His platform, wfhresearch.com, offers a data-driven look at how flexible work shapes productivity, retention, and long-term business resilience.
The verdict? Hybrid work is here to stay, and for good reason.
Bloom’s research underscores the enduring nature of remote and hybrid work models, highlighting their potential benefits for both employees and organizations. In fact, over 80% of Fortune 500 companies already operate on a hybrid model for managerial and professional roles.
Here’s why the model works:
- Productivity remains strong: Employees working from home two days per week perform at levels comparable to their fully in-office counterparts. Some even report productivity gains of up to 25%.
- Hybrid reduces attrition: A flexible schedule can cut resignation rates by 33%. For talent-starved sectors, that’s a significant retention lever.
- Cost savings matter: From reduced office space requirements to lower turnover rates, hybrid models can help control expenses without sacrificing output.
- Satisfaction drives performance: Hybrid employees consistently report higher job satisfaction, fueling engagement, and reducing burnout.
In collaboration with colleagues, Bloom has documented a fivefold increase in remote work from 2019 to 2023. With WFM flat at around 20% of paid US workdays since early 2023 – meaning as many firms have increased WFH as they have reduced it – it seems to be here for the foreseeable future, despite what headlines would have you believe.
This stability should reassure us about the future of remote work and give us confidence in our long-term strategies. 3Sixty Insights also found in its November 2024 benchmark report that 61% of companies surveyed view improving HR services for remote and hybrid employees as one of their top priorities, and 21% of employees view a hybrid work schedule as one of the most sought after attributes for a new job.
Bloom’s findings indicate that work from home (WFH) is essentially recession-proof. If unemployment doubles to 8%, 85% of executives predict no change in their workforce management (WFM) practices. Bloom predicts that days worked from home would only decrease from 21.2% to 20.3%, followed by a slight decline.
Bottom line: hybrid work isn’t a temporary accommodation — it’s a competitive advantage. Bloom has found that the “hybrid work” sweet spot is three days a week at home and two at the office. Thanks to more and more HR technology solutions, such as isolved and Unit4, including WFH tools for employee communication and collaboration, innovative organizations are embracing this model as part of a long-term strategy to attract talent, increase efficiency, and build resilience in uncertain times.
