Gallup’s 2025 Hybrid Work Indicators reveal that 52% of remote-capable employees now work in hybrid models, with this group showing the highest engagement rate at 54%. Yet, many organizations still face half-empty offices, employee frustration, and a fading workplace culture.
In this episode of Disruption Interruption, host Karla Jo Helms (KJ) talks with Micah Remley, CEO of Robin, about how technology is helping companies finally crack the hybrid work code. “People struggle with transitional spaces,” says Remley. “They prefer being fully remote or fully in-office—which fuels the ongoing debate about where work should happen.”
The Culture Crisis Behind the Office Wars
Five years post-pandemic, the return-to-office debate remains one of the most contentious workplace issues. Companies face a fundamental disconnect between leadership wanting to rebuild culture and employees prioritizing work-life balance. The statistics reveal the scope of the problem: 70% of conference room meetings involve just one person sitting alone on video calls, defeating the purpose of being in the office.
“Culture is the tie that binds organizations,” Remley notes. “In a remote world where people are very disconnected, it’s really hard to build that culture. You see employers calling people back to the office because they see this erosion, while employees focus on work-life balance.” The result is a workforce stuck in what Remley calls “liminal spaces”—transitional states that people naturally resist. “Most people deeply struggle with that episodic flexibility because you get stuck in a state of inertia,” he explains.
Robin: Making Hybrid Work Actually Work
Rather than mandating office returns, Robin offers a technology platform that makes hybrid work actually work. The company provides workplace managers with real-time data on how offices are being used, while giving employees tools to coordinate meaningful in-person collaboration. Their approach has yielded impressive results: companies can reduce single-person conference room meetings from 70% to 30% through better coordination.
“We’re a workplace experience platform that helps employees have more positive interactions with the workplace,” Remley explains. The platform integrates with calendars, analyzes meeting room usage, and provides insights on departmental interactions. Research shows that sitting within close proximity to a high performer boosts individual performance by 15% through emulation and peer pressure—benefits that disappear in poorly coordinated hybrid environments.
“The research shows that about half the time in the office gets you the productivity benefits of being in the workplace, while also the flexibility benefits of having time at home. You get both,” concludes. “We’re not just managing flexible work; we’re proving that the future of the office isn’t about mandates but about using data to make in-person work meaningful and collaborative.”
Learn more about the Disruption Interruption episode: Disrupting the Hybrid Workplace Controversy: How Technology is Redefining the Modern Office with Micah Remley
To learn more about how Robin and CEO, Remley, are redefining the hybrid workplace,visit the website here.
Disruption Interruption is the podcast where you will hear from today’s biggest Industry Disruptors. Learn what motivated them to bring about innovation and how they overcame opposition to adoption.
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- Gallup. “Indicator: Hybrid Work.” Gallup.com, 2025, gallup.com/401384/indicator-hybrid-work.aspx#ite-692591.
