Owl Labs’ 2025 State of Hybrid Work Report Finds the New Frontier of Flexibility is When Employees Work, Not Where

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BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep 23, 2025--

Owl Labs, the first company to build AI-powered, 360-degree video conferencing solutions for hybrid organizations, today released its ninth annual State of Hybrid Work Report. Owl Labs surveyed 2,000 full-time knowledge workers in the United States to unpack the latest trends and perspectives around remote, hybrid, and in-office work. The report finds that as in-office attendance quietly rises, schedule flexibility, AI and IT have become increasingly important to workers who are trying to reclaim their time while balancing growing in-office pressures.

“Our latest report shows that workplace flexibility has entered a new era: it’s no longer just about where we work, but also when,” said Frank Weishaupt, CEO of Owl Labs. “As employers push for more in-office days, employees are pushing back for control over their time. Employers should consider how they can provide more flexibility for employees to get work done on their own terms, preserving their overall happiness and satisfaction at work.”

The New Frontier of Work Flexibility Is When Employees Work Instead of Just Where

After spending the past five years debating ideal working locations, when people work is the latest topic in the flexibility conversation. Nearly half of workers (47%) do not have the overall work flexibility they want, with 37% of employees saying they wouldn’t accept a job offer from a company that does not allow flexible working hours, compared to just 35% last year. A 4-day work week is one of the most coveted benefits, with 27% of workers saying it would be appealing if a prospective employer offered it. Workers would even be willing to sacrifice 9% of their salaries for flexible working hours and 8% for a 4-day work week.

Work-life calendar boundaries are becoming more fluid, as nearly one in three workers (30%) do not have a clear start or end to their workdays. More than half of workers (59%) schedule personal appointments during traditional working hours, with 38% taking up to an hour and 17% taking up to 90 minutes a day, lunch break excluded. Workers’ differing schedules are evident in the finding that the majority (82%) prefer meetings to end by 4 pm. The concept of “microshifting,” or structured flexibility with short, non-linear work blocks, is also gaining traction, with 65% of office workers interested in the idea, increasing to 69% for Gen Z and 73% for millennials.

This could be because work hours often conflict with the timing of family responsibilities, as 62% of employees surveyed are caring for children at home. Of those that have children at home, 76% are millennial and 52% are Gen Z. The “second shift” has long been a trend for parents in the workplace who need to take some time in the evening for school pickup, dinner and bedtime routines, and then finish up their work after their children have gone to bed. However, 68% of parents are concerned that their child caregiving responsibilities might have an impact on their job performance, and these worries increase for full-time in-office employees (71%) when compared to remote employees (48%). In response, 63% think companies should offer more flexibility for those with childcare responsibilities.

The Rise of “Hybrid Creep” to Call Workers Back to Office

Return-to-office mandates remain in play - 23% of employers have made formal changes to their remote or hybrid policies in the past year. But for many workers, the shift back to the office is happening more quietly through “hybrid creep,” where the number of required in-office days gradually increases year over year. Today, more than one in four workers (28%) are hybrid, while 9% remain fully remote and 63% are fully in-office. Among hybrid employees, in-office days continue to climb: 34% now go into the office four days a week, up from 32% in 2024 and just 23% in 2023. At 39%, three days in the office is the most prevalent hybrid model. This suggests that even without a sweeping mandate, many employees are experiencing a slow-motion return to office.

The number of days employees prefer to work in the office also continues to rise, with 21% of employees now saying they’d like to be there four days a week, an increase from 17% last year. A quarter of employees (25%) would also prefer to be in-office full time, and 21% would like to be in office three days a week. This could be because employees said they feel most productive in the office when managing others (58% said they prefer to do this at the office instead of at home), meeting new people (56%), collaborating (55%), and being mentored (52%). This year, workers are finding it easier to stay on task at the office, with 43% focusing better there versus 34% preferring focusing at home; in 2024, it was equal, with 41% focusing better in each location.

Increased In-Office Time Comes With Concerns About “Quiet Cracking,” Employee Happiness and Mental Health

“Quiet cracking” is emerging as the newest workplace red flag for office workers, which happens when workers feel stressed and silently burn out while still going through the motions of their jobs. Managers seem to sense the risk: 33% are concerned about in-office employees’ satisfaction and 27% are worried about their teams overworking and burning out. On the other hand, only 26% of them are concerned about their remote employees’ satisfaction, while 21% are worried about overwork and burnout.

Burnout may be driven by long commutes (averaging 62 minutes a day), rising stress levels (90% of all workers said their work stress levels are the same or worse than last year), and job insecurity (47% of workers are worried about stability) - all of which are fueling widespread disengagement. In fact, 46% of full-time office workers report feeling disengaged, compared to just 30% of remote employees. Yet with a stubborn job market, many employees are “job hugging,” holding on to their current position even if they feel unhappy or unfulfilled. As a result, 92% of workers haven’t changed jobs this year, leaving many feeling stuck in their current position.

Meeting Setup Is Wasting Time in the Office, Driving More Investment in IT

With hybrid and online meetings still the norm in the office, companies are investing more in IT staff and technology, as 85% of workers said good technology is a top factor in their work life. The top changes to the office this past year included new meeting room video and audio equipment (27%) and increased IT staff and support (29% of employees mentioned their companies doing this). Despite this, workers have an average of five online / hybrid meetings a week, and those in-office spend six minutes getting each meeting started, with more than a quarter (27%) saying they spend 10 minutes or more on setup. On top of that, 77% have lost additional time because meetings started late due to technical difficulties, and more than two-thirds (67%) of workers have tried to set up video technology for a meeting but gave up because it was too difficult.

Workers Are Embracing AI to Lighten Their Workload, and Even Wish Avatars Could Join Meetings for Them

To reclaim time lost to commutes and frustrating meeting setups, workers are increasingly turning to AI. They are rapidly expanding their usage of AI tools, as 80% have experimented with AI, a 19% increase from March 2025. Over half of employees (51%) even wish they could have an AI avatar sit in on a meeting for them, highlighting a new frontier in the quest for getting time savings back. With leaders also eager to boost productivity, 64% of workers say their companies are encouraging employees to use AI at work, a 13% increase from March.

Despite More IRL Work, Employee Surveillance Is Still Increasing

Although more people are physically in the office, only 19% of workers say their companies are not using employee tracking software, with an additional 14% saying they are unsure. These surveillance tactics are worrying employees, with 78% of workers saying they think their companies are enforcing RTO policies to maintain oversight, and 47% citing monitoring as a top workplace concern. A resounding 85% of workers believe it should be a legal requirement for employers to disclose if they are using these tools.

To review Owl Labs’ full State of Hybrid Work 2025 report and detailed findings, visit https://owllabs.com/state-of-hybrid-work/2025. To learn more about Owl Labs and its ecosystem of video conferencing solutions for hybrid organizations, visit www.owllabs.com.

About Owl Labs:

Owl Labs is the first company to build AI-powered, 360-degree video conferencing solutions for hybrid organizations. Its connected device system and Owl Intelligence System™ software make meetings more inclusive and collaborative by leveling the playing field between remote and in-room participants. The Meeting Owl® product line is the first AI-powered, WiFi-enabled, 360-degree camera, microphone and speaker that automatically zooms in on whoever’s speaking. Owl Labs has raised $47 million in funding and is based in Boston, with remote and hybrid employees all over the world. To learn more, visit OwlLabs.com.

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KEYWORD: UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA MASSACHUSETTS

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SOURCE: Owl Labs

Copyright Business Wire 2025.

PUB: 09/23/2025 07:00 AM/DISC: 09/23/2025 06:59 AM

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