Distant Work Productiveness Research: Stunning Findings From a 4-12 months Evaluation

Benchmarks & Traits, Worker Expertise, Distant & Hybrid Tradition, Analysis

Editor’s be aware:  This text was initially revealed in 2020 and up to date in 2025 to incorporate new analysis and findings from 2024. The unique examine stays under for context and comparability.

Distant work isn’t new, however it’s evolving. With hundreds of thousands nonetheless working outdoors conventional workplaces, questions on productiveness, tradition, and collaboration proceed to form the way forward for work. That’s why we revisited our unique analysis with recent 2024 information, analyzing responses from hundreds of thousands of staff throughout industries.

Spoiler: Distant work nonetheless works. However the way it works greatest is shifting — all of it comes right down to tradition, belief, and management.

On this up to date put up, we’ll stroll you thru our newest findings, evaluate them to our earlier analysis from 2019–2020, and share what main firms are doing now to maintain efficiency and engagement.

2024–25 distant productiveness examine

As of February 2025, Gallup’s ongoing monitoring of hybrid work preparations within the U.S. discovered that 52% of U.S. staff whose jobs might be finished remotely work in a hybrid atmosphere.

One other 27% are absolutely distant. That’s 79% of staff spending a minimum of a few of their time working remotely — a big sufficient share to form how organizations function.

In early 2024, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 34 to 35.5 million folks aged 25 and older labored from house for pay, up 5 million from the earlier 12 months. This underscored a continued shift towards distant work.

Team cooperation — not proximity — drives distant productiveness

In 2024, a sweeping evaluation of Belief Index™ Survey information protecting 1.3 million staff at Nice Place To Work® Licensed™ companies revealed an interesting fact: Cooperation stands out because the cornerstone of discretionary effort, a defining trait of excellent productiveness.

Workers who really feel they will rely on others to cooperate are 8.2 occasions extra seemingly to present additional effort.

However do groups should be co-located to cooperate? In no way.

Of the businesses on the 2025 Fortune 100 Finest Firms to Work For®, 97 assist distant or hybrid work. This examine included 67,000 staff. And 84% of staff at these firms say they will rely on colleagues to cooperate, in comparison with 65% in typical workplaces.

Workers on the Fortune 100 Finest Firms don’t simply present up — they present up robust. Productiveness is sort of 42% larger at these firms in comparison with a typical U.S. office.

That additional drive reveals up in all the suitable locations: larger productiveness, higher customer support, stronger retention, and extra agility when issues shift. 

Distant work paradox: When engagement rises however well-being falls

Whereas our information reveals robust and sustained productiveness in distant environments, Gallup’s latest analysis provides nuance: Excessive engagement doesn’t all the time imply excessive well-being.

Gallup’s newest “State of the World Office” report discovered that absolutely distant staff report the best engagement (31%) in comparison with hybrid (23%) and on-site staff (19%). However in addition they report decrease well-being and better cases of stress, anger, and loneliness.

The paradox? 

Autonomy boosts productiveness, however it may possibly additionally improve cognitive load and emotional pressure. Leaders ought to assist social interplay, construction, and psychological well being alongside flexibility.

At high-trust workplaces, corresponding to these discovered on the 100 Finest Firms checklist, this paradox diminishes considerably attributable to exemplary management.

In our 2025 Fortune 100 Finest survey, 81% of staff at these firms described their office as psychologically and emotionally wholesome — a stark distinction to the 45% reported in typical U.S. workplaces.

This 45% larger ranking underscores how robust management and intentional assist create an atmosphere the place productiveness and well-being thrive.

Does distant work improve productiveness? 

Historic information reveals that working from house might be simply as productive, if no more so, than conventional workplace setups. In 2022, Nice Place To Work’s two-year examine of greater than 800,000 staff discovered steady or improved productiveness after transitioning to distant work.

In 2020, we surveyed 715 firms representing over 3 million U.S. staff. We measured productiveness by way of responses to statements about effort and flexibility:

• Individuals are keen to present additional to get the job finished

• Individuals rapidly adapt to modifications wanted for his or her firm’s success 

Worker sentiment amongst productive distant workplaces

Within the 2019–20 productiveness examine, we ran a remark evaluation of worker survey responses to the open-ended query, “Is there something distinctive or uncommon about this firm that makes it an ideal place to work?”

Curiously, the commonest phrase amongst folks experiencing excessive productiveness modified over time. In March to Might of 2020, the commonest phrase was “catered lunches at house,” indicating the ability of perks for rising worker well-being and productiveness.

