According to new research from CIPS, 58 percent of ANZ procurement professionals state that working from home is their top favoured benefit, ahead of global procurement professionals at 50 percent.
This mirrors post-pandemic global research from Beroe, conducted in 2021, which revealed the procurement community prefers a hybrid approach. The majority of respondents (64 percent) agreed that procurement operations could permanently be managed remotely.
Reflecting the growing hybrid trend, new research from John Hopkins and Professor Anne Bardoel at the Swinburne University of Technology has shown an overwhelming preference for flexible working options in Australia.
In May 2024, 72.5 percent of the survey’s 1,200 respondents said they worked in a hybrid capacity, with 10 percent working full time from home and just 17.5 percent working full time from the office.
When the same survey was carried out in May 2022, 55.8 percent of employees classed themselves as hybrid workers while 26.1 percent worked solely from their office desk, reflecting a 16.7 percent hybrid jump in just two years.
With workplace flexibility growing in popularity across the country, the way we work is continually evolving, but not everyone is happy about the hybrid shift.
Hybrid working has recently hit the headlines, with the NSW government pushing for public servants to return to the office following years of post-pandemic flexibility.
The nation’s largest employer has issued a mandatory working from the office directive, requiring nearly half a million people to “work principally in an approved office, workplace or related site.”
Those against hybrid and remote working point to high office vacancy rates across Australia’s CBDs as an increasing issue caused by a lack of full-time office jobs.
Hybrid naysayers also believe flexible working models cause collaboration and communication challenges, impacts on company culture and loyalty, onboarding woes, issues with innovation, lack of career prospects and productivity dips.
A 2023 global study from Herbert Smith Freehills found 38 percent of Australian respondents expect working remotely will become a privilege earned through trust and seniority, while 45 percent of global respondents have plans to differentiate pay between remote and in-office staff in the next three-to-five years.
“In Australia, we’re seeing a range of approaches for getting people back in the office. Some employers are still doing soft encouragement – such as team lunches on Wednesdays, team drinks or extracurricular activities on certain days,” said HSF’s Natalie Gaspar.
“Some are using more of a direct approach – you must be in the office on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, for example. There’s only a handful of organisations mandating a full return to the workplace.”
On the flip side, those in favour say hybrid working leads to increased productivity, employee diversity and an improved work-life balance, preventing burnout, fatigue and even resignations.
In fact, recent research from Stanford University Professor Nicholas Bloom revealed hybrid worker resignations dropped by 33 percent, with women and employees with long commutes the least likely to quit.
Another study from the International Workplace Group found hybrid workers exercise for almost 90 minutes more per week and enjoy an extra 71 hours of sleep per year due to reduced commutes.
The same study of 2,000 hybrid workers found 79 percent of respondents claim they’re now more productive, due to less work-related stress and more time to relax after work.
So, which side of the WFH fence are you on? Do you think procurement should return to the office full time or are you happy with your hybrid work model? Let us know why on LinkedIn.
