A massive 83% of employees worldwide say they prefer hybrid work models to traditional workplace schedules, but many businesses are still struggling to make flexible models work for them.
What began as an emergency response to an unprecedented crisis has now solidified into a long-term expectation for engineering employees worldwide. Professionals have discovered the benefits of flexible schedules – better work-life balance, lower travel costs, and less stress- and they don’t want to go back to the way things were.
Unfortunately for business leaders, offering hybrid work options is easy enough, but ensuring teams stay productive, engaged, and aligned is much harder.
Many [sector] employers are walking a tricky tightrope. On the one hand, employees crave autonomy more than ever, while managers need to maintain collaboration, innovation, and constant performance. Fortunately, there are ways to navigate the challenges of hybrid work effectively. You need to be proactive.
The Current State of Hybrid Work in 2025
Employees and business leaders both agree that work needs to be more flexible. According to Zoom, four out of five executives say the future of work will be hybrid. However, actual adoption of hybrid work policies varies across the globe. In the UK, about 28% of adults are hybrid workers. In the US, 52% of remote-capable employees work in a hybrid environment.
Worldwide, everyone seems to be making the shift, but this transition does come with growing pains. Companies are still struggling with:
- In-office vs. remote tension: While some employees thrive in remote settings, others miss spontaneous collaboration. Leaders struggle to create policies that don’t feel arbitrary or unevenly applied.
- Team cohesion: Distributed teams often feel fragmented, with a noticeable dip in informal bonding and peer learning.
- Technology gaps: Not all organisations have closed the digital divide, leaving some employees over-reliant on outdated tools or overwhelmed by disconnected platforms.
- Productivity measurement: Many companies still default to activity tracking rather than outcome-based performance, creating inefficiencies and misaligned expectations.
Plus, hybrid expectations vary widely among engineering employers. Senior leaders sometimes prefer more in-office time to maintain visibility and influence. Gen Z and working parents (millennials) value location and schedule flexibility more. There’s no one-size-fits-all that works for everyone.
Why Hybrid Work Matters to Your Talent Strategy
Embracing hybrid work can be challenging, so some engineering leaders are tempted to avoid changing anything. But ignoring the growing demand for flexibility could be dangerous. The truth is that flexible work solutions deliver:
Competitive Advantages in Recruitment
As engineering companies fight for scarce talent, hybrid work becomes a major selling point. Studies show that up to half of all graduates in the UK wouldn’t even consider applying for a job that forces them to be in an office five days a week. Offering hybrid work allows companies to appeal to a wider range of candidates. Plus, it can help expand talent pools by attracting talented professionals located further away from a local office.
Enhanced Employee Retention and Engagement
Hybrid work models regularly improve employee satisfaction and loyalty. According to one survey, employees working for a company that supported hybrid work scored 6% higher on engagement levels compared to the UK average. Those required to return to the office full-time scored 7% lower. Additionally, Stanford found resignation levels fell by 33% for companies that shifted from a full-time in-office to a hybrid work model.
Improved Diversity and Inclusion
Hybrid work arrangements are also excellent for promoting inclusivity and diversity in the workplace. A engineering company with a hybrid strategy can appeal to a wider range of talented professionals and avoid overlooking candidates with specific schedule requirements. Greater diversity and inclusion generally lead to higher profits and creativity, too.
Common Pitfalls in Hybrid Work Implementation
Hybrid work benefits employers and employees alike. The problem is that implementing hybrid strategies isn’t always simple. The most common hurdles engineering companies deal with include:
Poor Communication
Communication can start to suffer when people rely on digital tools rather than face-to-face interactions. Employees waste time struggling with complex video conferencing tools, miss important messages or emails, and feel left out of the loop, which can cause productivity and engagement levels to fall.
Proximity Bias
It’s much easier for managers to build relationships with and recognise engineering employees they see daily. Sometimes, this leads to in-office staff getting preferential treatment over their colleagues. One study found that about 96% of executives admit that they notice in-office efforts more than the contributions of remote workers.
Technology Adoption Challenges
Hybrid work is really only possible with technology—cloud-based platforms, productivity apps, and communication tools. However, not everyone feels comfortable using these tools straight away. A lack of training and integration can mean that tools aren’t used properly, and efficiency begins to wane. User-friendly platforms are a must.
Management Resistance and Traditional Mindsets
As evidenced by countless companies implementing “Return to Office” mandates in recent years, not everyone is comfortable with the idea of hybrid work. Some managers and stakeholders simply don’t believe employees can be productive outside of the office. Others struggle to measure productivity and performance without resorting to tracking things like “hours in the office”.
