Will Marketers Return to Offices in 2021? What Companies Need to Know [Data + Expert Tips]

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted traditional office life and forced companies worldwide into a sudden, massive experiment in remote work. Now, as vaccination rates rise and offices reopen, business leaders face a pivotal question: do employees even want to go back?

For marketing teams, the answer is far from simple. In an informal poll of marketers, we found an almost perfect 50/50 split between those hoping to remain fully remote and those wanting to return to an office at least a few days per week.

As a marketing manager, how can you craft a workplace strategy that meets the needs and preferences of all your employees in this new hybrid world? And what does this shift mean for productivity, collaboration, culture and the future of work in our field?

To find out, we surveyed 400+ marketers and spoke with experts at top remote-friendly companies. Here‘s a deeper look at the data and insights that can help you lead your team into the post-COVID workplace.

Marketers Are Divided on Returning to Offices

Our research found that, if given the option to go back to a physical workplace in 2021, 40% of marketers would choose to continue working remotely full-time. An additional 11% don‘t currently have the ability to work remotely but wish they did.

However, a nearly equal share do want the option to work from an office at least part of the time. Of the 49% in favor of some in-office work:

• 24% would go to an office full-time if available (even though they could stay remote)
• 16% prefer a flexible schedule mixing remote and in-office days
• 9% are eager to get back to their desk as soon as possible

Interestingly, we found significant variations in remote work preferences based on age:

Age Group	Prefer Full-Time Remote	Prefer Some Office Time
18-24	19%	81%
25-34	31%	69%
35-44	42%	58%
45-54	53%	47%
55+	62%	38%

Younger marketers are much more likely to want a physical workplace to go to, while the majority of those 45+ would opt to stay remote permanently. This may be because more experienced marketers have already built strong networks and are more accustomed to independent work, while entry-level employees crave face-to-face interaction and mentorship.

We also saw differences by gender, with 48% of men preferring full-time remote compared to just 33% of women. Marketers with young children at home were also more likely to favor a remote-only arrangement (53%) versus those without kids (36%).

There‘s no one-size-fits-all answer, but the key takeaway is that flexibility is paramount. The most desirable post-pandemic workplaces will be those that allow marketers to choose the environment that enables them to do their best work.

The Challenges and Opportunities of Hybrid Marketing Teams

A hybrid workplace model — with some employees in an office and others remote — is new territory for most marketing leaders. While this approach empowers individual choice, it also creates some unique challenges that managers must proactively navigate.

Communication & Collaboration

By far the top concern marketers cited about hybrid teams was effective collaboration, with 45% worried about the impact of having some team members in-person and others virtual. An additional 26% fear that remote employees will miss out on important information shared in the office.

To mitigate these risks, managers must be intentional about implementing tools and norms that enable seamless communication from anywhere:

• Invest in reliable video conferencing and instant messaging platforms
• Default to digital channels for all group communications
• Establish virtual-first meeting policies (i.e. all participants dial in separately vs. some in a room together)
• Create rituals that build team bonds remotely, like virtual happy hours or async check-ins
• Be mindful of different schedules and time zones when planning real-time collaboration

Hybrid teams also need robust content collaboration and project management solutions to stay aligned without the convenience of office drop-bys. Cloud-based tools like Google Workspace, Trello, Asana, and Figma keep everyone on the same page and maintain transparency whether you‘re at your desk or your dining room table.

Culture & Relationships

Another big concern about the hybrid model is the potential impact on company culture and social capital. 38% of marketers worry that remote team members will feel left out of office culture and relationship-building.

Indeed, research shows that remote workers are more likely to feel professionally and socially isolated than their in-office peers. This not only hurts engagement and morale, but can have serious consequences for mental health and productivity.

To combat this, managers need to prioritize virtual team-building and create explicit opportunities for remote employees to connect casually with office-based colleagues. Some ideas:

• Host virtual coffee chats, lunches, or game sessions to foster "water cooler" conversations
• Create Slack channels around shared interests where all can participate equally
• Celebrate birthdays, work anniversaries, and other milestones in ways that include everyone
• Encourage office employees to be mindful about relationship-building (i.e. take a walk to catch up with a remote colleague vs. chatting in-person)
• Check in regularly with remote team members to ensure they feel included and valued

Ultimately, the goal is to shift culture away from an office-centric model to one that makes all employees feel equally engaged regardless of location. This requires leaders to model and incentivize inclusive behaviors until they become ingrained norms.

