Whether businesses like it or not, employees like hybrid work. And the model is working. According to Work Rebalanced, the latest research from Citrix Systems, Inc., hybrid workers - those who work partly in an office and partly remote - are more productive and engaged than employees who are entirely office-based or fully remote. They also report better wellbeing - both physical and mental - and feel more positive about their organization.

"The rules of work have been fundamentally rewritten," said Traci Palmer, Vice President of People and Organization Capability, Citrix. "As our research makes clear, employees today prefer hybrid work, and perform better when given the flexibility to choose their location based on what they need to get done and where they feel they work best."

The Great Reset

Whether and how to implement flexible work is top of mind for companies around the world. To help inform their actions, Citrix, in partnership with Man Bites Dog and Coleman Parkes Research, launched Work Rebalanced, a global survey of 900 business leaders and 1,800 knowledge workers. And it found that if implemented properly, hybrid work can lead to a more productive, healthy workforce. According to the data:

• 69 percent of hybrid workers feel productive, compared to 64 percent of remote workers and 59 percent of in-office employees.
• 69 percent of hybrid workers feel engaged, compared to 56 percent of remote workers and 51 percent of in-office employees.
• 73 percent of hybrid workers are positive about their personal performance, as compared to 69 percent of remote workers and 65 percent of in-office employees.
• 71 percent of hybrid workers say they have a strong emotional connection to their team and immediate colleagues which motivates them to work harder, compared to 63 percent of in-office employees and 60 percent of remote workers.
• 70 percent of hybrid workers say they have a strong emotional connection to their organization and leadership team, compared to 60 percent of remote workers and 58 percent of in-office employees.
• 70 percent of hybrid workers report good wellbeing, compared to 61 percent of remote workers and 60 percent of in-office employees.
• 69 percent of hybrid workers would recommend their employer, compared to 60 percent of remote workers and 56 percent of in-office employees.

A Virtual-First Experience

The survey also uncovered that technology is a key driver of success in enabling hybrid work and delivering the virtual-first experience that a distributed workforce demands. Employees want access to tools that allow them to work where they want and how they need to be their most productive. And they expect their employers to deliver it.

Of critical importance is removing the noise and distractions from work that technology can create. The typical employee, for instance, needs to navigate four or more applications just to execute a single business process, and accessing them requires remembering multiple passwords and navigating a host of different interfaces.

And as Work Rebalanced found, it's frustrating and slowing them down, with the average employee reporting they spend around 54 minutes a day dealing with technology challenges.

"Business and IT leaders need to simplify and streamline work technology to ensure that employees have the space for ‘deep work' and focus," said Safi Obeidullah, Global Head of Value Advisory, Citrix.

The Hybrid Work Stack

Many organizations are already making efforts to do so, leveraging digital workspace solutions that allow them to:

• Unify work - Whether at home, on plane or in an office, employees have consistent and reliable access to all the resources they need to be productive across any work channel, device or location.
• Secure work - Contextual access and app security, ensure applications and information remain secure-no matter where work happens.
• Simplify work - Intelligence capabilities like machine learning, virtual assistants and simplified workflows personalize, guide, and automate the work experience so employees can work free from noise and perform at their best.

"IT departments are now much more focused on really understanding and meeting employee needs with the work technology that they provide and are taking more of an employee-led, design thinking approach when it comes to work tech infrastructure," Obeidullah said.

And the move is paying off, especially among hybrid workers. According to Work Rebalanced, hybrid workers feel more empowered by their work technology than their peers who work in the office or remote.

• 68 percent of hybrid workers say that their work technology enables them to work effectively, in the way that they want, compared to 65 percent of remote workers and 60 percent of in-office employees.

The Future of Work

"Hybrid work is the future of work. And as Work Rebalanced brings to light, if done right, it can create significant, positive outcomes for employees and employers alike," Palmer said. "If given the flexibility, trust, and empowerment to choose where and how they work best, employees will thrive, and companies that offer flexible work arrangements can accelerate innovation and growth."

To read more about the future of hybrid work and creating work-from-anywhere experiences that empower your employees to succeed and business to thrive, click to download a full copy of Work Rebalanced.