Corporate Culture Dilution
Preserving a cohesive and supportive company culture can be difficult for a company embracing hybrid work. Some employees can feel disconnected from business values and goals, which leads to a breakdown in collaboration and problems with morale. Business leaders need to make a clear effort to keep everyone involved in the company culture.
Five Strategies to Make Hybrid Work Productive
Demand for hybrid work in the engineering space isn’t going to disappear. But there are ways to tackle the most common challenges that affect businesses and their teams.
Here are some of the most valuable strategies you can try.
1. Switch to Outcome-Based Performance Frameworks
The number of hours an employee spends at a specific desk doesn’t really matter to your engineering company’s overall success. The outcomes they achieve, whether they’re working in an office or from home, are what really count.
Rethink how you track and measure performance. Focus on how productive team members are, how often they innovate, and how regularly they contribute to real business goals. Look at what they’re accomplishing rather than logging their locations and time spent.
2. Design Intentional Collaboration Strategies
Collaboration is crucial in any engineering workplace, but it doesn’t happen spontaneously in a hybrid environment, at least not as often. Business leaders need to focus on intentionally bringing teams together. Establish schedules for how frequently teams should meet in group meetings, video conferencing sessions, or in-person meetings.
Schedule regular check-ins between managers and people who regularly work remotely. Make sure hybrid workers know which tools to use for different types of collaboration. For instance, they might work on documents in real time on Google Workspace or chat with colleagues via Slack.
3. Integrate Seamless Technology Solutions
Technology is the glue connecting hybrid teams, but everything falls apart if staff members don’t know how to use it. The ideal tools for your teams will be the ones that feel natural and intuitive. Look for platforms that integrate communication, project management, document sharing, and more into a single pane of glass—a new “digital workplace.”
Ensure staff members know how these tools work with training sessions and workshops, and ensure they have someone to contact whenever they face technical issues.
4. Provide Management Training for Hybrid Leadership
Keeping hybrid teams motivated and aligned requires different leadership skills. Managers and supervisors need to know how to share feedback regularly with out-of-office workers, and how to foster inclusivity and cohesion between different groups.
Upgrade your training resources, focusing on skills that will benefit hybrid teams, such as digital communication, emotional intelligence, and adaptability. Listen to the feedback given by hybrid employees about their management preferences.
5. Reinforce Company Culture Across Distributed Teams
Your engineering company culture shouldn’t disappear when schedules are more flexible. You’ll need to proactively reinforce your values, share your vision, and highlight your mission to everyone. Host virtual events, create recognition programs, and keep communication constant and transparent.
Find ways to strengthen relationships between all kinds of employees with virtual team-building sessions, social interactions, and even gamified experiences. Ensure everyone feels like they belong to the same cohesive family.
How to Attract Top Talent with Your Hybrid Model
Once you’ve ironed out the perfect approach to managing your hybrid team, the next step is using your model to attract new engineering talent. Be intentional with how you highlight your approach to flexible and hybrid working by:
- Showcasing Flexibility in Employer Branding: Highlight your hybrid approach on your careers page, social media platforms, and in employee testimonials. Showing flexibility is one of your values, not just something you’re experimenting with.
- Update Job Descriptions: Be clear and transparent in job descriptions. Vague references to “flexibility” are confusing. Clearly outline how your hybrid policy works, and whether you’re willing to negotiate on schedules.
- Showcase Success in Interviews: Use interviews as a platform to demonstrate how hybrid work operates in practice. Share stories of team collaboration, remote onboarding wins, and how employees thrive in your model.
- Optimise Onboarding: Make sure your onboarding process is structured to support people working outside of the office. Set up remote orientation videos, guides for technology configuration, and digital learning resources.
- Use Feedback to Refine: Don’t just assume you’re grabbing the right attention with your efforts. Use post-survey interviews and candidate reviews to constantly improve your approach.
Make Hybrid Work Your Competitive Advantage
Hybrid work models aren’t experiments anymore; they’re quickly becoming the new operating system for modern workforces. Success, however, depends on more than just embracing flexibility. You need to design your hybrid model to work for you.
If you take a proactive approach now, reworking your approach to everything from recruitment to employee management, you’ll set yourself up for success in the years ahead. The future of the engineering industry will depend on adaptability and the ability to balance freedom and autonomy with accountability and consistency.
Struggling to build your hybrid team? Let’s talk about how your hybrid model can attract top talent, reduce friction, and drive better business results.
All the best
Steve
At Coalesce we have been partnering with engineering businesses for over 29 years; if you would like our thoughts on how you can maintain high performance by utilising hybrid working strategies, then give us a call on 07512 821708 or email us here.