CN Correspondent, Kristyna O’Connell offers her perspective on the rise of remote working and its profound impact on the events industry, exploring how shifting work patterns are reshaping event structures, formats, and attendee expectations.
At a recent industry lunch, the conversation turned to remote working, and it sparked a thought I hadn’t considered before.
How is the rise of remote and hybrid work changing the way people attend in-person events? For those working fully remotely, or even just from home on Fridays, the logistics, mindset, and motivation to show up in person can look very different.
One of the most noticeable shifts brought on by remote and hybrid working is how protective people have become over their Fridays. For many, especially millennials and Gen Z professionals, the end of the week has evolved into valuable personal time.
Whether that’s for family, wellbeing, or simply a head starts on the weekend. Scheduling events on a Friday, once a popular choice for networking lunches or casual wrap-up meetings, now risks clashing with these new priorities. Delegates may be less inclined to attend, not because of the event content, but because it intrudes on a now-established boundary between work and personal life.
Alongside this, the rigidity of people’s remote work routines can pose challenges for event organisers. Many employees have set days when they work from home, often to manage childcare, focus-intensive tasks, or simply avoid commuting and these days are not easily swapped.
An in-person event that falls on someone’s established remote day may feel more like an inconvenience than a perk. It also raises questions about accessibility: are we assuming people can just switch their schedules at will? In today’s flexible-but-structured working culture, that’s not always realistic.
For fully remote professionals, attending an in-person event may sound simple in theory, but the reality is often more complicated. Just because someone isn’t in an office doesn’t mean they can freely dip in and out of commitments. Many remote workers have tightly packed virtual calendars, and stepping away for an event can create conflicts, especially when meetings are fixed, and team coordination is key.
This highlights a broader issue: are events being designed with enough flexibility? If the industry wants to continue attracting busy, remote-first delegates, formats, timings, and even the definition of “attendance” may need to evolve.
As a result, the event calendar is changing. Mondays through Thursdays are becoming prime territory for in-person events, with Thursdays emerging as the most popular choice.
While this may not be ideal for organisers trying to secure venues or stand out in a packed midweek schedule, it’s a reality they can’t afford to ignore.
Adapting to new working patterns is no longer a nice-to-have, it’s essential for ensuring strong attendance and engagement.
In-person events in 2025 are all about inclusivity, flexibility, and determination. After all, if we survived a pandemic, we can take on anything.