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Work Trend Index

Research and data on the trends reshaping the world of work

Annual Report · April 23, 2025

2025:
The Year the Frontier Firm Is Born

Intelligence on tap will rewire business. Every leader needs a new blueprint.

About Work Trend Index

31,000 people. 31 countries. Trillions of productivity signals.

The Work Trend Index conducts global, industry-spanning surveys as well as observational studies to offer unique insights on the trends reshaping work for every employee and leader.

2024 - 2025

Annual Report · April 23, 2025

2025:
The Year the Frontier Firm Is Born

Intelligence on tap will rewire business. Every leader needs a new blueprint.

The silhouette of a person looking out at an eye chart. Most letters are blurred, with the letters 'AI' in perfect focus.

Annual Report · May 8, 2024

AI at Work Is Here. Now Comes the Hard Part

Employees want AI, leaders are looking for a path forward.

2023

A colorful illustration of people being launched or boosted into the sky with capes that remind the viewer of cursor pointers.

Special Report · November 15, 2023

What Can Copilot’s Earliest Users Teach Us About Generative AI at Work?

A first look at the impact on productivity, creativity, and time.

A digital illustration of objects representing work and communication in the foreground leading to a figure moving past them and looking out on a peaceful landscape.

Annual Report · May 9, 2023

Will AI Fix Work?

The pace of work is outpacing our ability to keep up. AI is poised to create a whole new way of working.

Illustration of four people laying down a large puzzle piece, standing on a floor of other puzzle pieces. Two figures hold on to the blue side of the puzzle while another two hold on to the purple side.

Special Report · April 20, 2023

The New Performance Equation in the Age of AI

New research shows that employee engagement matters to the bottom line—especially amid economic uncertainty

2022

Illustration of three people in a sailboat working together to navigate choppy waters. In the distance, several sailboats on placid waters are visible.

Special Report · September 22, 2022

Hybrid Work Is Just Work. Are We Doing It Wrong?

In choppy economic waters, new data points to three urgent pivots for leaders to help employees and organizations thrive

Illustration of hot air balloons ascending into the sky. A person running toward a balloon that is taking off receives a helping hand from another person who is already in the basket of the balloon.

Annual Report · March 16, 2022

Great Expectations: Making Hybrid Work Work

From when to go to the office to why work in the first place, employees have a new “worth it” equation. And there’s no going back.

Three frontline workers, one in an apron, one in a hard hat, one with a stethoscope, in front of a colorful illustrated background.

Special Report · January 12, 2022

Technology Can Help Unlock a New Future for Frontline Workers

New data shows that now is the time to empower the frontline with the right digital tools

2021

Animated paper cutout in which an 'at-home' worker comes together with a group of colleagues.

Special Report · September 9, 2021

To Thrive in Hybrid Work, Build a Culture of Trust and Flexibility

Microsoft employee survey data shows the importance of embracing different work styles—and the power of simple conversations

An illustration of a person resting between two meetings.

Special Report · April 20, 2021

Research Proves Your Brain Needs Breaks

New options help you carve out downtime between meetings

A giant hand draws lines that connect a series of tiny people. The lines form an arrow pointing the way forward.

Special Report · March 30, 2021

In Hybrid Work, Managers Keep Teams Connected

Researchers found that feelings of connection among Microsoft’s teams diminished during the pandemic. They also discovered the remedy.

Abstract paper cut illustration of concentric woman's silhouette in profile with moon over water at the center

Annual Report · March 22, 2021

The Next Great Disruption Is Hybrid Work—Are We Ready?

Exclusive research and expert insights into a year of work like no other reveal urgent trends leaders should consider as hybrid work unfolds.

2020

A person on a stepladder replacing the yellow light on a stoplight.

Special Report · September 22, 2020

A Checkup on Employee Wellbeing

Explore how the pandemic is impacting wellbeing at work around the world.

People surfing on a wavy ocean made up of striated data charts.,

Special Report · July 8, 2020

The Knowns and Unknowns of the Future of Work

Learn how a sudden shift to remote work may have lasting effects around the world.

People climbing out of a video conferencing icon and walking around freely.,

Special Report · April 9, 2020

Remote Work Trend Report: Meetings

See how global meeting habits changed during the world’s largest work-from-home mandate.

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Additional research on the future of work

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Privacy Approach

Microsoft takes privacy seriously. We remove all personal and organization-identifying information, such as company name, from the data before analyzing it and creating reports. We never use customer content—such as information within an email, chat, document, or meeting—to produce reports. Our goal is to discover and share broad workplace trends that are anonymized by aggregating the data broadly from those trillions of signals that make up the Microsoft Graph.

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