Hybrid Work: Balancing Flexibility and Connection Across Offices

Megan Petraszak, Senior Project Interior Designer at RSP, shares her unique perspective on hybrid work and how it helps her understand client challenges more deeply.

Pictured Above: Confidential Utility Client Work Café, Phoenix, AZ | Photography: Jason Roehner

When we think about the hybrid work model, it’s clear that what started as a necessity has become a permanent fixture in the professional world. Hybrid is not an experiment anymore—we’re living in a moment where this work model has evolved to an advanced stage, when both employees and employers have embraced its flexibility and adaptability. And for good reason.

As someone who works out of RSP’s Minneapolis headquarters but collaborates entirely with a team based in Phoenix, my experience with hybrid work is far from typical. I could easily work remotely full-time, yet I still find myself heading into the office some days. This gives me a unique, well-rounded perspective on the hybrid model—a perspective I bring to our clients as they look to create workplaces that support the future of their businesses. Through my own experiences, I’ve gained valuable insights into the balance between remote flexibility and in-person connection, allowing me to help clients design for both.

Staying Connected Remotely

While my physical location is Minneapolis, my entire team operates out of RSP’s Phoenix office. The hybrid work model has allowed me to collaborate with them seamlessly despite the distance or time change. With today’s digital tools, we connect easily—holding meetings, collaborating across disciplines, and communicating as though we’re in the same room. This kind of flexibility is one of the biggest strengths of hybrid work, and it is also a testament to RSP’s commitment to intra-office teamwork. It enables us to break free from geographical limitations, making it easier than ever to bring together diverse perspectives.

Staying Connected in Person

Given that I can work fully remotely and keep pace with my team in Phoenix, why do I still find myself going into the Minneapolis office? It’s often a combination of practical needs and personal connections. Sometimes I need access to onsite resources like the material resource library, large format printing, tech repair, or sample pickups. Other times, it’s for company-wide events, lunch-and-learns with product reps, or a mentoring session. There’s also the draw of catching up with colleagues—coordinating when friends will be in or meeting for happy hour. And, of course, there are onsite meetings with vendors or external collaborators that can’t always be replicated over a screen.

Beyond these day-to-day connections, I also travel to Phoenix at least twice a year, with the Phoenix team facilitating these visits to ensure they’re impactful. These trips go beyond general catch-ups; they’re strategic and intentional, designed to strengthen our bond as a team and advance key projects. During these visits, we focus on project milestones, hold in-depth client meetings, and engage in collaborative sessions that fuel our creativity and alignment as a team. These touchpoints are a vital part of our dynamic, hybrid approach—giving us all a chance to reconnect in person and deepen our shared goals.

A Holistic View of Hybrid Work

My experience of blending remote work with office presence gives me a unique vantage point. I don’t see hybrid work as simply a choice between working from home or going into the office—it’s a fluid model that allows people to craft a work experience that suits their individual needs. Having the flexibility to work where I’m most effective, while still staying connected to both my immediate team in Phoenix and my office in Minneapolis, has deepened my understanding of how hybrid models function in practice. This insight is crucial as I help clients create workplaces that accommodate diverse working styles and enable employees to thrive.

Designing for the Hybrid Future: Balance and Flexibility

When it comes to designing spaces for hybrid work, it’s not just about adding hot desks or video conferencing rooms, although technology does play a large roll in the success of hybrid work. The real challenge is understanding how people want to interact with the space, how they divide their work between home and office, and how to create environments that offer choice, adaptability, and comfort. At home, we have complete control over the environment. We can make it warmer or cooler, play music or maintain silence. That control, whether we realize it or not, boosts productivity.

Clients frequently ask for offices that foster collaboration and social interaction, as well as quiet zones for heads-down work. As designers, we need to ask ourselves: how do we make the office a space people want to come to, even when they don’t have to? And that is also what almost every organization is grappling with—how do we encourage our people to utilize our leased spaces without mandating that they come to the office five days a week?

The Flexibility of Hybrid Work: A Personal Take

What excites me most about hybrid work is the level of choice and control it gives us. I’m able to tailor my workday based on the demands of my projects with how—and where—I can be most productive, whether that’s working remotely to focus or coming into the office to engage with colleagues. Recently, I was even able to work remotely during a trip to Japan, allowing me to experience a new culture while maintaining my project responsibilities. This flexibility not only supports my professional goals but also enables a richer, more dynamic work-life balance that many of us seek today.

This personal experience has shaped my approach to workplace design, where the key is offering environments that support flexibility and different modes of working. Hybrid work empowers employees by giving them options—and that leads to a more motivated and engaged workforce.

This flexibility doesn’t just benefit individuals like me, but it also boosts employee retention and maintains high performance across teams. According to a recent study published in Nature, hybrid work models have been shown to enhance job satisfaction while ensuring productivity remains consistent. The ability to blend remote work with face-to-face interactions helps companies retain talent while still fostering innovation and collaboration. For designers, this balance is especially crucial—we thrive on both independent focus time and the creative energy that comes from collaborating with others in person.

Creating Spaces for Connection and Creativity

One of the most common concerns I hear from clients is how to maintain culture and connection in a hybrid world. They want their spaces to do more than simply house employees; they want them to inspire and bring people together. In a hybrid setting, the office becomes more than just a place to work—it’s a destination for collaboration, socialization, and creative problem-solving. In designing these spaces, we must prioritize areas that encourage social engagement and facilitate spontaneous interactions and deeper relationships, while still offering quiet, focused zones.

Hybrid Work and Its Future

Hybrid work is not a passing trend—it’s a shift in how we approach the workplace. It’s about more than just remote work or in-person attendance; it’s about designing spaces that support the needs of today’s workforce. As someone who embodies the hybrid model, with one foot in the Minneapolis office and the other (remotely) in Phoenix, I’ve gained a holistic view of how to strike this balance. By creating environments that offer both flexibility and connection, we can design workplaces that empower employees and position organizations for long-term success.