- [Narrator] For more than a year,
we've been on the cusp of a shift to hybrid work,
and now it's finally here.
In the 2022 Work Trend Index,
Microsoft uncovers five emerging trends
for business leaders to pay attention to in the year ahead.
There's a lot to unpack, so let's dig in.
Number one, employees have a new "worth it" equation.
The last two years have fundamentally changed the way people
around the world view the role of work in their lives
and employees have a new "worth it" equation
or what they want from work
and what they are willing to give in return.
53% are more likely to prioritize their health
and wellbeing overwork than before the pandemic.
And these aren't empty words.
In the last year, 18% actually left their jobs.
Their top reasons were wellbeing and flexibility,
and surprisingly, pay was near the bottom of the list.
And with 52% of Gen Z and Millennials likely
to consider changing employers this year,
the Great Reshuffle is far from over.
Managers are wedged between leadership
and employee expectations.
Despite employees' desire for flexibility,
50% of leaders say their company plans
to require employees to be in the office full-time.
Fear of lost gains may be driving the decision.
While more than 80% of employees feel just as
or more productive since the shift to remote,
54% of leadership fear productivity has suffered.
And this tension is falling on managers.
54% of managers feel leadership
is out of touch with employees,
and 74% feel they don't have the influence or resources
to affect change for their team.
Empowering managers to make the changes employees need
will be crucial to successful hybrid work.
Leaders must make the office worth the commute.
51% of employees who are currently hybrid say
they're considering a shift
to full remote in the year ahead.
After a year of an almost-hybrid model,
they're not convinced hybrid can work for them.
38% of hybrid employees say
their biggest challenge is knowing when
and why to come into the office,
but only 28% of leaders have clearly defined this.
To make the office worth the commute,
managers must create team agreements
that define the when, why, and how of the office
or risk missing out on the value of a true hybrid model.
Flexible work doesn't have to mean always on.
The last two years have completely changed the way we work.
Weekly time spent in meetings
for the average Teams user is up 252%,
and chats sent per person each week is up 32%.
The nine-to-five is fading away, too.
The average work day has gotten longer -
up 46 minutes in the last two years.
After-hours and weekend work is up as well.
But it's not all doom and gloom.
Outlook data trends show
teams are starting meetings later on Mondays,
wrapping up earlier on Fridays,
and taking more time for lunch.
Taken together, the data shows employees are doing
what they can do to make flexible work their own.
But making it sustainable will require new team norms
that guard against an always-on culture.
And lastly, rebuilding social capital looks different
in a hybrid world.
While many hybrid workers have been able
to maintain their team bonds,
only half of the remote workers say the same.
This matters because employees
with strong relationships at work say
they're more fulfilled, more productive,
and report better wellbeing.
With remote workers more at risk,
leaders shouldn't see a return to offices
as the only solution
to rebuilding some of the social capital we've lost.
Companies must provide other opportunities
for networking and mentorship,
keeping in mind that remote
and newer employees will need extra support.
And so that's the deal.
There's no erasing the lasting impact of the last two years,
and for employees, there's no going back.
Making hybrid work work will take radical intentionality
and a focus on flexibility.
Organizations that embrace this opportunity
will come out ahead.
For the full report, visit microsoft.com/worklab.