Hybrid Work Infrastructure Report 2026

Hybrid work infrastructure is the combination of tools, policies, physical spaces, and governance systems that enable employees to work effectively across multiple locations. It goes beyond remote work technology: infrastructure implies control and visibility, not just access.

This report draws on Croissant's platform data to examine what hybrid work infrastructure actually includes, how the major models differ in their requirements, and where most organizations have significant gaps in their workspace management layer.

Key findings from the Croissant platform

Croissant's booking data across thousands of workspaces tells a story that challenges what many assume about hybrid work. The patterns are clear, and they point to a fundamental shift in how distributed teams operate.

• Workspace access has become a governance problem, not a perk. Companies treating flexible workspace as an employee benefit rather than managed infrastructure see significantly higher spend variance and lower utilization.
• Wednesday and Thursday dominate collaboration. These two days account for the majority of team bookings. Employees have organically built mid-week rhythms for in-person work without being told to.
• Vendor fragmentation remains the norm. Most distributed companies manage four or more separate coworking contracts, reimbursement processes, or ad-hoc arrangements before consolidating.
• Utilization correlates with policy clarity. Teams with defined workspace budgets and booking guidelines show markedly higher engagement than those with open-ended stipends.

What hybrid work infrastructure actually includes

Hybrid work infrastructure blends digital and physical tools to allow employees to work seamlessly across homes, offices, and flexible workspaces. It goes beyond remote work technology. Infrastructure implies governance, not just access.

Think of hybrid work infrastructure as the operational backbone that makes distributed work sustainable over time. Communication platforms, security systems, and cloud storage all play a role. But the systems that govern how employees find, book, and access physical workspace are equally critical, and often overlooked.

• Digital layer: Communication tools, project management, cloud storage, and security systems that enable work from anywhere.
• Physical layer: Office space, coworking access, meeting rooms, and the booking systems that manage them.
• Governance layer: Policies, budgets, approval workflows, and analytics that control how workspace is used and paid for.

Most companies have invested heavily in the first two layers. The governance layer, especially for physical workspace, is where gaps tend to emerge.

The four main hybrid work models

Infrastructure requirements vary significantly depending on which model a company adopts. Understanding your model helps clarify what systems you actually require.

Office-first hybrid

Employees work primarily from a central office with occasional remote days. Infrastructure centers on desk booking, attendance tracking, and meeting room management. The physical footprint remains largely traditional.

Flexible hybrid

No fixed schedule exists here: employees choose when to come in. This model demands real-time space availability and more sophisticated booking systems. Without careful management, it often leads to underutilized office space.

Remote-first with hub and spoke

Teams are distributed by default, with regional hubs or on-demand access points for collaboration. External workspace access becomes essential, along with vendor management and spend controls.

Fully distributed

No central office exists. Infrastructure focuses entirely on providing workspace access wherever employees are located. Platforms like Croissant become the primary workspace layer, replacing traditional real estate with managed access to thousands of locations.

The hybrid work infrastructure stack

A complete hybrid infrastructure spans six layers. Most organizations have mature solutions for communication and security, yet significant gaps remain in workspace management.

Workspace and space management

Workspace management covers the systems that let employees find, book, and access physical workspaces, whether internal offices, coworking spaces, or meeting rooms. This layer directly affects employee experience and real estate costs, yet it remains the most overlooked component of hybrid infrastructure for many organizations.

Communication and collaboration tools

Video conferencing, messaging, and async tools form the foundation of distributed work. Most teams are already familiar with this layer. The key consideration is how communication tools connect to workspace decisions, such as Slack integrations that let employees book rooms without switching apps.

Cloud storage and file management

Location-agnostic access to documents is table stakes for hybrid work. This layer enables employees to work from any location without friction around file access.

Security and access controls

Single sign-on (SSO), VPNs, and endpoint management protect distributed workforces. Security complexity increases as employees work from more locations and networks, making zero-trust architecture (where every access request is verified regardless of location) increasingly common.

People analytics and utilization data

Analytics tools track how space and tools are used. Understanding where employees actually work, and how often, informs real estate decisions and policy adjustments over time.

Finance, procurement, and spend controls

This layer governs how workspace is purchased and budgeted. Workspace spend is emerging as a distinct category, similar to software or travel, requiring its own controls and visibility.

Workspace management as the missing layer in hybrid infrastructure

Here's the gap most companies face: employees have Slack and Zoom, but no centralized way to access or book physical workspaces.

The result is fragmentation. Different teams use different coworking providers. Employees submit expense reports for ad-hoc workspace purchases. Finance has no visibility into total workspace spend. HR cannot enforce policies about where or how often employees work in person.

