The collaboration mandate: Does returning to the office improve innovation?

The battle between remote and in-office work seems to be tipping in favor of the latter, with major players like Amazon, Disney, Google and Meta leading the charge back to traditional office environments. These companies argue that in-person collaboration is essential for sparking creativity and driving innovation. Amazon is set to enforce a five-day office workweek starting in January 2025, while Disney, Google and Meta have opted for at least three days, each emphasizing that face-to-face interactions are critical to creative success. This shift reflects broader concerns about hybrid work. A July 2024 study found that hybrid employees generated fewer and lower-quality innovative ideas than their fully in-office counterparts.

However, advocates of hybrid work continue to assert that flexibility is its greatest strength, fueling both creativity and innovation. They argue that hybrid models grant employees the autonomy to design their workdays around personal productivity peaks, while eliminating the time sink of commuting. Proponents also point to research indicating that this flexibility encourages experimentation and nurtures the generation of new ideas. Furthermore, they believe it accelerates organizational agility, empowering teams to swiftly respond to market shifts and sustain innovation at a faster, more efficient pace.

While the debate is far from over, one thing is clear: companies are bringing employees back to the office. Growing concerns over the impact of hybrid work on innovation and other matters have prompted 70 percent of organizations to plan for more in-office days by 2025. But there’s a bigger question at play: will the return to the office (RTO) truly reignite innovation, or will it just pull us back to outdated pre-pandemic collaboration habits?

Inneffective collaboration practices

The truth is, our collaboration practices weren’t all that effective before the pandemic. We relied too much on chance encounters rather than intentionally cultivating bridging relationships, and we often failed to protect time for deep focus and team concentration. The pandemic exposed these cracks, yet instead of fixing them, we seem more preoccupied with getting people back into physical spaces. But reverting to old habits won’t drive the breakthroughs companies covet.

What we may need isn’t an office mandate—it’s a “collaboration mandate.” Shifting our focus from where we work to how we work could unlock the innovation we’re seeking. To truly drive innovation, we must first consider three critical phases of collaboration that are essential for building out innovation: discovery, development, and scaling.

Innovation typically unfolds across these stages and yet the collaboration patterns necessary for each vary significantly. Discovery involves generating new ideas and insights, often benefiting from the intentional bridging of connections and in-person interactions. Development is about transforming those ideas into viable solutions, where the focused team interactions of experimentation and rapid iteration are essential. It also requires an environment with minimal distraction for focused concentration. Scaling, on the other hand, is the process of implementing solutions across the organization, which requires more deliberate interactions with key influencers to ensure widespread adoption and buy-in.

In the era of man vs. machine, humans benefit from the power of their social capital, said Michael Arena, thought leader, researcher and PEX Network columnist, at All Access: Digital Transformation in HR

Each phase of collaboration tends to thrive in different environments. For instance, fostering bridge connections is often more effective in an in-office setting, while deep concentration can be better achieved remotely. However, merely shifting the environment doesn’t guarantee effective collaboration. The true challenge lies not in choosing one work model over another, but in aligning our collaboration strategies to match the various stages of the innovation process.

The discovery stage: A mixed bag

In the early days of the pandemic, remote work caused a noticeable decline in idea discovery. For example, one tech company reported a 24 percent drop in time spent on idea generation and brainstorming sessions. The absence of spontaneous "watercooler" moments—the unplanned, casual interactions that often spark creativity—was one of the major culprits behind this decline. Without the informal collisions that physical offices foster, employees were less likely to stumble upon the kind of unexpected insights that drive innovation.

As organizations adjusted to the new work reality, we found that even minimal in-person time could help rebuild crucial creative connections. Research from Worklytics shows that just one day per month in the office can boost cross-functional collaboration by up to 90 percent (see figure 1). However, this alone doesn’t guarantee the creative sparks that bridging interactions aim to ignite. Who you connect with—and on what topics—matters significantly, mandating a deliberate approach to discovery. Requiring more intention than simply returning to the office.

