Work From Anywhere, Collaborate Everywhere: Agile in the Era of Hybrid Work

Abstract

Hybrid work, which combines in-office and remote work, gained popularity in the post-pandemic era, yet many organizations continue to struggle with designing practices and policies that balance flexibility, collaboration, and long-term objectives. This research explored hybrid work in agile software engineering through a mixed-methods approach, combining interviews, surveys, and workshops across four Finnish organizations: Ericsson Finland, Kempower, Solita, and Housemarque. In addition, our international survey studies included respondents from across the globe. This research examined hybrid work policies, office co-presence of teams, agile events and practices, knowledge-sharing and social activities, and their perceived impact on productivity, sense of belonging, well-being, and innovation. The findings showed that even though fully flexible hybrid work policies were generally preferred by employees, they also valued coordinated in-person collaboration, especially at the team level. Preferences for office co-presence varied by organizational context, team distribution, role, and individual circumstances—underscoring the limitations of one-size-fits-all solutions in agile environments. The results further indicated that effective hybrid work depended not only on office presence but on the intentional design of agile events, collaboration norms, social and knowledge-sharing practices, and supportive workspaces. Coaching and continuous experimentation emerged as critical mechanisms for sustaining and adapting hybrid practices over time. Based on these insights, the research proposes a conceptual model for organizing hybrid work in agile software engineering and offers actionable recommendations for practitioners. These contributions provide empirical evidence and practical guidance for organizations seeking to balance flexibility with meaningful collaboration.