For Microsoft researchers, COVID-19 was a call to action. The reimagining of work practices had long been an area of study, but existing and new questions that needed immediate answers surfaced as companies and their employees quickly adjusted to significantly different working conditions. Teams from across the Microsoft organizational chart pooled their unique expertise together under The New Future of Work initiative. The results have informed product features designed to better support remote work and are now being used to help companies, including Microsoft, usher their workforces into a future of hybrid work.

In this episode of the podcast, Chief Scientist Jaime Teevan and Senior User Research Manager Matt Brodsky examine how the level of IT support available during the shift, including the ability to provide hardware and software, made the difference between laying off staff and weathering the challenges brought on by the pandemic. They also explore why remote work came with a spike in phishing threats, what the biggest thorn in the sides of IT administrators has been this past year, and where opportunities exist to prepare to keep up with tech advances and tackle future disruptions.
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