Despite push to return to the office, most readers say they work (and love) hybrid. Here’s why.

Readers Say

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Hybrid and remote work models have remained a popular way to work, even as some companies are returning to the office five days a week.

In the nearly five years since the COVID-19 pandemic was officially declared on March 11, 2020, the world of work remains a changed place. Hybrid and remote work models have endured to become a popular way to work, even as some companies (and certain federal employees) are returning to the office five days a week. 

Boston.com readers, like more than half of Americans, continue to work in a hybrid model – and say they prefer it that way. When we asked readers what work model their company uses, 65% said they follow a hybrid work format, with 20% working remotely, and 15% in-person.

Most readers who said they work a hybrid schedule said they were happy with their arrangement, and pointed to things like less time spent commuting and a better work-life balance among the reasons they love it.

“There is no reason to drive an hour to an office just to talk to people on the phone, who are in other locations,” reader Melody from Southern New Hampshire said.

The hybrid model was praised by employees and managers alike, who lauded the format for its flexibility and productivity.

“Hybrid is awesome. I’m unique in that I work in-office most days, as I’m a supervisor and like as many direct interactions with staff as possible, Chris R. from Cambridge said. “I can emphatically state that my team of about 30 scientists, engineers, and analysts are more productive professionally with hybrid arrangements. This also facilitates a much healthier work-life balance and ultimately happier employees,” he added.

For some readers, like Charlotte from Lexington, having the ability to work from home is not just a perk, but a dealbreaker; if required to work in-person, she said she would rather find another remote position than return to the office.

“I’m a full-time remote worker and so is my husband. If either of our companies changed that, we’d leave for a different remote job,” she said.

There is plenty of diversity and nuance when it comes to work preferences, ranging from like to dislike and everything in between.

Below, Boston.com readers share why they like and dislike the way they work – and how they’d like to see work, work in the future. 

Responses have been lightly edited for grammar and clarity.

What kind of work model does your company use?

Hybrid work

“I work in a hybrid model and work from home more than 95% of the time. Working from home provides many benefits. I gain at least 10 hours a week by not commuting, I can dress for comfort, and can knock off chores such as laundry during the week which frees up my weekend time.

I do miss a lot of the face-to-face interactions, but over the years have been able to cultivate strong professional and personal relationships with people that I rarely if ever get to meet face-to-face. At this point in my career it’s the only work model I can and will work with. If suddenly required to go into the office I would not hesitate to move on to elsewhere.” – Theo N., Somerville

“We work with clients, and the need to be in-person is for the direct services part of what we do. Some work can be done remotely. That option is there. I enjoy in-person much more to best support my supervisors and clients.” – Joe M., Holliston

“I have a hybrid work model, where I go into work once or twice a week mostly for big meetings and work the other days at home. I like this model because I am much more focused at home with less interruptions, am more productive, enjoy the flexibility of my work hours, and do not have to drive a horrible time wasting commute. For the work I do (software), the hybrid model works very well and makes for a happy employee.” – Albertus, Hopkinton

“Two days a week in the office allows for appropriate face to face conversation, training, and problem solving. Remote days pay dividends in that they allow for concentrated work. Despite other descriptions, water cooler conversations are not efficient operations and rarely produce ah-ha moments or do much to impact culture. In-person for the right reasons is impactful. In-person for the wrong reasons kills strategy.” – Wendy G., Eastham

“I love the hybrid work model and I think it’s smart of my employer to operate this way. It has increased my productivity enormously. I have gotten into a rhythm with it where I can prioritize certain tasks for in-office days and others for remote work days. I am working much harder overall than I ever was when I commuted five days each week and sat in an office distracted by my surroundings. Not everyone has a door they can close. There is value to in-office time, of course, and I love my days in the office when I can collaborate with my coworkers that way, but I am astonished at how much more work I produce when I have a couple days each week to work quietly in my home. 

I think people assume that everyone who works from home a few days a week is just watching old episodes of their favorite HBO shows and doing their laundry. It’s really not the case. I work a longer day and I’m more productive on my at-home days. People who are grouchy about this need to get over it. The world of work has changed.” – Ann, Boston

“Currently I am looking to leave my company since they implemented hybrid work. I am in sales and have been in sales the last decade. I moved into a sales role so that I could be remote. I feel like forcing people back into the office is very counter productive. This is not just for sales people. Remote work is about trust and knowing that your people are working. I work harder and am willing to put in longer hours and go above and beyond if my company trusts me. Forcing people back in is about trust.” – Sonja, Winchester

“We are in the office four days per week. It’s too much commuting. When I started it was two days. I wouldn’t have taken the job at four days. You end up on Zoom calls with people in other offices or outside parties anyway. No need to be in four days a week. It’s also bad for the environment. Not sure why everyone that is so concerned with the environment isn’t advocating for more remote work.” – Casey, Westwood

Remote work

“I’ve been working remotely since shortly after the start of the pandemic. In fact, my company chose not to renew their office lease and we no longer have a physical office where I’m located. As a remote worker, I feel a tad more productive as I can sleep an extra hour in the morning and not feel as rushed because of traffic. With technology such as Microsoft Teams, we are able to conduct meetings just as efficiently as before.

On the flip side, I miss interacting with people in-person and sometimes feel cooped up being in my condo all day. If I had a choice, I would opt for a hybrid work arrangement in which I’d commute to an office once or twice a week and work from home the other days. Fortunately, I enjoy working for my employer very much and know that I can be a very productive contributor regardless of what environment I’m working in.” – Jeff, Natick

“I work for a small law firm in Atlanta even though I live in Quincy. I meet with my team on a weekly basis on video chat. I’m happier than when I was working at a large insurance defense firm in Boston. My work life balance is perfect.” – Bonita, Quincy

“Even before Covid we were a remote company. We rely on Zoom and Slack for communication. We set goals and review them every day at a ‘stand-up meeting.’  We address problems as they come up and not wait for the standup meeting. The management is strong and can tell when someone is not working as a team member and mentors them to get more engaged with the team. Because being a manager is about leading and mentoring people to be the best they can be.” – C.P., Boston

“I am much more productive at home. My company is case by case based on the position. Some are remote, others hybrid and also 100% in-person. I can’t see them going back to the old model because they are saving 500K on leased space and our flexible model gives us a recruiting advantage.” – John W., Needham

“I’ve been remote for more than 20 years. My job in direct sales requires me to be close to our customers.  I don’t have to waste any productivity on commute time, and I make the majority of my customer visits mid-morning to mid-afternoon, avoiding rush-hour.” – Becky, Hubbardson

“I like the quality of life, work/life balance, and lack of distraction while working. I dislike not being able to hang out with my colleagues in person. I’m at the point in my career where I work much better independently (as in I don’t need to ask a lot of questions); I’m also in a field where we don’t see clients in person. Those qualities combined make working from home perfect for me.” – Karen, Newton

In-person work

“I work for Dell and the message is more complicated. The return to the office is distance based. Remote employees can stay remote with some career growth restrictions unless they become onsite. As anything this is a complicated issue and the company is working through it.” – Anonymous reader

“Some people at my company work hybrid but most are in-person. I think in-person is better. A lot of people goof off at home.” – Bonnie T., Braintree

“I am a teacher. I have to work in-person.” – Timothy H., Barnstable

“My company is in the office five days a week. My productivity in the office is greater than it would be at home.” – Jim M.

Boston.com occasionally interacts with readers by conducting informal polls and surveys. These results should be read as an unscientific gauge of readers’ opinion.

Annie Jonas is a Community writer at Boston.com. She was previously a local editor at Patch and a freelancer at the Financial Times.