Leadership and hybrid work: qualitative research in the context of Alstom Ferroviaria’s

After the COVID-19 pandemic, many organizations are calling back employees to the office, enhanced by the belief that face-to-face interaction leads to greater collaboration, innovation, and organizational command. This dissertation analyses the motivations behind the trend, critically assessing the extent to which going back to traditional workplaces shows the challenges and benefits of working in a hybrid environment. This thesis also reflects on the most productive work style, based on the leadership style, drawing four hybrid work settings, considering the contemporary organizational context, like generational differentiation. Starting at the broad literature review and the modern work context, this study focuses specifically on the leadership behaviours effectively facilitating hybrid work environments. Then the case study is conducted through qualitative research, from evidence collected through semi-structured interviews with middle managers and directors of the Alstom Ferroviaria’s Signalling Business Unit. The high-level themes of collaboration quality, communication quality, team cohesion, and the emotional intelligence of the managers play a key role in effectively handling the dynamics created through hybrid work, are revealed through the empirical findings.