Nevertheless, from June to August 2020, the commonest phrase was “genuinely love.” Examples of those feedback embrace:

• “We’re genuinely liked right here!” 

• “I’ve by no means been so genuinely liked and cared for by a office. I actually really feel related to my co-workers, they usually’re the most effective elements of my day.” 

• “They’re welcoming and open. Everybody that I discuss to genuinely loves to be right here each day, and that makes the onerous stuff simpler!” 

From September to December of that 12 months, “optimistic ambiance” was probably the most used phrase by staff to explain what makes their firm an ideal place to work.

Whereas perks might have bolstered worker productiveness in the course of the early months of working from house, camaraderie and a optimistic tradition influenced longer-term productiveness. 

“Camaraderie is sort of a secret weapon. When staff expertise the nexus of nice work, a strong mission, and shared values, productiveness soars,” defined Julian Lute, Nice Place To Work strategic advisor.

“Workers in nice workplaces consider their co-workers see them as complete folks, with household, hobbies, and passions that they carry to work every day. When relationships are robust, staff really feel energized and convey their abilities to the desk to collaborate on organizational objectives.”

Sturdy management is essential to sustaining productiveness and worker well-being

Different distinctive phrases amongst staff who labored productively whereas distant have been about management:

• “glorious management” and “excellent management” from March to Might

• “unbelievable management,” “tradition management,” and “management understands” from June to August

• “unbelievable management” and “trustworthy management” from September to December

Such feedback reveal how a lot affect management can have on worker productiveness. And amid the pandemic and all its uncertainty, the ability of nice management was on full show.

“When occasions are powerful, leaders have the best alternative to construct belief. Their means to navigate the complexities of the enterprise, talk successfully, and convey folks alongside is extra seen,” mentioned Julian.

“Constant communication and supporting folks in shifting work preparations, all whereas caring for prospects, is a balancing act. However leaders who’re susceptible assist staff to expertise the office as supportive and caring.” 

Why poor management kills distant work productiveness

Regardless of the preliminary improve, productiveness fell in the summertime of 2020, declining sharply from Might to August by 11 share factors (see graph).

Nevertheless, by September, productiveness started to choose up barely, rising to 80% in December 2020 from its lowest level of 76% in August.

Workers who dipped in summer time might have had a spring of “poisonous productiveness” — an unhealthy compulsion to work, maybe out of worry of layoff or a lack of work–life steadiness amid lockdown. And poisonous productiveness virtually all the time comes from the highest.

Between June and August — the least productive months — the remark “Rent leaders” was repeated most by unproductive staff underneath survey questions on what may make the office higher.

For instance:

• “Rent leaders which might be NOT high performers – they aren’t leaders, they’re performers. There’s a distinction. We have to begin hiring leaders and individuals who can coach and inspire.”

• “We have to rent leaders which have expertise. We must always select expertise over buddies any day, however that doesn’t all the time occur.”

• “Rent leaders all through the corporate with extra spine who’re keen to face up for workers and pay folks what their time is price, not simply the naked minimal.”

• “Prepare and rent leaders, not bosses.”

“Workers anticipate their leaders to guide, make choices and assist their work,” mentioned Julian.

“Leaders who don’t prioritize belief contribute to uncertainty, inconsistent communication, and lack of collaboration throughout difficult occasions. Individuals anticipate their leaders to be guides and assist them perceive the broader enterprise atmosphere.”

Learn extra in regards to the significance of reliable managers throughout a disaster.

Briefly: The early productiveness drivers of distant work are actually desk stakes. Right now, it’s your tradition, management, belief and listening technique that make the distinction.

Finest practices for enhancing productiveness in distant groups

1. Construct a culture of trust and cooperation

Belief drives output. When staff really feel protected, seen, and supported, they present up with extra power and initiative.

• Be clear early and sometimes. Leaders who brazenly share updates — particularly the messy, in-progress ones — construct credibility.

• Mannequin cooperation. Attempt cross-functional “ask me something” periods. They increase alignment and make collaboration really feel just like the norm, not a hurdle.

Instance: At Salesforce, the corporate holds common “Ohana Conferences” the place staff from totally different departments can ask questions and share updates. This apply has helped break down silos and foster a tradition of transparency and cooperation.

2. Make communication easy, not exhausting

Clear beats fixed. Distant groups don’t want extra Zooms — they want higher readability and movement.

