Back to the Office

Over the last couple of years, we have seen many changes not only across the learning market but the recruitment market in general. In regards to Digital Learning and L&D, there have been two topics more prevalent than most. The first topic being AI, and the second being the modern-day debate of working from home vs working in the office.

As the staffing demand in our sector slowed during 2023, it became apparent that many companies are moving away from pure remote-based working employment, to shift to either hybrid models or back to traditional fully office-based working.

Online research shows that organisations such as Boots, Laing O’Rourke, and Rockstar plan on making their employees come to the office five days a week, showing a bigger shift in how companies think about work. A KPMG survey even found that 64% of CEOs around the world think everyone will be back in the office by 2026.

What employees think about it

According to HRD Connect, there has been a mixed reaction to the return to the office movement. A Marco New Customer Report for 2024 shows that 40% of global respondents actually prefer traditional in-office working, and in the UK, 40% of workers prefer full-time in-person work.  

There is also a generational shift as the same report shows that younger generations prefer having in-office experiences, with 64% willing to work for a company that doesn’t offer hybrid working options at all.

Here at Instinct, we have certainly seen an ‘expectancy’ from candidates to be given at least 1-2 days per week working from home, in both contract and permanent positions. Pre-covid, this was almost unheard of, with the majority of roles we worked on demanding a minimum of 3-5 days per week on-site.

The shift towards in-person work is being advocated by some who argue that face-to-face interactions may foster creativity, enhance collaboration, and strengthen company culture in ways that are difficult to replicate remotely. Admittedly however with Instinct working in the Digital and Learning Technology space, the majority of work (depending on the role itself) can be completed digitally from home.

2020 brought an abrupt halt to the staff retention trends of the previous decade, where office culture was paramount – we saw the addition of break-out areas, pool tables, table tennis, bars, shower rooms, personal lockers, solo working spaces and even sleeping pods.

Post-2020, office culture has been somewhat forgotten due to the remote working model. Organisations have allowed employees to work autonomously in their home office (back bedroom, kitchen table or even sitting on their bed) without any face-to-face peer contact.

Subsequently, competitors have been able to poach / approach and lure candidates with the incentive of more money. Where this method alone may have been ineffective in the past, as an employee enjoyed the company culture, in the absence of this, they can be more easily tempted by pure monetary incentives.

Finally, from a candidate perspective, after a few years of post-pandemic remote working, we have noticed an increase in enquiries from candidates looking to find work in a collaborative setting, where in-person relationships are formed, and peer-to-peer learning is facilitated.

Conclusion

It is clear that organisations are heading back towards an increased on-site working demand, however, the impact of COVID and working from home will still be in place for many years to come. We seem to be in a position where hybrid working has become the ‘norm’, with companies looking for 2-3 days per week on-site as an average.

It is understandable that many Digital Learning / Learning Technology specialists believe the majority of their work can be done from home, but at what cost? Does this impact SME and Stakeholder engagement? Does this have a negative impact on collaborative working and fresh ideas from others? Or do you simply work better alone? Granted it’s subjective to the individual, but only time will tell.

It will certainly be interesting to see the on-site / working-from-home split in years to come!