Many companies have been advocating for continued work schedule flexibility as there is no difference found in productivity between employees who worked from the office and those who followed the hybrid model, in various studies conducted so far. Let’s know more.
The battle between the flexible work schedule and return-to-office (RTO) mandates is far from over as companies like Amazon, Apple, Google, Citigroup, Salesforce, Zoom, Goldman Sachs, IBM, and JPMorgan commanding their employees to RTO, while many studies and companies have been advocating for continued flexibility as there is no difference found in productivity between employees who worked from the office and those who followed the hybrid model.
Moreover, a structured hybrid work model only enhances employee satisfaction, significantly reduces turnover, and maintains productivity, according to a study by Nicholas Bloom at Trip.com. Its findings indicated that there was a 35% reduction in turnover and increased satisfaction, particularly among women and those with long commutes.
So, it’s doubtful that the issue of what’s right when it comes to workplace flexibility will get resolved anytime soon as on one side, we have Amazon CEO Andy Jassy and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX Elon Musk pushing the topic for RTO mandates, the other side we have the accounting firms – Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PwC – following a flexible work schedule, prioritising their employees’ choices about how and where they like to work.
While the debate over the hybrid work model and RTO mandates continues, we bring you some of the prominent companies that are still following a flexible work schedule for their employees in 2025.
Nvidia: Based in California, the software company has a flexible work policy that allows employees to work remotely, in the office, or follow the hybrid mode. CEO Jensen Huang earlier maintained that he had no issue with the idea of employees working from home indefinitely. It offers remote employment opportunities in departments including sales, engineering and business development. Further, it has no plans to mandate its employees to RTO even though more than $1 Tn company operates offices in more than 50 locations across the world.
Microsoft: The software conglomerate, based in the US, offers flexible work schedules, paid time off, social clubs, wellness reimbursement, among other benefits. Under its flexible work approach, job openings are listed as one of the three categories – up to 50% work from home, up to 100% work from home, or Microsoft on-site. “We value and support flexibility as part of our hybrid workplace where every employee can do their best work by working the way they work best,” according to Microsoft website.
Spotify: The music platform has a “work from anywhere” policy, allowing employees to choose their work location, provided they are based in a country where Spotify has a legal entity, and they can choose between working mainly from home or office, with the option to switch every 12 months. Headquartered in Sweden, the company introduced a “work from anywhere” policy in 2021, which leadership has no plans to change anytime soon.
Zillow: It offers a flexible work environment, with 97% of its employees having the flexibility to work from the office, home, or a combination of both, depending on their role and productivity. “Then, while other companies debated what to do once the pandemic eases, we saw an opportunity to permanently redefine the future of flexible work,” said the Zillow website. The Seattle-based company utilises a Cloud HQ environment to allow workers to operate where they’re most productive.
American Express: The financial services company offers a flexible working model called “Amex Flex”, allowing employees to work onsite, in a hybrid model (a mix of in-office and virtual days), or fully virtually, depending on their role and business needs. “Leading the way with opportunities all around the world, Amex Flex provides greater flexibility to colleagues while ensuring we preserve the important aspects of our unique in-person culture,” according to its website.
Shopify: Shopify continues to embrace a fully remote working model, allowing employees to work from anywhere without a mandatory RTO. Offering scalability, flexibility, and a wealth of features, Shopify, based in Canada, enables businesses to grow seamlessly, adapt to new trends, and meet evolving customer demands. The e-commerce platform uses a strategy called “Digital by Design”, which allows employees to work from anywhere.
Pinterest: Pinterest’s approach to work is known as PinFlex, which the company describes as a “flexible work model where the type of work guides the collaboration style”. “For roles that can be performed anywhere, we encourage employees to work where they choose within their country or region, whether that’s at home, at a Pinterest office, or another virtual location,” its website said. Pinterest employees can participate in work from anywhere. This benefit allows eligible full-time employees to spend up to 90 days working outside of their country of employment over a rolling 12-month period.
DoorDash: Unlike jobs with fixed schedules, DoorDash, the largest food delivery service in the US, allows employees to choose when and where they want to work. Whether they prefer to work during mornings, afternoons, evenings, or weekends, they can set their own hours to fit their lifestyle. DoorDash does not hire delivery drivers, instead use independent contractors to deliver food around cities. Drivers are called Dashers, and they find deliveries through the Dasher app.
Visa: Visa, an American multinational payment card services corporation headquartered in California, offers flexible work arrangements, including hybrid options where employees can split their time between remote and office work, with a general guideline of being in the office 50% or more of the time based on business needs. About 90% of the company roles are designated as hybrid, and employees in this group are expected to work in-office a minimum of three days a week.
Workday: The recruitment and human resources platform, based in California, employs a Flex Work model, in which there are no number of required days in-office each week. “We offer flexible working hours as an indicator of the high-trust work environment at Workday. Flexible working hours support our Diversity and Inclusion strategy and reflect the modern organisation that we are…Consider flexibility from a ‘why not’ point of view, as most roles should lend themselves to some level of flexibility,” according to its website.
Yahoo! Inc: The global media and tech company, based in California, with sites like Yahoo Sports, Yahoo Finance, Yahoo Fantasy and Yahoo Mail, offers a flexible work schedule. The company hires for remote engineering, media, finance and marketing positions. In 2022, it removed the residency requirement that employees should live within commuting distance to arrive at the office by 11 am, further expanding flexible work options. Currently, the employee attendance rate is about 15%.
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