Employees want to continue to work remotely (at least some of the week) – 63% of workers are resisting a full-time return to the office, according to Poly’s survey of 5,000 US employees.
In fact, Poly found that both introverts and extroverts favor hybrid and remote work over office full-time. 48% of introverts favor remote or hybrid work, compared to 41% of extroverts.
Further to this, seven in ten agree that working from home suits their personality type better.
The reasons for hybrid working
Central to why all employees – no matter their personality type – want to continue to remotely work is because they are more productive working from home.
71% employees told Poly that remote work has positively impacted their performance; 64% of introverts say their productivity has increased since the pandemic, compared to 51% for extroverts.
Work-life balance, and confidence at work (particularly around presenting on video) were other major reasons.
In addition, employees are frustrated by the technology they have in the office (17%) and the office space they have access to (28%). Just 45% said they were sufficiently supporting employees with the right tech.
41% of workers told Poly that working equipment is better at home than in the office, and just 35% said their employer has created new collaboration spaces in the office to help make meetings better.
How to encourage people back to the office
Despite the desires of employees, 65% said their company is pushing for them to return to the office full-time. 57% of employees noted that they felt pressure from their manager or employer to go back to the office.
Given the reasons why employees want to continue to work remotely, employers need to rethink their workplace experience.
Poly’s president and CEO Dave Shull commented: “Organizations will need to adapt and upgrade their office gear, to include video enabled meeting rooms with technology that’s as easy to use as the devices we have all come to know and love while working from home.
“Once we deliver the tools, technologies, and benefits that employees crave today, we will be equipped to take on the future of work.”
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