U.S. work flexibility training lags behind adoption – TechSmith study
MICHIGAN, UNITED STATES — A new report from TechSmith Corporation, Global Workplace Analytics, and Caryatid Workplace Consultancy reveals a significant gap in training for flexible work arrangements despite widespread adoption.
The 2024 Workplace Flexibility Trends Report surveyed 900 U.S. leaders and found that while 58% of employees now have flexible work options, nearly 3 out of 4 say their employer has not trained managers on leading distributed teams or established norms for hybrid collaboration.
“The pandemic forced the majority of organizations into hybrid work practically overnight, with no time to consider how to support new practices,” said TechSmith CEO Wendy Hamilton.
“Unfortunately, some businesses are reverting to in-office because they haven’t committed to meeting the needs of a flexible workforce.”
Are you prepared for your new hybrid workplace? Your employer might not be either.
New research finds nearly 3 out of 4 workers have not been trained for the shift to flexible work arrangements.
For more findings, access the report here: https://t.co/qOC7xBU7zQ pic.twitter.com/boiHez09h3
— TechSmith (@TechSmith) March 19, 2024
Other key findings include:
- Real-time meetings (55%) slightly outpace asynchronous collaboration (45%), but 70% want more async options like video messaging.
- In-office workers face nearly twice as many interruptions as hybrid colleagues, reducing productivity.
- Ad hoc and unplanned meetings (7%) are considered the lowest value, while decision-making tops at 24%.
- Managers (44%) are more office-connected than senior leaders or individual contributors (27%).
- Fully remote work is increasingly a luxury for small businesses, with 23% of tiny firms using it versus 4-9% of larger organizations.
“Rather than fretting over whether their people should work in an office, remotely, or some combination of the two, organizations should be asking themselves, ‘How can we empower our people to do their best work wherever they do it?’” said Global Workplace Analytics president Kate Lister.
