Multinational technology company, Microsoft Corp. (Microsoft) has highlighted that 73 percent of workers surveyed in their first-annual Work Trend Index, ‘The Next Great Disruption is Hybrid Work – Are We Ready?’ want flexible remote work options to continue, while 67 percent are craving more in-person time with their teams.
The report also pointed out that 66 percent of business decision makers are considering to redesign physical spaces to better accommodate hybrid work environments.
“The data is clear. Extreme flexibility and hybrid work will define the post-pandemic workplace. Employees want control of where, when, and how they work, and expect businesses to provide options.
Over the past year, no area has undergone more rapid transformation than the way we work. Employee expectations are changing, and we will need to define productivity much more broadly — inclusive of collaboration, learning, and wellbeing to drive career advancement for every worker,” Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Microsoft, Satya Nadella said.
iProperty.com recently highlighted that the trend of hybrid working has affected the movement of people from the city to the outskirts.
The rising Work-from-Home (WFH) trend massively contributed to the change of people moving into the suburban styles of home which offers more space and privacy for working adults.
“Currently, all the states we covered in the analysis [Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Penang, and Johor] have similar trend of people moving out from the city centres and into the outskirts which offer bigger and more affordable units,” General Manager of Customer Data Solutions of REA Group Asia, Premendran Pathmanathan added.
According to a study by the multinational market research and consulting firm, Ipsos, Malaysia has more people working from home with 65 percent compared to the global average of 52 percent.
The study further highlighted that more business owners are also supportive of WFH operations and not just during the outbreak but in a post-pandemic environment as well.
“As a wide array of companies re-examine the functionality of the workplace and recalibrate to varying levels of a work-from-home or work-from-anywhere, we will start to see more traditional office workspaces become periodic collaboration hubs, while home offices become the day-to-day workplace in a new hybrid work model.
The office will likely transform from many desks, conference rooms and shared amenities to a cooperative business centre supporting specific project-based priorities on an ongoing basis.
Configurable workstations with nimbler and more portable tech will allow employees to readily adapt their surroundings as needed. These revamped spaces will also need to be equipped with enhanced smart lighting and ventilation capabilities for workers,” General Manager of Lenovo Malaysia, Varinderjit Singh said.
As the Covid-19 crisis gave rise to the Hybrid Working culture, it also delivered harsh impacts on key aspects of work.
Jobstreet’s Covid-19 Job Report also highlighted that the Covid-19 outbreak gave rise to the WFH culture and delivered impacts on key aspects of work like remuneration, role progression, and work hours.
According to the report, almost half of the employees surveyed experienced a negative impact on how much they earned through one or more of the following such as a reduced or eliminated bonus, a suspended or cancelled salary increase, or a freeze or reduction in their salary.
Several employees surveyed in the report also experienced a negative impact on the progression of their role within their organisation with promotions and staff performance appraisals halted or suspended.
Additionally, WFH sharply impacted work hours for employees, with more than half of them changing the times they worked, and half of them working longer hours according to the report.
