Working from home, a concept that barely appeared in the corporate vocabulary before 2020, rapidly became the backbone of the global economy as the Covid pandemic brought daily life to a halt. Offices were closed overnight, there was silence in the cities, but work could not stop. Across all industries, companies rapidly adapted, creating digital systems and remote processes that allowed business to continue without physical workplace gatherings.What began as a response to the crisis lasted much longer than many expected. For about four to five years, remote, then hybrid work defined professional life for millions of people. Companies discovered they could save on office space, electricity and travel-related expenses. Employees found they could reclaim commute hours and redesign their workdays. But as organizations are now pushing for a return to offices, some partially and others more aggressively, the bigger question is resurfacing: If working from home is causing businesses the worst disruption in decades, why is it being scaled back now?The answer lies in a complex mix of productivity gains, cultural shifts and unintended consequences, as several corporate employees told TOI.
productivity surprise
For many employees, the early phase of remote work brought unexpected growth.Abhishek Gupta, who works in a multinational company, said, “Without the daily commute and office mess, I can start work with more energy and focus deeply on tasks.” Like many others, he found that eliminating travel time and office interruptions helped him complete work “faster and with better quality than a traditional office setting.”In all sectors from technology and finance to consulting and public relations, professionals describe the pandemic years as a period of intense but often highly productive work. Flexible schedules enabled many people to tailor their schedules based on meaningful outputs rather than physical presence.Rachit Jasrotia, senior project manager at a tech firm, believes this change has made the way teams work more disciplined. Clear documentation, structured digital workflows and asynchronous collaboration became the standard. “Many of the practices introduced during that period – flexible schedules, async collaboration and an emphasis on clear documentation – have continued and are now part of how we work by default,” he said.
opportunity without borders
Remote work not only changed the way people worked, but it also changed who got access to work.Kriti, who joined the workforce in the finance sector after the pandemic, says she saw how COVID-era remote practices opened the door to greater global collaboration. “Earlier we had limited work because they preferred to have people who were in the US office do the work,” she says. “But because of COVID, a lot of the work started being done remotely, which gave Indian teams more opportunities to participate.”Their experience reflects a broader shift that many multinationals saw during the pandemic: Location became less of a constraint. Work that was once tied to specific offices began to flow more freely, expanding risk and responsibility to teams outside traditional headquarters.
Rise of Result Culture
One of the most important long-term changes is how productivity is measured. Before the pandemic, time spent in the office often held inherent importance. Remote work weakened that equation.“Today, productivity is measured by much more than results – on-time delivery, quality of insights, rigor of administration and impact created,” said Gitanjali, a mid-level employee at a tech-firm. “This is a marked change from earlier years where visibility or presence was given more importance. My work is data driven, so it is measured by accuracy, timeliness and strategic value delivered, not from where I am sitting. Covid played an important role in normalizing this outcome-focused approach,” he said, reflecting on his time as a corporate employee before, during and after the pandemic.Other professionals across industries also said that performance conversations are now more closely linked to impact, quality and timeliness than to hours logged. The pandemic proved that high-quality work can happen even without physical proximity, and many organizations adapted their evaluation frameworks accordingly.Even those entering the workforce after the crisis found these norms already embedded. Meghna, who works in public relations, says that when she started her career, flexible work structures and virtual collaboration were presented as standard practice. “There is a clear focus on deliverables rather than grueling working hours,” she says. “There is an understanding that people can be productive without being physically present all the time.“
Flexibility – with cost
If remote work brings freedom, it also brings fatigue and mixed feelings about always having to be “available.”Geetanjali explained how she sometimes felt pressure to “always be available” but found ways to deal with it. “Although I don’t feel obvious pressure to be “always online,” the nature of managing a large and diverse portfolio sometimes creates an implicit expectation of being accessible across time zones. Stakeholders often work with limited deadlines, so accountability is important. I manage this by setting clear expectations, planning communication windows, and strengthening governance structures so that not everything requires immediate escalation.“Rachit Jasrotia said that while flexibility improved autonomy and focus, stability became a conscious effort. “Hybrid work allows tremendous flexibility, but without intentional boundaries, work can easily spill over into personal time. It requires conscious effort to disconnect, especially when devices and communication channels are always within reach.Still, some professionals advocate a full return to pre-pandemic routines. Instead, most people are looking for a balance—structured flexibility rather than full remote work or rigid office orders. Like Kriti, who admits that working from home has come with its challenges at times, but overall it has made work more “sustainable” at least partially by following pandemic-era policies.
visibility returns
While many employees say performance is now valued more than results, as offices reopen and hybrid schedules take hold, a quiet shift is afoot: In some workplaces, the importance of being seen is coming back.Leading e-commerce company Flipkart had announced ending its work from home policy early last year.Amazon also made it mandatory to work 5 days from office. Wipro has also followed suit and made it mandatory to work from home for at least six hours in the office, three days a week. Similarly, many other companies have tightened their work from home policies or closed down completely.Durgesh Kumar Jha, a public relations consultant, adds, “In my experience, productivity in the workplace is measured by visibility rather than results,” adding, “Work that is not seen, discussed, or repeatedly reinforced often goes unnoticed.”Meanwhile, in hybrid environments, digital presence has become the new form of visibility. Being active on internal chat platforms, speaking frequently in meetings, and responding promptly to messages can shape perceptions of engagement – sometimes as strongly as tangible outputs.Employees say this has revived a mild form of presenteeism. It is no longer about sitting for long hours at a desk in the office, but about being constantly visible online.“There is pressure to respond quickly when working from home. Being at the mid-management level, Abhishek said, “I have experienced long online hours and constant messages. However, he favors the hybrid mode at his workplace,” adding, “However, once expectations are clear, it becomes manageable.”The pressure to look often translates into pressure to be available.“No matter where you work, there is always pressure to be available,” Durgesh said. “Availability is often confused with commitment,” he said.Others describe it as less obvious but still persistent. Meghna said that in customer-facing roles, responsiveness is part of the job. “News cycles, customer needs, or urgent developments may sometimes demand quick response beyond regular hours,” he said. “It’s more role-driven than policy-driven pressure.”Hybrid work has blurred time zones and boundaries, making delayed reactions more noticeable. Some professionals say this makes work seem more constant, even when organizations formally promote flexibility.
boundary problem
One theme transcends roles and industries: blurred boundaries.“Yes, the lines can get blurry, especially when working from home,” Meghna said. “It is important to separate and protect personal time to avoid burnout,” he said, referring to conscious efforts to separate the ‘two’ lives.Many professionals say they now rely on deliberate routines—including set work hours, no meeting windows, and strict notification controls—to prevent work from spilling over into personal life.
hybrid mode
As more companies call employees back to the office, the trend of working from home may be slowing down, but it’s not going away. Instead, a mixed compromise is emerging. Offices are increasingly seen as places of collaboration and relationship-building, while focused individual work often continues remotely.Professionals argue that the future of work will depend less on location and more on clarity.“Work-from culture has created an opportunity to build more inclusive, flexible and high-impact teams. The key, Rachit said, is to balance autonomy with clarity – clear priorities, shared expectations and trust-based collaboration. While Abhishek says, “Based on anecdotal experience, WFH works. It saves time, reduces stress and improves focus. With trust, accountability and clear boundaries, WFH is not only convenient – it is a better way of working for modern corporates.”
The culture that started as a necessity has now become a compromise. Companies are rethinking space and culture. Employees are rethinking boundaries and balance. The next phase of work will likely not be as simple as choosing between home and office, but rather about defining how the two can co-exist without compromising productivity or well-being.
