Is hybrid culture becoming, well, less hybrid? Deciding whether to keep the workforce flexible in terms of working location is under discussion given upcoming office lease renewals and business leaders are battling with tough investment decisions. Should they revive the in-office mandate to justify the expense of their real state and leases but then risk employee dissatisfaction? Or should they continue to pursue long-term hybrid- or anywhere-work policies, thus downsizing office space but maybe affecting collaboration, innovation and controversially… productivity in some eyes?
Flexible working hours are becoming more normalized as shown by the UK government’s new legislation to protect a ‘diverse workforce’ and new data suggesting that a four day work week will be the new normal. However, with the C-suites at Twitter and Starbucks enforcing strict return to office mandates this year, the case for hybrid appears somewhat under threat. Particularly when businesses are managing new tensions of hybrid work like remote surveillance, team culture and workplace innovation.