Figure 1. Cross Functional Collaboration 

The development stage: Remote work's hidden strength

Unlike the discovery phase, the development stage of innovation—where ideas transform into tangible solutions—thrives in remote settings. This stage demands deep, uninterrupted focus, which is often more achievable outside the office, free from constant disruptions. Mandating office days during this phase can actually hinder productivity; employees report up to a 42 percent drop in focus because of in-office distractions. Worklytics data indicates that high levels of focus, such as 4.4 hours daily versus a low focus level of 2.7 hours, significantly drive productivity in development (see figure 2). This focused work is often better supported in quieter, or remote environments.

The challenge of maintaining "heads-down" focus amid office noise, impromptu meetings and frequent interruptions underscores the need for dedicated time and space. When employees are afforded this environment, they can develop more effective solutions. In the development phase, the mandate is clear: create space for sustained focus and structure within team interactions.

Figure 2. Amount of Focus Time

The scaling stage: The remote dilemma

Scaling innovation demands a unique set of connections that often falter in a fully remote setup. Effective scaling hinges on diagonal collaboration with influential leaders across the organization—ties that remote work has been shown to weaken, especially among senior leadership.

In one fully remote tech company, the impact was stark: executives experienced a staggering 3.5 times drop in cross-group connections, while managers saw a 2.7 times decline. This erosion in relationships in a fully remote environment hit leaders hardest, far more than the average employee, underscoring the challenges they face in sustaining influence and driving collaboration from a distance. Without these vital cross-functional links, scaling innovation across the organization becomes an uphill struggle, potentially robbing teams of the momentum needed for transformative growth.

Collaboration mandate practices

To support a collaboration mandate based on the phases of discovery, development and scaling, here are a few potential practices for each stage:

1. Discovery phase: Foster intentional connections

Discovery interventions: Organize specific "discovery days" each month where cross-functional teams gather for brainstorming sessions. These days can be designed to intentionally recreate the "watercooler" moments by encouraging informal interactions, coffee breaks and idea-sharing spaces.

Hear about hybrid work and the future from Michael Arena, dean at Crowell School of Business, Biola University Crowell School of Business, who presented at PEX Network's All Access: Digital Transformation in HR

Cross-functional workshops: Create workshops that encourage employees from different departments to collaborate on new ideas, helping bridge gaps between siloed teams.

Mandate “Collision Days”: Designate at least one in-office day per month specifically aimed at idea generation and cross-functional brainstorming. Facilitate curated interactions by creating open-door policies during this time for leaders, innovators and adjacent team members to encourage casual knowledge sharing.

Cross-functional pods: Organize small groups across departments focused on emergent challenges or trending market insights. Rotate these pods every few months to foster fresh perspectives and dynamic problem-solving.

2. Development phase: Focused flexibility

Implement “Focus Blocks”: Institute specific, no-meeting blocks weekly to preserve uninterrupted time for deep work across teams. Communicate the critical role of focused work in the development stage and avoid mandating in-office time for roles deeply engaged in product development.

Foster structured team syncs: Schedule structured, agenda-driven check-ins at key project milestones to maintain alignment and progress without disrupting focus. Consider asynchronous updates to minimize disruptions.

Equip teams for quiet zones: Encourage remote setups that support productivity and provide noise-canceling equipment or access to quiet zones for office work, ensuring development teams can focus regardless of environment.

3. Scaling phase: Strengthen cross-functional leadership connections

Facilitate "Diagonal Networking" days: Dedicate one to two days each quarter for in-office or virtual connection sessions between leadership and mid-level managers across different functions. These sessions could focus on scaling strategies, resource sharing, and process alignment.

Assign a "broker" role: For large-scale initiatives, assign a team member responsible for bridging departments and maintaining key connections across teams. This person proactively identifies barriers and opportunities for cross-functional synergy.

Influencer meeting: Mandate hybrid meetings where key influencers and stakeholders gather in person, but also provide virtual participation options for wider involvement. This ensures critical connections are maintained while enabling broader engagement.

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