Offices refill, but collaboration stalls
March 10, 2025
Despite the return to office work, employee collaboration remains surprisingly stagnant.
A new report suggests that while offices are filling up again, workers are not engaging in the same level of collaboration as before. The study, conducted by Jabra, found that many employees still rely on virtual meetings, even when physically present in the office.
The findings raise questions about how businesses are using office space. While employers have pushed for a return to in-person work, the expected boost in teamwork has yet to materialise. Instead, many workers continue to operate as they did remotely, relying on digital tools rather than face-to-face interactions.
“Leaders care about productivity, as do employees—but productivity isn’t just about being in the office,” said Holly Grogan, Chief Experience Officer at Appspace. She emphasised that employees perform better when they have the right tools to stay informed and connected, regardless of location.
One reason for the shift may be that employees have adapted to hybrid working models, prioritising individual-focused work over spontaneous office interactions. Studies suggest that workers today prefer structured meetings over casual office drop-ins, and many continue to book virtual calls rather than walking across the office for discussions.
Jabra’s research highlights that collaboration challenges stem not just from employee preferences but also from workplace design. Many offices have not been redesigned post-pandemic, leaving employees in outdated spaces that fail to support modern hybrid workflows. Open-plan offices, once intended to encourage communication, are often viewed as noisy and distracting, pushing workers to use digital tools instead.
With in-person collaboration lagging, there are implications for the office technology sector. Businesses that once relied on shared resources such as meeting rooms, printers, and communal workspaces may need to rethink their investment strategies. If employees continue to work independently, demand for shared office infrastructure could decline, affecting sectors such as managed print services (MPS) and document management.
However, this shift could also drive new investments. Companies may look towards hybrid-friendly solutions such as cloud-based document workflows, digital whiteboards, and more flexible meeting room setups that cater to a mix of remote and in-person collaboration.
Taking to LinkedIn, Bryan Stallings, Chief Evangelist at Lucid Software, challenged the idea that returning to the office automatically drives productivity. “Leaders hoping that mandating a return to the office will be a silver bullet to solve workplace challenges may be missing the bigger picture,” he wrote. He emphasised that effective collaboration relies on the right tools and strategies, not just physical presence.
While returning to the office was expected to restore collaboration levels, the reality is that simply being in the same building is not enough. Organisations may need to redesign workspaces, introduce smarter document-sharing tools, and encourage face-to-face interaction through structured teamwork initiatives.
Some companies are already experimenting with new models, such as collaboration-first office layouts, hot-desking systems that group teams together based on project needs, and better integration between digital and physical workflows. Others are re-evaluating how meetings are scheduled, reducing virtual calls in favour of in-person discussions.
Our take on this: Forcing office returns without better collaboration tools may backfire. Flexible work boosts productivity, but rigid policies risk turning offices into costly co-working spaces. The right office imaging and workflow solutions can bridge the gap, enabling seamless collaboration—even in office-to-office environments.
Categories : World Focus
Tags : Collaboration Employees Office Productivity Workplace
