Gibson Watts Global: PEO & EOR Services

What remote working trends
can we expect in 2025?

Five years on from the global pandemic which so greatly impacted office working habits, there are two very defined lines of argument regarding remote working; on the one hand, that it is time to see employees back in offices full-time to ensure maximum productivity; on the other hand, that hybrid or remote working practices should continue, as this in itself offers greater motivation of, and dedication from, employees.

Amazon, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, Morgan Stanley and, perhaps most famously, X (formerly Twitter) are some of the large organisations expecting full-time office attendance; whilst Airbnb, Booking.com, Coinbase, Deloitte, eBay, Netflix, Revolut and Spotify are some of the big companies with no attendance mandate, and/or flexible/role-dependent options for employees.

X’s infamous Chairman, Elon Musk, has been very outspoken on his stance. In a 2023 interview with CNBC, Musk stated: “I’m a big believer that people are more productive when they’re in person”; and that “people should get off their … moral high horse with their work-from-home b*******”. Unfortunately this stance has not translated well to employees, with its latest attrition rate reported to be 18.3%, well above the average 12.9% attrition rate reported for the tech and media sector as of 2022.

WPP is another large organisation that recently mandated a return to the office for four days a week, due to be implemented from April 2025. This mandate has attracted fierce opposition, with a petition calling for its withdrawal.

On the other side of the fence, Spotify recently made their stance and reasoning for fully remote working very clear, with the statement: “Our employees are not children. Spotify will keep working remotely”. Spotify’s chief human resources officer Katarina Berg has further stated: “You can’t spend a lot of time hiring grownups and then treat them like children”. Since adopting this policy, Spotify’s attrition rates have dropped by 15%.

So, what trends may we expect to see in 2025 and beyond as a result of the office working vs remote working debate?

Talent Attrition

If we look at those attrition rates again – where, for example, are former X employees seeking new employment opportunities? There is the very real possibility that organisations adopting a stricter 5-day office policy may end up losing talented members of their workforce to their more progressive competitors.

Additionally, working mothers may need greater flexibility than their male counterparts (in the UK, 70.8% of women are primarily responsible for childcare) which may see talented and ambitious women seek out a more accommodating employer.

Work/Life Balance

The initial necessity of remote working, which later became optional, has opened up a wider debate about employee work/life balance, with employees increasingly enjoying the benefits of employer flexibility.

As a working mother with little local family support available, I for one can certainly appreciate the flexibility afforded by my employer which means I can work from home or leave the office early in order to take care of my children. Having had my first baby in 2019, I returned to the working environment as a mother for the first time in a post-Covid world. Prior to that, I was in the office 5 days a week, 9am – 5.30pm, and I honestly don’t know how it ever would have been possible to juggle childcare commitments with those rigid attendance expectations.

Additionally, many companies have trialled, and now gone on to implement, four-day working weeks. According to the official 4 Day Week Campaign, benefits include: lower levels of stress and burnout; lower unemployment levels; increased productivity; domestic boost to tourism (as people would have more leisure time to take short UK breaks); better mental and physical health for employees; and a reduced carbon footprint with less commuting. 92% of companies who trialled the 4-day week in the UK have gone on to implement it.

Environmental Responsibility

Whether companies are focused on office-based or remote/hybrid working, all employers have a responsibility to ensure they adopt environmentally friendly practices such as recycling; going paperless; and using energy-efficient systems. Certainly, one of the most effective methods of reducing carbon footprints is by reducing the number of days in which employees are expected to commute to offices.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

It is worth noting that a simultaneous phenomenon alongside remote and hybrid working, is the rapid advancement of AI; and both topics represent a significant change in how people operate. Progressive companies are implementing AI as a means of freeing up employees’ time which may have previously been overspent on repetitive or menial tasks.

Given this major technological development, employers may now be looking to invest further in implementing AI, and training employees in its usage.

How, Not Where

Spotify’s argument of treating their employees like “grownups” may be oversimplifying the issue, as it is not just about trusting your employees to maintain efficiency and commitment outside of the working environment, but also how you can ensure that critical collaboration opportunities are not missed by having employees spread in different locations.

As a result, there has been an undeniable shift to focusing on how rather than where teams work. This includes points such as core working hours (especially when working across different time zones), focus time (also known as “deep work”), and collaboration time, led by the ability to have virtual meetings online. Meetings on Microsoft Teams have increased by 153% since the start of the pandemic, with the average user’s weekly meeting time increasing by 252%, illustrating how significant the move towards virtual meetings has been.

Conclusion

In today’s fast-paced world where we are juggling childcare, commutes, deadlines, personal commitments and any number of other tasks, affording your employees flexibility in working practices seems to be a solid means of retaining talent. Additionally, giving your employees the trust to complete their work tasks independently fosters positive working relationships.

At the very heart of the Gibson Watts Global ethos, we strongly believe that your most important asset in your business is your people. As a proudly human-led organisation, we can see the value of taking care of your employees and treating them as individual people with individual needs.

Offering remote or hybrid working options to your staff can be a very attractive benefit, especially if it gives them the opportunity to relocate. Gibson Watts Global can support this process, so get in touch today to discuss your requirements!

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Written by Gibson Watts Global Relationship Manager, Juliette Wreford

Juliette has over three years’ experience in the EOR industry, and over 15 years’ experience in Account Management and employment solutions. Prior to her professional career, she was University-educated, achieving a 2:1 BA (Hons) degree in English and Media.

In her role at Gibson Watts Global, Juliette manages relationships with clients, employees and local teams alike, to ensure a consistently customer service-led approach is delivered at all levels. Additionally, Juliette is actively engaged with the company’s marketing activity, both collaborating with external parties on new projects, and researching/creating industry-relevant content.

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