Hybrid Working Post COVID Pandemic: A Change in Organisation Governance and Its Impact on the Control Environment

Abstract

The post COVID-19 return to normal way of life has brought in new challenges in the way organisations restructure their workspace and the governance that supports day-to-day operations. During the pandemic new strategies were deployed by most organisations across the world for the purpose of business continuity. Remote work, in particular working from home, was adopted by most organisations using different work platforms that included virtual (electronic) workspaces and meeting rooms (e.g., Zoom and Microsoft Teams). Staff remotely accessed electronic systems that included financial management systems. This brought a lot of stress on businesses in relation to their information technology infrastructure and increased related costs. With the subsiding of COVID and the return to normalcy, a lot of organisations and staff are suggesting that organizations allow a hybrid work environment. This is the practice of alternating between working from home and working in the office. Hybrid working environments may create several control issues, including cyber security / cyber fraud risks which may lead to operational risks and financial risks. The purpose of this paper is to review the impact of this change in operating style on organisational governance and how it has impacted the control environment in various organizations across the world. It also seeks to provide insight on the impact flexible internal controls has on work for both companies and employees.