Hybrid Work: THE Eco-Friendly Solution to Reduce Your Company's Energy Consumption?

Faced with the energy crisis triggered by the war in Ukraine, Europe must now take major steps to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels. On 6 October 2022, the French government presented an "energy sobriety plan" aimed at reducing energy consumption by 10% by 2024 and by 40% by 2050. Several avenues are being considered for achieving savings, including a transition to more sustainable mobility, reducing lighting and air conditioning, and the development of remote work.

Today practised by 56% of French employees¹, hybrid work has grown in popularity since the Covid crisis. Yet it is still far from the norm in all organisations — and even less so in public-sector bodies.

Nonetheless, hybrid work is considered a possible solution to reducing energy consumption in companies. What, then, is its actual environmental impact? Is it an empty promise, or THE miracle solution to the energy crisis? Let's separate fact from fiction together.

Would you like support to deploy hybrid work in your organisation? Take 30 minutes to speak with a member of our team: they will guide you through the essential steps and tools for a successful project. Click the button below to book your slot 👇

Speak with an expert

A proven environmental and energy impact…

Let's start with good news: yes, hybrid work can help reduce our CO2 emissions and energy consumption. We saw this during the first lockdown of March 2020, when energy consumption in France fell by 15 to 20%!

While it is difficult to match that record outside of lockdown, it is possible to get closer by promoting hybrid working. Proof: the French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) estimates that remote work could reduce our commuting by 69%. Which — in fine — would deliver meaningful energy and fuel savings.

This impact is particularly visible among employees who commute by car, for whom:

• one day of remote work per week would generate an environmental benefit of 271 kg CO2 eq. per year²,
• and two days of remote work per week would save 86 litres of fuel per year (approximately €133)³

On the company side, the environmental and energy impact is harder to quantify. ADEME estimates that generalising remote work could reduce companies' energy consumption by 19%, but on one condition: that all employees work remotely on the same day. Which, in practice, is unlikely — and also increases the energy bill on the employee's side.

It is however possible to achieve savings by leveraging a key factor: office space. The bigger and more numerous your workspaces are, the more energy they consume. If you find that your offices have a very low occupancy rate, consider reducing their size, or even switching to flex offices, to cut your energy consumption.

…but rebound effects to watch out for

While hybrid work can help meet our energy-saving goals, we should not overlook the fact that it has rebound effects that can minimise its benefits.

Indeed, the development of hybrid work can also lead to:

• an increase in energy consumption at home of +7.5Wh per remote-working day per year (i.e. +20.7 kg CO2 eq.)⁴,
• greater use of video conferencing, which would generate an increase in carbon emissions of 2.6 kg CO2 eq. per remote-working day per year⁴,
• employees moving further away from their workplace (particularly to enjoy a quieter setting and/or cheaper housing), which translates into longer commutes when they do come in — and therefore greater energy consumption.

According to ADEME, these various rebound effects reduce the environmental benefit of remote work by 31%. The benefit is still there, but it is less cost-effective from an energy perspective — both for employer and employee.

But don't lose heart! While hybrid work is not a magic potion, it is possible to reduce its environmental impact — and the associated energy bill — by adopting the right behaviours.

Eco-friendly habits to adopt

Let's talk about the eco-friendly habits that can limit the rebound effects of hybrid work and improve its energy efficiency. Often overlooked, these good practices can make all the difference! Here are the ones to prioritise, both for the company and for employees.

For the company

Several eco-friendly practices can be put in place by the company to reduce its energy consumption. The first? Optimise the temperature of your premises, particularly by improving insulation and lowering heating and air conditioning.

According to Vinci Energies, one degree less on the thermostat can reduce energy consumption by 7% — a benefit that also feeds into the cost of your offices.

Electricity is a major energy cost for companies. Our advice for saving energy: opt for offices that benefit from natural light, and install an automatic lighting system to avoid lights being left on.

And finally: remember that an employee working from home is still consuming energy even when not in the office. A good practice is to offer them a remote-working allowance remote working allowance to offset the increase in their bills and encourage them to favour this mode of working.

For the employee

Employees can also adopt several eco-friendly habits to reduce their energy consumption, such as:

• switching off and unplugging devices (and their chargers!) when not in use,
• limiting the number and duration of meetings,
• preferring audio conferences to video conferences,
• printing as few documents as possible,
• regularly cleaning up your email inbox (according to ADEME, an email with a 1 MB attachment consumes the equivalent of a 25 W light bulb for one hour),
• using instant messaging rather than email,
• commuting to the office by public transport, bicycle or on foot rather than by car,
• limiting frequent long-distance travel (such as weekly Paris–Barcelona round trips),
• favouring working from home (or somewhere close to home).

Taken together, these eco-friendly habits help to reduce the energy impact of hybrid work and, in particular, our digital carbon footprint. It is never too late to adopt them!

*
* *

In short, encouraging hybrid work is a good way to reduce energy consumption and carbon footprint, provided of course that you adopt the right eco-responsible habits and raise employee awareness of the issue.

Beyond its environmental impact, hybrid work offers many advantages for employees, such as reduced commuting time, better concentration and a healthier work-life balance — all of which directly feed into well-being at work and productivity!

Looking for tools and best practices to implement this working model? Contact one of our experts for personalised advice, and check out our white paper on hybrid work:

Access the White Paper

In our white paper "Future of Work: Embracing Hybrid Work!", you will discover: the 8 main challenges of hybrid work; best practices to adopt for managers, HR, internal communications, IT and employees; and the tools to put in place to facilitate hybrid work.

Download

¹ JLL 2022 Employee Preference Barometer
² ADEME infographic "Remote work — really good for the environment?"
³ L'Obs article "Should you favour remote work to reduce fuel and electricity bills?"
⁴ ENGIE article "How to consume less energy while working remotely?"

–
Author: Emmanuelle Abensur