Around 81 per cent of employees think that their employer should start preparing for hybrid work now, according to Barco ClickShare report.

Barco ClickShare has revealed the results from its annual research on meeting trends and engagement.

Rajiv Bhalla, Managing Director, Barco India, “Technically, the old argument about which tasks can or cannot be done remotely has been dispensed within the last 12-14 months. More than productivity, concerns regarding hybrid working are all about employees – about bonding, connection, job security, innovation, access, culture and control. We need to realistically navigate towards an office where everyone can thrive, businesses as well as people.”

More than 75% of Indian respondents are ready to return to the office, while 68% are expected to be back in the office one or more days by the end of June 2021. They want to work less from home than 6 months ago (2 days in 2020 – 1.5 days in 2021).

One in two employees goes back to the office to host a meeting (60%). The preference for hybrid, in-person or virtual, meetings depend on the purpose and type of a meeting, as well as on the number of meeting participants. High engagement activities like decision-making, solution-solving or relationship-building require office-based meetings.

The laptop remains the number one tool for 85% of employees to host videocalls from. Traditional in-room systems are no longer preferred.

“Meetings are at the centre of engagement in hybrid workplaces and can make a real impact on business outcomes starting from an employee-centric mindset. Visual tools are important for intimacy, to establish bonding with the remote worker, to share work progress, address the gaps, conveying urgency, ensuring deadlines. Tech exhaustion will be minimised if we match the right tools in the right proportion”, Bhalla added.

About 53% believe that the company has not prioritized the investments they needed for better hybrid collaboration while 71% think that all meeting rooms need to be equipped with videoconferencing technology.