• The problem: Fragmented vendors, manual reimbursements, no visibility into who's working where.
• The gap: No single system governs workspace access the way IT systems govern software or travel platforms govern business trips.
• The shift: Workspace management is now an infrastructure requirement, not an employee benefit.

Platforms that combine employee flexibility with enterprise-grade controls are gaining traction for this reason. The goal isn't to restrict where people work. It's to make workspace access as manageable as any other operational category.

Governing workspace spend across a distributed workforce

Flexibility without governance creates operational chaos. The challenge is giving employees freedom to access workspace while maintaining visibility and control.

Centralized booking and access

A single system for employees to find and book workspace reduces friction and improves adoption. When booking is easy, through an app or Slack integration, employees actually use the benefit. When booking requires expense reports or manual approvals, utilization drops.

Automated budget and policy controls

Companies can set per-employee or per-team budgets and define policies around workspace types, locations, or booking frequency. Manual approvals don't scale for distributed teams. Automated controls let employees self-serve while staying within guardrails.

Vendor consolidation and procurement

A single platform can replace multiple coworking contracts and reimbursement processes. The procurement benefits are significant: one invoice, one vendor relationship, and a complete audit trail. Finance teams gain visibility they've never had into workspace spend.

How to build a hybrid work infrastructure strategy

Building effective hybrid infrastructure isn't about buying more tools. It's about understanding current gaps and consolidating around systems that provide both flexibility and control.

Step 1: Audit current workspace and tool usage

Start by inventorying existing tools, office leases, coworking memberships, and reimbursement spend. Identify gaps and redundancies. Most companies discover they're paying for overlapping solutions or have no visibility into significant spend categories.

Step 2: Define hybrid policies and budgets

Decide what flexibility employees have, what the company will fund, and what guardrails exist. Ambiguity here leads to inconsistent experiences and uncontrolled spend.

Step 3: Consolidate vendors into a single platform

Move from fragmented coworking contracts to a unified workspace management layer. Croissant, for example, replaces multiple vendor relationships with a single platform covering thousands of workspaces globally.

Step 4: Roll out with clear guardrails for employees

Communicate policies, provide training, and make booking easy. Employee experience matters as much as governance: if the system is cumbersome, adoption suffers.

Step 5: Review utilization data and adjust

Use analytics to understand what's working. Adjust budgets, policies, and space mix based on actual usage patterns rather than assumptions.

Measuring utilization, workspace spend, and ROI

Without a centralized platform, tracking workspace metrics is nearly impossible. With one, metrics become the foundation for continuous improvement.

• Utilization rate: The percentage of available workspace that's actually used. Low utilization signals over-provisioning or poor employee experience.
• Cost per booking: Total workspace spend divided by number of bookings. This reveals efficiency and helps benchmark against alternatives.
• Employee adoption: The percentage of eligible employees actively using workspace benefits. Low adoption often indicates friction in the booking process.
• Vendor consolidation savings: The reduction in administrative overhead and negotiated rates from consolidating multiple contracts into one platform.

Where hybrid work infrastructure is headed

Workspace is becoming a managed category, similar to SaaS or corporate travel. The companies building infrastructure today are positioning themselves for a future where on-demand access replaces long-term leases, and platforms combine employee flexibility with enterprise controls.

The shift is already underway. Organizations that treat workspace as infrastructure, not a perk, gain visibility, control costs, and deliver better employee experiences.

Frequently asked questions about hybrid work infrastructure

What are the four pillars of hybrid work?

The four pillars typically refer to flexibility, technology, culture, and physical space. Each pillar addresses a different dimension of making hybrid work sustainable, from the tools employees use to the policies that govern when and where they work.

Is hybrid work typically two or three days in the office?

It varies by company. Most hybrid policies fall between two and three required in-office days per week, though fully flexible models are increasingly common among distributed organizations.

What does 40/60 hybrid work mean?

A 40/60 hybrid model means employees spend roughly 40% of their time in-office and 60% remote, or vice versa. The specific split depends on company policy and role requirements.

What are the main disadvantages of hybrid work?

Common challenges include coordination complexity, potential inequity between remote and in-office employees, and difficulty maintaining company culture. With the right infrastructure and policies, these challenges become manageable.

How does hybrid work infrastructure differ from remote work infrastructure?

Remote work infrastructure focuses on enabling work from home: laptops, VPNs, video conferencing. Hybrid work infrastructure adds the complexity of managing physical workspace access, booking, and spend for employees who split time between multiple locations.