Why Companies Should Embrace Hybrid Work In the Long Run
Hybrid work, a work model that mixes work from home (WFH) and work in office (WIO), has been a crucial means for many companies to cope with the impact of COVID-19 on their business operations. It’s also led to a major shift in work culture of more companies, especially in the West, towards embracing hybrid work as a regular component of talent management policy. This begs the following questions. How beneficial is hybrid work for employees and employers? Is hybrid work worth being integrated into long-term company policy?
A survey by the Harvard Business School reveals that 81% of the respondents, who were all professionals who had worked remotely for the past year, prefer not to return to the office, and opt for a hybrid work schedule: 61% prefer two to three days of work from home during the week. Some companies, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Spotif, have indicated their plans to integrate hybrid work into their long-term company policy.
Yet, not all employers are as keen about WFH, such as Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Chase. JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon has stated that remote work doesn’t work for those who want to ‘hustle’, ‘work for spontaneous idea generation’, and ‘doesn’t work for culture’. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has slammed remote work and publicly demanded his employees to return to the office or leave the company.
