Working out of office amidst technology advancements such as AI is a norm that is here to stay with the number of fully office based employees reducing.

This is according to the 2023 Global Employee Experience Trends Report by Dimension Data, which says the number has gone down to 43 per cent this year, from the 53 per cent projection in 2021.

On the other hand, the number of employees who preferred hybrid and remote working increased from 2021’s prediction of 47 per cent to 57 per cent this year.

“Currently, about 70 per cent of employees work from an office location, either full-time (43 per cent) or as part of a hybrid model (27 per cent), while 30 per cent are fully remote,” the report reads.

“On average, the majority (56 per cent) of hybrid workers spend half the work week at the office. Ideally, 63 per cent of employees prefer to spend at least half the work week working from home.”

Surveying CEOs globally, the report found that 90 per cent of businesses see the enablement of hybrid and remote work as the future frontier which will have a positive impact on employees.

It however says less than half, (48 per cent) of organisations surveyed, agree employees have access to the technology they need to work well both at home, and in the office.

This has prompted many organisations to start implementing more structured approaches to work, the report reads in part.

Dimension Data’s vice president of technology solutions Marc Jessiman, said there is still too much of a disconnect between what employers provide and what employees require.

“Many employees prefer to work according to what works best for them, but hybrid working strategies often limit that flexibility,” Jessiman says.

He added that interestingly, 73 per cent of organisations agree that hybrid and remote working contributed to mobility investments over the last two years, yet more needs to be done to improve employee experience and reduce disconnects.

“As a result, satisfied and engaged employees are 66 per cent more likely to provide exceptional customer service."

Apart from hybrid work impacting employee experience today, the report also highlights the rise in AI, with the emerging technology as a critical enabler of future customer experience.

It argues that AI interfaces are rising and will become the norm for four in five organisations within the next 12 months.

Despite this, 87 per cent of organisations sill agree that human-led support remains a critical element in their customer engagement.

Asked about organisational priority for enabling employee experience strategies, 92 per cent of the CEOs said they are planning to invest in physical workspaces and offices in the next two years.

About 96 per cent noted they are investing in mobile device management security and support as hybrid working accelerates the need for application and device management tools for devices.

72 per cent of them said they are planning to equip at least 50 per cent of their meeting rooms with video capability and integrated unified communications.