclined to travel to their/our office for the sake of one meeting.鈥澛�

Many parts of the pandemic have been unpredictable 鈥� not least the things we didn鈥檛 know we鈥檇 ever have to think about. In both teams, there were elements of surprise as they adapted to the new normal again and again.聽

鈥淭he 铿乺st thing that surprised me was my lack of ability to predict what people will want to do when it comes to their work pattern!鈥� David said with a laugh.聽聽

鈥淚鈥檓 also surprised by the people who wanted and equally didn鈥檛 want to come back to the of铿乧e鈥�it鈥檚 not necessarily as easy to assume as you鈥檇 think, for example, based on what you know about someone,鈥� said George in agreement.

鈥淚n seriousness, the fact that the hybrid model works so well is, to some extent, a pleasant surprise 鈥� and one I hope continues,鈥� added David.聽

鈥淚 think the most important thing is two-way 铿俥xibility,鈥� said Malcolm. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about deciding what works best for you, but also works best for the business you鈥檙e delivering, and meeting in the middle.鈥�

鈥淢y biggest surprise,鈥� he added, 鈥渨as the change is my dress sense. I was a suit and tie guy before, and now I鈥檓 a lot more casual, depending on the day. The general shift in dress code that many of us have seen due to working from home is a small point, but still signi铿乧ant in what it represents.鈥