Another week, another ‘Wave’ ??

5 news items from the world of work and workplace you can digest in 5 minutes.

This week:

1. The new “Hybrid Work” is “AI + Humans”
2. Companies who force RTO are losing key employees
3. Young professionals believe hybrid working will positively impact their career

RTO has Stalled: The RTO push is over. Hybrid work has won out, says remote work expert, Nick Bloom . In a tweet last week, Bloom said the most updated data on remote work, office occupancy, and public transit, use were pointing to the same conclusion: return-to-office is dead. "My belief now looking at the last six months of data is the drop in work-from-home has ended and going forwards it will be flat for a while before starting to rise," he said. "When you allow flexibility, it expands your talent pool. The reason I think this model will stick and become the equilibrium is every company is fighting for that same talent pool, and flexibility allows companies to attract and retain talent." Read Full Article.

Feeling Fulfilled: How do you make remote work a fulfilling experience? Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR) data suggests there has been a fivefold increase in work from home from 2019 to 2023, with 40% of US employees now working remotely at least one day a week, so how do we make the best of it? Regular communications with your manager and team mates, investment and upskilling yourself in technology, setting clear expectations, and offering support and feedback to others is a helpful start, says People Matters . Read Full Article.

The Future of Work & AI: The new “Hybrid Work” is “AI + Humans”, reports JSTOR . “If the emergence of generative AI has prompted a lot of excitement and anxiety about the future of work, that’s because it’s arrived at a moment when we’re already asking huge questions about our working lives.” The major transformation in the where of modern workplaces is about to collide with a transformation in who is doing that work. This collision is the new hybrid work, in which organizations are made up of a mix of on-site and remote workers, and teams comprising human and artificial colleagues. The next decade of working life will be shaped by the twin challenges posed by these two simultaneous transitions. “As AI makes its way deeper into organizations, changing hiring patterns and reallocating work, the division between AI-replaceable and AI-irreplaceable employees will soon look just as significant as the divide between on-site workers and those with remote-work opportunities.”?Read Full Article.

Plans Backfired: Companies who force workers back to the office are losing a lot of key employees, reports Tech Radar . Workplace consultant Unispace has revealed the extent of the damage that return-to-office mandates have across the globe, with 42% of employers saying they had a higher level of employee walkout than they had anticipated. A further 29% say they are now struggling to recruit altogether thanks to their lack of hybrid work support.?Read Full Article.

Flexibility for Young Professionals: Young professionals believe hybrid working will positively impact their career, reports Business Leader . 61% of those who have just entered the workforce, believe working between the office and home provides more flexibility, freedom to travel while working, improved wellbeing, reduced costs and the feeling of being valued by employers. Interviewees in the study by CEMS - The Global Alliance in Management Education , also emphasized that they were positive about hybrid working, however not fully remote. They believe spending face-to-face time with colleagues inside and outside of office hours is vital for career success – in particular networking opportunities, innovation and learning. They stressed the importance of teams regularly meeting in person and having working structures in place. Read Full Article.