Hybrid work now firmly embedded – William Fry
Half of Ireland’s large employers are expected to require their employees to attend the office for a fixed number of days by the year 2027.
This structural shift indicates a broader corporate transition away from unrestricted remote flexibility toward more deliberate, structured hybrid working models across the Irish workplace, the authors state.
The data is detailed in the William Fry ‘Future of Hybrid Work’ report by research firm Ipsos B&A, which surveyed 404 Irish businesses.
Currently, 34% of large employers, of 50 or more employees, already mandate a fixed number of days in the office.
This proportion of large companies operating with fixed attendance requirements is projected to rise to 50% by next year.
Larger employers are currently more than twice as likely to use a hybrid working model. While 62% of these large enterprises offer hybrid flexibility, fewer than 30% of small businesses (defined as those with 49 employees or less) operate under similar hybrid models.
Partner and head of employment Nuala Clayton said that the era of flexible work is far from over, even as policies tighten.
“The findings suggest that hybrid working is not being reversed, it is now firmly embedded in the Irish workplace, but how it is structured is becoming more deliberate,” Clayton said.
She said employers are closely examining what operational structures best serve their needs.
Scrutiny
For larger businesses, this scrutiny is directly driving clearer expectations around office attendance.
“At the same time, flexibility and employee wellbeing remain important considerations. The direction of travel is moving towards more structured hybrid models that try to balance these competing priorities for employers and employees,” she added.
For businesses that do offer hybrid arrangements, a three-day in-office week has emerged as the standard, implemented by 33% of employers.
A two-day in-office requirement follows closely behind at 29%.
Conversely, just 9% of employers mandate four days in the office, and only 5% require a single day of attendance.
Unstructured or variable arrangements remain in place for roughly a quarter of employers.
Ultimately, hybrid working is not disappearing; a mere 4% of large businesses expect a full, mandatory return to the office within the next two years.
When formulating policies, employee productivity is the most significant driving influence, cited by 37% of surveyed employers.
Other major factors dictating policy include:
- Employee wellbeing (33%),
- Overall business performance (27%), and
- Recruitment and retention (22%).
Notably, among larger companies, the issue of recruitment and retention jumps sharply to 40%, showing the critical role flexibility plays in attracting and keeping top talent.
Despite these benefits, managing dispersed teams continues to present logistical hurdles.
According to the research, 42% of large companies with hybrid models cite accountability and performance tracking, alongside collaboration, as their leading challenges.