There is a wealth of research showing that hybrid work is beneficial for workers, and now a new study has found it is helping employers too.
Hybrid work, where employees are able to work from home, the office or another location, has become commonplace across the economy during and following the COVID pandemic, with many companies now baking it into their normal operations.
Studies have found that having the ability to work flexibly has huge benefits for workers, around mental and physical health and cost-savings.
Now a survey conducted by the International Workplace Group has found that hybrid work is also beneficial for employers, helping to reduce costs and deal with the growing economic headwinds around the world.
Bringing costs down
The survey of CEOs and CFOs found that more than 80 per cent believe that hybrid work is crucial in cost-saving strategies, and more than three-quarters think it has helped to significantly reduce overheads and operational expenses.
Hybrid work is helping businesses to shed costs thanks to lower overheads such as office space, utilities and expenses.
“In times of economic volatility, CEOs are carefully evaluating how to navigate uncertainty while driving efficiency and growth for business,” International Workplace Group CEO and founder Mark Dixon said.
“They recognise that flexibility is not only crucial when it comes to safeguarding their operations but also enhancing the productivity of their teams.”
“By empowering their teams to work closer to home in local workplaces and offices, companies operating in the hybrid model are able to significantly reduce their costs and improve the work-life balance of their people.”
Just under three-quarters of the executives said that hybrid work had helped them to explore new business locations, offer greater flexibility and growth potential, and 83 per cent saw a noticeable boost in employee productivity.
Nearly 90 per cent of respondents said that hybrid work had boosted their employees’ satisfaction and would be a focus of future recruitment.
Helping with economic headwinds
It comes at a time when many businesses are looking for new approaches to working to reduce costs in the face of a volatile global economy.
Just under 90 per cent of the CEOs and CFOs said they are worried about the business impact of the current macroeconomic instability, and more than 85 per cent are taking proactive measures to protect their companies in a challenging environment.
Hybrid work has been found to have many benefits for workers.
A survey of workers earlier this year found that those working hybridly were taking fewer sick days than when they worked in the office, had fewer stress-related health conditions and were able to access preventative healthcare treatments.
According to the Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA), more than a third of Australians are still working from home regularly.
The ability to work from home is saving workers more than $5,000 per year, according to CEDA, and also boosting productivity and workforce participation.
Despite these findings, a number of large companies have attempted to force workers back in the office, either for a set number of days per week or permanently.
Last month NAB said it was planning to increase the number of days its employees must attend the office, a move labelled “completely unnecessary” and “regressive” by the Finance Sector Union.
The big bank’s plan will see those currently working two days in the office to do three days, and team managers to attend the workplace four days every week.
Hybrid and flexible work became a key federal election issue after then-Opposition Leader Peter Dutton unveiled a plan to force Canberra public servants back into the office if the Coalition took office.
Dutton was soon forced to backtrack on this policy after widespread backlash, while Prime Minister Anthony Albanese threw his full support behind working from home and the benefits it offers.