• Examine in, not examine up. Weekly one-on-ones or async video updates can do extra for alignment than back-to-back conferences.

• Hold the human in distant. Devoted Slack channels for random musings, pet pics, or weekend recaps go a good distance in holding crew spirit alive.

3. Give them tools that actually help

The perfect instruments are those folks really use.

• Select correctly, not excessively. Decide collaboration platforms that fit your crew’s workflow — and don’t overwhelm them with 5 apps that do the identical factor.

• Make entry straightforward. Arrange a central hub or doc with logins, FAQs, and SOPs so nobody’s attempting to find data.

Instance: At DHL Specific, the “Good Join” intranet serves as a complete hub, uniting 116,000 staff worldwide by way of streamlined entry to native information, firm insurance policies, strategic updates, and HR instruments.

Designed to bridge operational and workplace divisions, the platform delivers content material in native languages and gives personalised self-services, together with payroll, attendance techniques, job portals, and studying platforms.

Past its sensible capabilities, Good Join fosters a way of group with social partitions enabling staff — from the CEO — to share tales, photographs, and movies, embodying the corporate’s #AsOne ethos.

4. Flexibility isn’t a perk — It’s a productiveness multiplier

Let folks work how they work greatest.

Proof from our report, “Return-to-Workplace Mandates and the Way forward for Work,” underscores a crucial fact: mandating the place staff work dampens productiveness, whether or not onsite or distant. Conversely, when people or groups tailor insurance policies to their wants, the result’s hanging — extra staff are keen to go the additional mile.

The statistics are telling. Fewer staff topic to inflexible mandates report exerting discretionary effort, no matter location. Flexibility, it seems, nurtures not solely autonomy but additionally dedication. By granting staff the liberty to decide on how and the place they work greatest, organizations unlock a possible that inflexible insurance policies usually stifle.

• Supply versatile hours: A 9-to-5 mindset doesn’t all the time make sense throughout time zones or power peaks.

• Give autonomy: The extra possession you hand over, the extra initiative you’ll see in return.

Instance: Australian-American proprietary software program firm Atlassian additionally helps flexibility by way of its “Crew Anyplace” coverage. It lets staff select the place to work every day, resulting in a big improve in purposes and retention.

5. Prioritize well-being like it’s a enterprise metric

As a result of it’s. Burnout doesn’t present up on spreadsheets — till it does.

• Normalize actual breaks. Encourage calendar blocking for deep work and shield “off” time such as you would a shopper assembly.

• Help past work. Psychological well being stipends or open-access wellness assets present you really imply it.

Instance: Intuit’s method to hybrid work harmonizes the rhythms of in-office and distant productiveness, enriching its bodily areas with the essence of native artwork and delicacies. The well-being of staff just isn’t merely acknowledged however celebrated by way of an expansive advantages package deal.

This contains house workplace reimbursements, entry to psychological well being counseling, on-site health services, and a “Nicely-Being for Life” reimbursement valued at $1,300. Intuit additionally fosters a tradition of vitality by championing wholesome habits, rewarding them by way of the Virgin Pulse wellness program.

6. Rejoice progress — massive or small

Recognition fuels momentum. 

• Make shoutouts a behavior. Attempt “wins of the week” in crew chats or spotlight reels in all-hands conferences.

• Create suggestions loops. Let staff know what’s working — and the way they’re contributing to the larger image.

Instance: Ally Monetary Inc. goes all in on recognition by way of initiatives like “BRIEFally” and “LEADing the Means,” spotlighting teammates who stay the corporate’s values. Whether or not in-person or digital, Ally ensures staff are celebrated by way of weekly shoutouts in newsletters and annual management awards.

This method highlights not simply what they obtain however how they do it. Recognitions like these increase morale whereas reinforcing the corporate’s “Do it Proper” mission — empowering staff to hold their affect ahead.

7. Continue to grow — collectively

Innovation doesn’t simply occur — it’s invited. 

• Encourage curiosity. Host elective “talent swaps” or e book membership periods the place teammates can share what they’re studying.

• Make studying a part of the plan. Funds time and assets for growth — not simply deadlines.

Distant productiveness isn’t about squeezing extra out of individuals — it’s about creating the situations the place folks need to do their greatest work. The extra you spend money on readability, belief, and well-being, the extra sustainable your crew’s success turns into.

Need to future-proof productiveness in your distant or hybrid office? 

Begin by listening. Our Belief Index Survey and pulse instruments assist you to uncover what actually drives efficiency — so you may act on what issues most.