The Hybrid Work Trends That Will Shape 2027 [Webinar]

Here’s a pair of numbers that should make any workplace team pause. Since early 2024, required office days in the US have gone up about 12%. Attendance has gone up 1% to 3%.

Meanwhile, a lot of people quietly started saving a full workday a week with AI. Most of them have no idea what they’re supposed to do with that time.

If you plan the office, all of this lands on you in 2027. The desks, the rooms, the budget, and the policy your CEO wants by Q1.

So we’re putting three hybrid work leaders who study this for a living on one (virtual) stage to argue it out. Kate Lister from Global Workplace Analytics, Debbie Lovich from BCG, and Ryan Anderson from MillerKnoll join us for The Hybrid Work Trends That Will Shape 2027, a live webinar on Tuesday, December 8, at 11 AM ET.

Each of them places a bet on 2027. Then we dig into the 4 trends we think will matter most for facilities, HR, and IT.

Meet the experts placing the bets

Kate Lister has tracked distributed work for more than 20 years as Founding Principal of Global Workplace Analytics. If a trend has no data behind it, she’ll tell you.

Debbie Lovich is a Managing Director and Senior Partner at BCG, where she works with CEOs and boards on how work gets done. Her new book, Make Work Work, comes out November 17, so expect a few ideas from it on the day. One of her findings: employee-centric companies are 7 times as likely to be AI-mature.

Ryan Anderson runs global research and planning at MillerKnoll and hosts the About Place podcast. He just published The Relational Office, based on a survey of 2,050 office workers aged 21 to 29 across 7 countries.

Crispin Piney, OfficeRnD’s Managing Director for the UK and Ireland, hosts.

4 trends we’ll dig into

1. Why office mandates aren’t filling the office

66% of US firms with a set schedule now ask for 3 office days a week. A year ago it was 53%. California moved about 109,000 state workers to 4 days in July, and Canada’s federal public service followed.

Kate takes this one on. Does the gap close in 2027, or do companies start rewriting policies around how people work? Debbie jumps in with what a policy looks like when employees help write it.

2. That extra day a week AI gives people back

In BCG’s survey of 11,749 workers, 42% of regular AI users said they save at least a full workday a week. About 2 in 3 get little or no guidance on what to do with it.

Debbie has strong views on where that day should go. Kate then asks the question facility and IT leaders care about: where is AI saving real time in workplace management today, and which promises should you be skeptical of?

3. What makes the commute worth it

US office visits are still 25.5% below 2019 levels (Placer.ai, September). In Ryan’s survey, half of young professionals said working with their team is the main reason they come in. A quarter said there’s nowhere to just talk.

Ryan shares 1 change you can make in Q1 without a full refit. Kate adds what facilities, HR and IT should connect (booking, visitors, badges, calendars) so the office day goes smoothly for whoever shows up.

4. Full on Tuesday, empty on Friday

CBRE puts average office utilization at 53%, with peaks at 80%. So you size the space for the Tuesday crowd and pay for it all week.

Kate covers which numbers earn a workplace team a seat at the leadership table, and what to bring to your 2027 budget meeting (badge swipes alone won’t do it). Ryan takes the lease question: plan for the peak, the average, or somewhere in between? And what on earth do you do with Friday?

We’ll finish with a lightning round: 1 thing each speaker says you should start, stop or keep doing in Q1 2027. Then it’s your turn, with 15 minutes of live Q&A.

Your free copy of the 2027 trends report

70+ minutes goes fast. So every registrant gets the full PDF report on 2027 hybrid work trends, even if you can’t make it live.

It goes deeper on every trend, with the data and sources behind it, and each one is expanded by the speaker behind it: Kate, Debbie, or Ryan.

Save the date

• What: The Hybrid Work Trends That Will Shape 2027, a live webinar
• When: Tuesday, December 8, 2026, 11 AM ET (4 PM GMT, 5 PM CET)
• How long: about 70 minutes, including 15 minutes of Q&A
• Where: live online
• Who it’s for: facility and workplace managers, HR leaders, and IT teams getting ready for 2027

Got a question your leadership keeps asking you? Bring it along. We’ll get through as many as we can.

Why it’s worth an hour of your December

Your 2027 plans are probably taking shape right now: the budget, the lease renewal, the policy update. This is a chance to test them against 3 people who track this for a living, before Q1 starts.

Registering costs nothing. You get a live seat, a chance to put your own question to the panel, the recording, and the full PDF report.

FAQ

Is the webinar free?

Yes. Registration is free.

Will there be a recording?

Yes. All registrants receive the recording, usually 1 to 3 days after the event.

I can’t make it live. Should I still register?

Yes. You’ll still get the recording and the PDF report.

Can I ask the speakers questions?

Yes. The last 15 minutes are live Q&A, and the panel will answer as many questions as time allows.

What time is it where I am?

11 AM ET is 4 PM in London and 5 PM in Berlin or Paris.