Now that the initial euphoria surrounding remote working has subsided, employees are seeing that the practice is far from ideal in the long term.
According to a new report from Microsoft Ireland, employees are more interested in a hybrid approach, in which they get to choose when to go to the office and when to work from home.
Covid-19 forced a huge portion of companies to implement remote working strategies at a moment’s notice. Last year, just 22 percent had such policies set up, claims Microsoft, but that figure has now risen to 72 percent, with leaders expecting almost half of employees to continue to work from home.
Almost all employees (97 percent) said it is extremely important that their organization becomes more innovative and flexible with regards to hybrid working. Given how employees have performed while working from home, it would be surprising if businesses did not comply; productivity is up and retaining talent is easier.
Employees are also enjoying multiple benefits, including being able to dress more casually, having more time to devote to their hobbies, and having a more personalized workspace. Another interesting benefit is being able to work alongside their pets.
