ADVANTEC Embarked in a Flexible Hybrid Work Environment
The world changed drastically due to COVID-19. Throughout it all, we strived to do our best for our clients and employees.
With the ability to pivot to a hybrid schedule, ADVANTEC maintained its “people-centric” culture to support our staff while promoting teamwork and camaraderie.
ADVANTEC Embarked on Maintaining the Highest Level of Client Service within a Flexible Hybrid Work Environment
The reopening of the ADVANTEC offices was a well-thought-out and inclusive event. Fifteen months prior, we had pivoted to working from home. As we transitioned back to the office—with greater agility—we adopted a hybrid schedule of working partially in the office and partially from home. This approach provided our staff with the flexibility they needed to sustain an optimal work-life balance.
Our central philosophy was built on trust, accountability, transparency, and a caring attitude. This was part of our broader inclusivity plan to address the individual needs of each team member.
We asked our team what they needed to best serve our clients while working in a hybrid format and maintaining strong team communication. In response, we implemented a number of initiatives, including:
Upgrading office air filters to the highest level of virus protection
Providing hardware for effective remote and in-office work
Ensuring a high level of sanitation in all office spaces
A Hybrid Work Schedule: Our Solution for Maintaining Excellent Client Service and Quality of Life for Our Team
We welcomed our employees back into the office on June 14, 2021. Before this, we consulted with staff and introduced a 4½-day workweek—9-hour days from Monday through Thursday and 4 hours on Fridays. We also established a hybrid schedule that required in-office presence two days per week.
This initial hybrid model was carefully designed to balance in-person collaboration with reduced commuting demands, thereby enhancing both employee well-being and client service.
Working at the Office
Our team was required to be fully vaccinated, to wash hands and sanitize frequently, and to maintain six feet of physical distancing as much as possible. We also encouraged staff to wear masks in public areas or when working in close proximity to others.
To protect both clients and staff while improving meeting efficiency, most meetings were held virtually.
Maintaining Culture, Camaraderie, and Mentorship
During the pandemic, maintaining company culture, mentoring staff, and promoting camaraderie became more challenging. With the introduction of our hybrid work model, we made a conscious effort to restore and nurture these essential elements of our workplace.
We remained committed to fostering a supportive, collaborative environment where our team could thrive—personally and professionally.We Live up to our Motto “Because we Care”. We care about our clients, our staff, and the community! How do we live that adage? We are flexible to address the needs of individual staff, while maintaining close collaboration to achieve good results. Like many organizations, we have had a couple staff who were sick during the pandemic, and we pooled teamwork to help out those staff members that are sick. This also extends to community service. We have donated masks to OCTA Bus Operations and San Diego Convention Center, and also donated money to all five local food banks. We will continue to look for ways to help out the community!
Communicate in the Most Effective Way for the Purpose. Communications is a key to successful collaboration and teamwork. Sometimes a phone call is much faster than writing an email. Sometimes an email is less intrusive than a phone call. Sometimes a text message is the fastest way to get an answer. When a staff member has a technical question, they can put it on our Teams chatroom and any other staff can jump in to help. Often a meeting or conference call with all parties involved saves time and effort. We will use the most effective communication method for the situation.
Be Inclusive to Achieve Diversity of Ideas. We are in a rapidly changing, idea-rich, innovative world, so providing forums for ideas from team members is essential. “No idea is a bad idea” – everybody is welcome to share their ideas of how to improve our working environment and collaboration. We are still conducting daily huddles online among different teams of staff, and staff meetings every Monday online. We have consulted with staff and listened to their needs. The Covid-19 workplace may have sparked many ideas among people who were working remotely, and the new office return may not only look different than before, but may spark some great ideas for change and innovation.
Reinforce the Higher Purpose of What We Do. Engineers’ mission is to make the world a better place – without engineers, we may still be living in stone-age. We improve the safety, reliability and sustainability of the transportation infrastructures of the community. Every single ADVANTEC team member is a part of this. Whether they are ordering sandwiches for a meeting so that the team can collaborate through lunch, the person crunching the numbers, the person doing the design or the person managing the project; every single person on the team is an integral part of making the community and the world a better place.
Have Fun. While work is the central purpose of our collaboration, having fun is a key part of it too. We offered a few social events during the year despite the pandemic, including an online ‘escape room game’, had virtual parties and happy hours, and had a photo contest of different food that our staff made at home, just to have some fun. After the re-opening, we are scheduling a companywide picnic in July to share our potluck food since everyone has become a good chef!
In closing, we would like to share several of the many points from “ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCE AND COLLABORATION ORANGE COUNTY TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY 2021 BOARD & CEO INITIATIVES RELIABLE, ACCESSIBLE, AND BALANCED TRANSPORTATION CHOICES” signed by Darrell Johnson, CEO and Andrew DO, Chair of OCTA:
Plan and Adapt to a Changing Environment
Champion Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability
Enhance Workforce Diversity and Inclusive Work Culture
Adapt to a Changing Workplace and Promote Employee Development and Safety
Provide Quality Customer Service and Collaborate with Regional Partners
If you have ideas about improving the hybrid workplace in today’s world, connect with us on social media or send us a note at marketing@advantec-usa.com.