Zoom Releases Survey on Future of Hybrid Work

Zoom today released its latest survey, titled “Navigating the Future of Work: Global Perspectives on Hybrid Models and Technology” at its EX Summit 2024 in Asia Pacific (APAC). This survey was performed in conjunction with ReworkedINSIGHTS, the world's leading community of employee experience, digital workplace, and talent management professionals. The study surveyed more than 600 IT and C-suite leaders and nearly 1,900 knowledge workers across the globe, including 604 in APAC, to explore their views on different workplace models, productivity levels across models, the impact of generative artificial intelligence (AI) on work, and other topics related to the future of work. 

Hybrid is preferred — but the models look different for every organisation 

The study found that the majority of organisations in APAC are embracing flexible working arrangements, with 84% of organisations adopting either a hybrid (58%) or remote (26%) working model. 

As organisations align their workplace models to meet the needs of their business and the demands of their employees, productivity has emerged as a top priority. Eighty-seven percent (87%) of leaders in APAC considered increasing productivity to be the biggest consideration when determining the best working style for their company, the highest figure compared to 86% in North America (NA) and 81% in Western Europe. 

Fortunately for leaders, the study found that employees feel most productive in hybrid settings, with 83% of employees in the region agreeing they get more work done in a hybrid/remote setting than in-office/onsite. While this can be due to many reasons, it is a testament to the importance of having the right technology in place to keep the workforce connected, regardless of workers’ physical locations.

Hybrid might be the preferred work model for leaders and employees alike, but many APAC companies are still experimenting with the various types of hybrid models to find their best fit. Notably, scheduled hybrid (27%) and flextime hybrid (19%) have emerged as the most common workplace models in the region, with another 13% of organisations adopting other kinds of hybrid workplace models organised around roles, locations, and outcomes. In fact, 97% of APAC leaders say they have made their workplaces more flexible in the past two years. 

However, more needs to be done to engage employees. Six in 10 leaders in the region report a decline in employee engagement attributed to hybrid models. 

“Workplace flexibility is not only becoming increasingly commonplace in the APAC region, but more diverse in itself — ranging from flextime to location, role, and even rotation-based models,” noted Ricky Kapur, head of Asia Pacific, Zoom. “Leaders today are faced with a new challenge of finding the best-fit hybrid model while keeping up with the evolving expectations of a multi-generational workforce and the impact of rapidly advancing technologies like AI.”

Generative AI is a key driver of future workplace success 

In order to prepare for the future of work, the study revealed that organisations need to improve their current tech stack. A majority of employees (81%) agree that the tools and technology their organisation currently uses for remote work needs improving, highest among the other regions surveyed (NA: 79%; Western Europe: 65%). 

Generative AI has emerged as a key tool to support employee productivity and overall experience in the hybrid era. APAC organisations recorded the highest use of meeting transcripts/summarisation (53% in APAC, 40% in NA, and 38% in Western Europe), and chatbots (59% in APAC, 52% in NA, and 58% in Western Europe).  

Organisations are already seeing the benefits of incorporating AI: 85% of APAC leaders believe that generative AI has made their workforce more productive. Sixty-nine percent (69%) of employees in the region strongly or slightly agree that “generative AI makes it easier to do my job.”

However, significant barriers to generative AI adoption for employees in APAC still remain: 

• 70% believe that generative AI has a high learning curve. 
• 63% are not yet comfortable with generative AI. 
• 55% are concerned that generative AI will negatively impact their job/position.

As it stands, generative AI is expected to have a great impact on the future of work. Leaders and employees may have slightly different opinions and concerns, but both groups accept that this technology is part of the future. Moving forward, increased education on the benefits, use cases, and how they can mitigate risks must be done before teams can fully unlock the true value of AI for their workforce. 

“While our study shows that APAC leaders generally recognise the productivity benefits that adopting AI at work can bring to their teams, many are not utilising AI to their full potential. As organisations seek to reduce friction in the transition to hybrid ways of working, AI is a critical tool at their disposal to help employees collaborate better and feel more connected to each other. Beyond direct productivity benefits, leaders should look toward exploring more AI use cases to engage, inform, and connect employees. This will be key to building and maintaining company culture amidst changing workplace dynamics,” added Kapur. 

Closing the engagement loop with employee feedback

Even as hybrid becomes the dominant work model, 77% of leaders in APAC say it is likely that their organisation will change its workplace model in the next two years. Globally, this figure sits at 75%. 

Ultimately, building a successful, future-ready workplace requires organisations to continuously adapt to employees’ feedback and evolving preferences. Having the right technology in place that can adapt and evolve with the organisation at the same time, including AI tools that are both scalable and right-fit, is also a key piece to the puzzle. In other words, organisations must keep employee engagement and experience at the core as they embrace workplace flexibility in order to thrive in the future of work. 

For a snapshot of the key APAC findings, please access the infographic here.