Freelancing vs. Full-Time Remote Work

Commuting has always been a necessary part of an in-person work schedule, but workers are increasingly dissatisfied with the long trek in, and they have been adjusting their commute times and workday accordingly. Unfortunately, the trend of changing transit times has cut into actual time spent in the office, with more employees heading in later and leaving earlier. View the full article

As workplace culture continues to evolve, remote and hybrid work schedules are here to stay– and newly flexible schedules are shaping employee behavior and office culture in ways that demand new vocabulary. Every day, it feels like new terms pop up in the workplace lexicon to describe new trends that have emerged. From #Worktok to polyworking, here are 2024’s biggest workplace buzzwords, inspired by the 2024 State of Hybrid Work. You’ll notice that many of them are shaped by the popularity of hybrid and remote work. View the full article

Owl Labs today released its eighth annual State of Hybrid Work Report. Owl Labs surveyed 2,000 full-time knowledge workers in the United States to uncover the latest trends and perspectives around remote and hybrid work. Findings include a crackdown on coffee badging, appreciation for the “green flag boss,” office avoidance due to political talk during election season, and employees posting complaints on #WorkTok and other social media. View the full article

We’ve all had it happen to us before: you go to hop on a video call and are met with blurry, grainy video instead of getting the clear face-to-face chat you were expecting. No platform is immune: whether you use Zoom, Teams, Google Meet or another video conferencing platform, it’s a common issue. View the full article

At Owl Labs, we’re committed to making hybrid meetings as seamless and inclusive as possible. Our latest software (6.5) significantly enhances our video conferencing ecosystem with new features for the Meeting Owl, Owl Bar, and the Meeting Owl app. Let’s dive into these updates and discover how they can improve your hybrid meeting experience. View the full article

Designing the most ideal office setup has never been a more open-ended process since hybrid work has become the norm. Enterprise technology tools have become essential for large businesses trying to stay connected across multiple offices. In fact, 83% of businesses with over 250 employees use video collaboration solutions. Balancing price, compatibility, and adaptability when deciding on your business technology can be hard, especially with multiple offices, but there doesn’t have to be a tradeoff when you choose a technology franchise that works seamlessly across locations. Video conferencing can make your workplace more efficient, but it’s dependent on which enterprise…

Every teacher wants to engage with their students well, which can be no easy feat in a hybrid classroom. Hybrid learning is any combination of remote and in-person learning. It’s a format that has grown in popularity in recent years, meaning more teachers are navigating a new style of instruction. Hybrid learning can include a mix of remote and in-person learners or elements of blended learning, like scheduling some sessions fully remotely or asynchronously and others in-person. Hybrid learning can be a huge asset to differentiate instruction and let students learn at their own pace. Still, teachers need to be intentional about how they execute a hybrid format to create e…

Being part of a remote or hybrid team can sometimes feel lonely, disconnected, or just lacking in the day-to-day office banter. And while having the right tech is the leading way to engage hybrid and remote teams, Slack and other team-building apps create an easy platform to initiate casual conversations throughout the workday, fostering a more inclusive environment. Whether you’re managing a Slack team or participating in groups in Slack, there are plenty of creative ways to engage with your colleagues and enhance team cohesion. View the full article

We often think of technology as a new app or the latest smartphone, but few of us think of the power tech has in education. Although some time might have passed since you were last in school, tech is being used to update and advance our current education system. View the full article

Hybrid meetings have become the norm, making hybrid technology that fosters engaging and productive collaboration vital for any business. Yet, according to the 2023 State of Hybrid Work report, only 37% of employers upgraded their video meeting technology in 2023. For enterprise businesses navigating the modern workplace, finding the right hybrid collaboration solutions is key to unlocking seamless communication and productivity. View the full article

During more than a full school year of remote learning, millions of educators and students participated in the largest distance learning experiment ever seen. New educational technology tools that embraced video connection and collaborative workspaces showed us all the potential of the classroom of the future. View the full article

Effective collaboration is essential for driving innovation and success in today's fast-paced business world. For enterprise businesses navigating the challenges of the modern workplace, embracing hybrid collaboration tools is key to unlocking seamless communication and productivity. View the full article

Dive into the transformation of workplace communication with this detailed look at Microsoft Teams. With a vast user base exceeding 300 million, Teams has evolved into a cultural staple, providing effortless collaboration and integrated features for advanced video conferencing experiences in 2024 and beyond. View the full article

