The Rise Up blog

The integration of hybrid work in companies is no longer an isolated phenomenon, reserved for certain "pioneering" organisations. Now, hybrid work is becoming the norm. However, according to a survey by Sapio Research and workplace platform provider Envoy, most UK workers prefer to spend some time in the office with 57% opting for a hybrid work model. Meanwhile, 38% indicated they preferred to work at the office full-time, and only 5% would like to work remotely all the time.

Every employee has surely experienced the frustration of time-consuming meetings that don't achieve anything constructive. Increasingly viewed as a bad example of collaborative work, employees find their interest wanes, and they become more passive.

Work emails can be a real bugbear for employees. All employees know what it's like to face a daily barrage of emails, or even worse, returning from a holiday to a deluge of emails. An average of 88 emails are received every day in work according to a survey carried out by research firm Radicati Group . Executives appear to be particularly sought-after: according to an Adobe study, they spend more than half their day checking their email (5 hours on average)!

Are managers becoming obsolete? While this might sound like an absurd question, it’s one that many experts are asking. According to the management consulting firm Gartner, 30% of employees will be without a boss by 2024 due to the self-directed and hybrid nature of work.

Interpersonal communication is an essential aspect of any business. Impeccable communication can help team members and managers to ensure the seamless exchange of information, promote a stimulating and motivating environment, foster cohesion and boost team performance. While these might sound like unattainable ambitions, they can all be achieved through the use of specific interpersonal communication techniques. What’s more, training can help employees to develop and refine these sorts of skills.

According to a study conducted by leading global employment website Monster, 90% of employers believe that soft skills will become more important over the next few years. But why?

When we talk about skills, the main distinction that people make tends to be between hard skills and soft skills. The difference between the two seems fairly straightforward: hard skills are the technical skills required to perform a role, whereas soft skills are the people skills required to perform a role. However, it’s not always quite so clear cut. Take project management, for example. Does this rely on hard skills or soft skills? As we’ll see, this isn’t the only instance where hard and soft skills overlap.

In the UK, around three million people – some 10.5% of the employed population – work in retail, which is the largest private employment sector. This is hardly surprising, really, given that sales is one of the core functions of any business. A strong sales function enables companies to finance their ideas, attract and maintain customers, generate profit – and ultimately makes the difference between whether a company sinks or swims.

How have key skills changed since the pandemic and the emergence of hybrid working? In this article, Rise Up sets out the key skills required in a post-Covid work environment.