Almost 3 in 4 CEOs not prioritising full-time office return: survey

Almost 3 in 4 CEOs not prioritising full-time office return: survey | Insurance Business New Zealand

Insurance News

New research shows employers enjoying benefits of hybrid work arrangements

Insurance News

By
Dexter Tilo

Nearly three in four chief executive officers said ordering a full-time office return is not a top business priority amid gains from implementing hybrid work, according to a new report.

The International Workplace Group surveyed more than 500 CEOs to find that 91% have adopted hybrid working, and 74% said asking a full-time office return is not a business priority.

This sentiment comes amid benefits gained from hybrid work, according to the report. Three in four adopters of the workplace arrangement said they saw:

Improvement in employee engagement (77%)
Improvement around company culture (75%)
More efficient collaboration between teams and colleague (75%)

They also believe that hybrid work has impact on attracting talent. The report found that 73% of CEOs have agreed that hybrid work allowed them to lure and hire the best job candidates.

It also expanded their talent pools, with 71% of CEOs saying they were able to offer roles to a more diverse group of people, according to the report.

“The uptake of hybrid working is continuing to increase as companies of all sizes understand its importance in creating an optimal environment for both the productivity of the business and the happiness of its employees to thrive,” said Mark Dixon, chief executive officer of International Workplace Group, in a statement.

Hybrid work retains talent

But beyond the gains from hybrid work, the report found that CEOs aren’t prioritising full-time office returns as hybrid work also becomes a non-negotiable for employees.

In fact, 76% of CEOs have experienced improved staff retention since offering flexibility to employees, while 65% believe they would lose talent if they insisted that staff should be in-office full time.

So, instead of focusing on return-to-office orders, 94% of the respondents said they focused on investing on technology that will improve hybrid experience, including 43% who said this has been their top investment in the last 12 months.

“This latest research convincingly demonstrates that CEOs appreciate the critical role that hybrid working has in not only attracting, but retaining the highest quality talent,” Dixon said.