Introducing the Hybrid Work Maturity Framework
The world of work has changed forever. The shift to remote working during COVID has proven that, given the right access to the right systems, we can work just as productively outside the office as inside it. At the same time, it’s given many of us a taste of freedom we’re reluctant to give up. To retain the brightest and best talent in the future, businesses must meet our expectations for flexibility in where, when and how we work.
The answer is a hybrid and dynamic working environment built on mutual trust between businesses and employees, in which workers can swiftly and securely access the systems they need, and businesses are confident their people are working productively, wherever they are. The benefits are far-reaching: employees are happier and more motivated, productivity is improved, efficiencies are realised and even the organisation’s carbon footprint is reduced, with workplace greenhouse gas emissions reduced to a minimum.
Achieving this state of total trust at work starts with a strong foundation in identity. Only with a secure, seamless and dynamic workplace experience can a business achieve full trust and flexibility in the future workplace – and empower its people to work effectively, wherever they are.
The pain points for trust
Many businesses lack a clear vision of their ideal employee experience. The recent dramatic changes to working patterns have arisen from necessity, rather than choice. With hybrid working here to stay, now is the time to incorporate it into a strategic plan to deliver the working experience employees want.
This starts with a joined-up workforce identity strategy. The problem is, identity is often seen as a difficult and complex thing to implement, especially if multiple legacy systems exist and there is limited internal expertise. Many teams work in silos, with little understanding of how their systems connect to others. Secure access is acknowledged as essential, but there is a fear that introducing stronger controls will compromise the user experience.
These barriers hinder business from building trust in the workplace and realising the benefits of hybrid working.
The benefits of hybrid work maturity
Achieving trusted hybrid working starts with a strong foundation in identity. Once established, it enhances 4 key capabilities:
- User experience – delivering seamless and delightful digital experiences to both your end users and IT teams
- Security and resilience – safely authenticating every user, every time with a Zero Trust approach to security
- Environmental impact – reducing your organisation’s carbon footprint to a minimum without impacting productivity
- Compliance – ensuring compliance with regulations on privacy, working time and health and safety for remote workers
What is the Hybrid Work Maturity Framework?
The Hybrid Work Maturity Framework helps your organisation understand your current readiness for the flexible workplace and identify the steps you need to take to reach maturity, supported by Okta’s workforce identity experts.
The framework provides a 5-step plan:
- Take a healthcheck – evaluate your organisation’s readiness for the hybrid workforce, including your current security policies, IT flexibility, and employee user experience, using IDC’s online assessment tool
- Establish your identity gaps – understand the workforce identity challenges specific to your organisation and how you can get on the road to Zero Trust security
- Assess your environmental impact – evaluate how a shift to more flexible working could reduce your organisation’s carbon footprint. Find out how we’ve done it at Okta
- Get ahead on compliance – ensure adherence to regulation affecting data security and privacy, working time, health and safety in the remote workplace.
- Foster a culture of improvement – keep building on your successes by establishing a culture of continuous improvement that everyone feels part of, wherever they work.
What to do next
If you’d like to discuss your specific workforce identity challenges with an Okta expert, please get in touch.
To learn more about the business value of establishing trusted flexible working and how to map your organisation’s position on the maturity curve, visit our page.