Career Development

A final challenge of hybrid teams is ensuring that remote workers have equal access to growth and advancement opportunities. 40% of marketers say working remotely during COVID negatively impacted their career progress, and over half worry that their performance will be evaluated unfairly compared to in-office peers.

To address this, managers must put clear systems in place to track and reward the output of all team members, not just those they see every day:

• Set measurable goals and KPIs for every role that can be regularly reviewed
• Establish standard project briefs and post-mortem templates to assess quality of work
• Use a centralized platform to document wins and archive exemplary deliverables
• Create an even playing field for promotions by using objective performance data
• Offer remote employees stretch projects and high-visibility opportunities to advance

Hybrid managers must also invest extra effort to have impactful career conversations with remote team members. Set aside dedicated time for development-focused 1:1s at least quarterly, and work together on an actionable plan to achieve their goals. Make it clear that location will never be a barrier to growth.

Harnessing the Benefits of Flexibility

While hybrid work comes with hurdles, it also presents a huge opportunity for marketing organizations to boost diversity, productivity and engagement by giving employees the freedom to work how they work best.

The flexibility to skip a draining commute, take walking 1:1s, design a personalized schedule, and hire talent from anywhere can be game-changing for teams and individuals alike — as long as leaders are proactive in shaping an intentional hybrid culture.

Some strategies progressive companies are using to maximize the upside of a hybrid workplace include:

• Shifting to an objectives-based model that prioritizes results over face time
• Instituting "core collaboration hours" when meetings happen and async/focus time outside those windows
• Providing home office stipends and remote work resources to ensure equal access
• Offering mental health days and flexible PTO policies that support work-life integration
• Hosting regular pulse surveys and town halls to understand and address hybrid pain points
• Measuring the employee experience and promotion rates across in-office and remote to spot disparities

A hybrid workplace will look different for every marketing team, but the most successful models will be grounded in trust, transparency, and a genuine commitment to employee choice and wellbeing.

The Future of Work for Marketers: Predictions & Advice

So what does the rise of remote and hybrid work mean for the future of marketing careers? While the full impacts remain to be seen, our research and interviews with industry leaders point to a few key predictions:

1. The 9-5 office schedule is dead. Post-COVID, the majority of companies will adopt a flex work policy that empowers marketers to set their own hours and locations based on their needs and job responsibilities. Rather than defaulting to the office, teams will think critically about which activities are best suited for in-person vs. virtual collaboration.

2. Async work will become the norm. With colleagues spread across time zones and schedules, more communication will shift to asynchronous channels like email, Slack, and project management tools. Meetings will be reserved for brainstorms, decision-making, and relationship-building. The ability to work independently and communicate clearly in writing will be critical skills.

3. Hybrid management will be an essential competency. Marketing leaders will need to develop new muscles in building culture, trust, and accountability across in-office and remote teams. Empathy, emotional intelligence, and strong communication will be non-negotiable. Managers who cling to command-and-control supervision will struggle to attract and retain top talent.

4. Remote-first practices will give companies a hiring edge. Organizations that embrace virtual-first collaboration and invest in a world-class remote employee experience will gain a significant advantage in the battle for marketing talent. Location-agnostic hiring will also allow teams to access a more diverse candidate pool and build more inclusive cultures.

5. Marketers will have more career options than ever. The normalization of remote work will open up job opportunities far beyond a commutable radius. Marketers will increasingly build boundaryless careers, seeking out companies that align with their preferred lifestyle and work style. Those who thrive working autonomously will have the freedom to join fully-distributed teams or start their own remote-friendly businesses.

Navigating this landscape will require marketing managers to lead with flexibility, intentionality, and a steadfast focus on enabling their teams to do great work from anywhere. By proactively designing a hybrid strategy that prioritizes equity and engagement, you can unlock new levels of productivity and purpose in the post-pandemic world of work.

The office as we once knew it may be gone, but something better is taking shape — and marketers have the opportunity to be at the forefront of architecting what comes next. The future of work is ours to imagine. Let‘s build it together.