74% of Indian employers agreed for Hybrid Working in the future, says Poly Research

The new Poly study, Recruit, Retain and Grow, analyzes work policies, culture, and wellness through the lens of over 2,500 global business decision-makers, of which 102 Indian companies participated. The Indian companies surveyed reported that employees should have the flexibility to choose the way they work, with over 90% of employers agreeing that employees should be given the right to request flexible working from day one.

Additionally, Indian companies are worried about the long-term impact on employee wellness due to the shift to hybrid work. For example, 54% of the surveyed companies reported that employers worry about an unhealthy culture of overworking and agree that culture and workforce wellness trends during hybrid working needs to be relooked. Companies are aware of the dangers of pushing their employees too hard.

With hybrid work, it has become more difficult to protect employees’ time, as there are fewer physical interactions, and managers can’t monitor working hours as easily as they could when people are in the office. Overwork and burnout are real dangers, so companies must find a way to address these potential problems before they start to lose staff.

The report highlights, Globally, over 59% of organizations believe that if they don’t address their hybrid work processes and plans, they’ll lose staff and will be unable to attract new talent; 74% of Indian employers agree with this trend. Strategy and equality for hybrid workers are areas of concern: Less than half, 48%, of all organizations globally and in the APAC region are fully prepared for hybrid working, while 37% of global companies are prepared only in the short term. In India, the statistics are slightly higher than the worldwide average, with close to 63% of Indian employers responding that they are fully prepared for hybrid work. Productivity has increased since the shift to hybrid work:

72% of the companies that were surveyed globally saw an increase in productivity due to the change to hybrid work. The productivity increase in the APAC region was slightly higher than the global average (74%). In India, close to 86% of the surveyed companies reported increased productivity levels since the shift to hybrid working. The survey insights in India showcase how the pandemic has shifted priorities for organizations and their employees. Several employers have raised concerns about retaining staff in a hybrid work set-up.

S Mohini Ratna, Editor, VARINDIA