Video conferencing meetings are central to the way we work. Whether your team is in-office, hybrid, or remote, most meetings have at least one remote participant. Face-to-face communication is important, even if you can't all meet in person. With the right video conferencing platforms and solutions, teams can work together or with customers and clients effectively, no matter where they're located. View the full article

Since its inception in 2017, the Meeting Owl has revolutionized how teams collaborate in hybrid work environments. From the introduction of the original Meeting Owl to the latest addition, the Meeting Owl 4+, Owl Labs has continued to adapt and improve over the years. Each updated Meeting Owl - along with integrated devices like the Whiteboard Owl, Expansion Mic, and Owl Bar - allows teams to enhance communication, foster collaboration, and drive productivity better. Hybrid work models can be complex, but the Owl Labs ecosystem provides a seamless solution that empowers teams to connect, engage, and innovate confidently from anywhere. View the full article

Hybrid events are more than just live-streamed conferences or video broadcasts of in-person events. When done right, they allow all participants to immerse themselves in the programming and engage with each other in real-time. What’s more, 91% of event marketers think hybrid formats will be important in future event planning. View the full article

Hybrid meetings have now become the norm, and the hybrid technology that makes collaboration engaging and productive has become vital for any business. That’s why, we’re excited to introduce the Meeting Owl 4+, our next-generation all-in-one camera, speaker, and microphone device designed to power hybrid collaboration in any type of workspace. Combining 4K Ultra HD 360° video with award-winning speaker-switching software and enterprise-focused features, the Meeting Owl 4+ wirelessly pairs with our ecosystem of devices to capture all angles of the discussion so you don’t miss a thing. View the full article

Team meetings are beneficial to keep everyone aligned no matter where they're located. If you're a remote team manager or a leader within your company, it's important to consider every time you ask your team to join a meeting if the meeting is necessary, beneficial to everyone involved, and at a time that is convenient to all remote team members. View the full article

Managing students in the classroom can be a challenge on its own, but teachers are now faced with the difficult task of facilitating students both in the classroom and from home now that hybrid learning has become so prevalent. Transitioning to hybrid learning is bound to come with some challenges, but by investing in the right classroom technology tools those challenges can easily be overcome. View the full article

IT departments are the backbone of any modern company, but they're only as strong as the software that supports them. They're responsible for employee technology, company security, data infrastructure, and more. Though their work days may often consist of telling people to “Try turning it off and turning it back on again,” the support they provide is essential for any company, from large enterprise organizations to new small businesses. View the full article

What would you do with a three-day weekend? You might spend more time with your family, catch up on a hobby or project, or learn to cook something new. The popularity of remote and hybrid work has many employers reexamining what styles of work make for the happiest and most productive employees. Many of those employers have decided to try something that would have been considered radical just a few years ago: a four-day workweek. View the full article

Hybrid work has surged in popularity in recent years, rapidly becoming the preferred model for countless organizations worldwide. This rise in popularity can be attributed to several factors, including advancements in technology that enable seamless remote collaboration, the growing emphasis on work-life balance, and the realization that hybrid arrangements offer the flexibility and autonomy that many employees crave. View the full article

With the rise of hybrid and asynchronous work schedules, we’re willing to bet you rarely – if ever – stroll casually over to a coworker's desk to discuss the details of an upcoming project. View the full article

Owl Labs recently released new survey data about the state of today’s workplace, four years after the COVID-19 pandemic began. Surveying more than 500 full-time knowledge workers across the United States after the annual New Year return to office (RTO) push, the data provides a pulse check on the current state of hybrid work, demonstrating that many employers are grappling with a desire to return to pre-pandemic policies despite employee resistance to attempts to turn back the clock. View the full article

In recent years, the work landscape has transformed, driven by the rise of hybrid work models. No longer confined to traditional office spaces, professionals now have the flexibility to blend remote work with in-person collaboration, and that flexibility is not something that most people want to give up. Hybrid work is here to stay. The shift towards hybrid work comes with its own set of challenges and opportunities, particularly when applying effective leadership strategies to manage hybrid teams. Navigating the unique dynamics of hybrid teams requires a nuanced understanding of their composition, challenges, and opportunities. Let’s take a closer look. 1. Understan…