Hybrid work is the wrong approach, executive says

Following a mix of work from home and onsite work schedule is wrong, Meghan Reibstein vice president of project management at real estate marketplace Zillow said. 

Reibstein said that forcing people to follow a fixed off-site and on-site work schedule is just not the correct way to implement hybrid work. She suggests that allowing people to come to the office to report or carry out their work at home as they please will set forth better results in productivity. 

Having a progressive approach to staff management also increases company credibility and boosts their attractiveness to employees

What’s the difference between hybrid and flexible? “I think hybrid was an easy go-to because it represented this in-between state,” Reibstein said. “Hybrid is kind of ‘faux flexible’ in our minds. It’s this old-school way of thinking about it, where you’ve got to be in sometimes and you can be out sometimes. Flexible is just meant to represent that this is about what you need as an employee. And we are going to build a culture that is flexible for your needs.”

Reibstein said that at Zillow meetings are inclusive. To avoid unequal opportunities for collaboration during visual meetings the company requires everyone attending a meeting to be on the same platform. 

The company is also implementing core collaboration hours. During a set time frame Zillow encourages employees to hold all or most of their group meetings during those hours, leaving the rest of the time for people to either work on their own or meet one-on-one. 

The company also committed to allowing employees to move out of the area if they want without adjusting salaries if they relocate from an expensive urban area to a less expensive location. 

By adopting new ways of working and implementing progressive office policies, Zillow has been seeing an uptick in applications. 

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