74% Indian workers keen on flexible remote working: Microsoft Work Trend Index

BENGALURU: Nearly three-fourths (74%) of Indian employees are keen on flexible remote work options, according to Microsoft India’s country-specific findings of its first annual Work Trend Index, which reveals insights, challenges, expectations, and motivations that will shape the future of work in India.

While remote working is in demand, 73% of Indian employees said they also crave more in-person time with their teams. To prepare, 73% of business decision makers are considering redesigning physical spaces to better accommodate hybrid work environments.

"The data is clear: extreme flexibility and hybrid work will define the post-pandemic workplace," the report said.

"If we have learnt one thing in the last year, it's that we are no longer bound to traditional notions of space and time when it comes to how, when, and where we work. The Work Trend Index findings attest that remote work has created new opportunities but there are challenges ahead as well. We believe hybrid work is the future, and a successful hybrid strategy will require extreme flexibility,” said Rajiv Sodhi, chief operating officer, Microsoft India.

In an indication that work has become more human and authentic, coworkers leaned on each other in new ways to get through the last year. One among four (24%) Indian employees has cried with a colleague and 35% people are less likely to feel embarrassed now when their home lives show up at work. As living rooms made way for work meetings, 37% people got to meet their coworkers’ families.

Self-assessed productivity has remained the same or higher for many employees over the past year, but at a human cost. About 62% said their companies are asking too much of them amid the crisis, and 13% said their employer doesn’t care about their work-life balance. More than half (57%) of Indian employees felt overworked and 32% felt exhausted.

Remote job postings on LinkedIn increased more than five times in the last year, and people are taking notice. Almost 62% of India’s workforce (including 51% of Gen Z) expressed their intention to switch jobs this year. Globally, 41% of employees are considering leaving their employers this year. Being able to work remotely now, nearly 68% of Indian workers are likely to move to a new location.

"This fundamental shift expands economic opportunity for individuals and enables organizations to build high-performing, diverse teams from a near-limitless talent pool," the report said.