Is Hybrid Work Quietly Becoming In-Office Work?

Over the past several years, we’ve noticed a gradual shift while recruiting supply chain planning professionals. What was commonly a two- or three-day-per-week office expectation for 2-3 years after COVID, increasingly seems to be moving toward three or four days—and sometimes five.

The broader data suggests we aren’t imagining it.

McKinsey’s U.S. Talent Trends research classifies employees working 2–3 days per week in-office as hybrid, while those working 4+ days in-office are considered “mostly in-person.” In its survey, the percentage of employees working mostly in-person jumped from 34% in 2023 to 68% in 2024.

Yet employee preferences haven’t necessarily followed employers in that direction. Gallup recently reported that among Americans with remote-capable jobs, 52% currently work hybrid, 26% fully remote and 22% fully on-site. Six in ten prefer hybrid, while fewer than 10% prefer fully on-site work. Hybrid employees currently average about 2.3 days per week in-office. LifeWork Search expects this number to continue to creep upwards.

We see the recruiting impact firsthand. Positions requiring four or five days in-office frequently generate significantly smaller candidate pools. Gartner provides some context: one-third of candidates surveyed said they had discontinued a hiring process because of return-to-office expectations.

The opposite extreme creates another challenge. Remote openings can generate enormous application volume. LinkedIn found that fully remote jobs represented only 8% of paid job postings but attracted nearly 43% of applications. More applications, however, don’t necessarily mean more qualified candidates.

For employers hiring specialized supply chain planning talent, perhaps the question isn’t simply remote, hybrid or in-office? It may be: How does each additional required day in the office affect the talent pool we can realistically attract?

There isn’t one right answer - but increasingly, the work arrangement itself appears to be an important part of the recruiting equation.