Part-time hybrid offices looked like a smart fix when COVID chaos hit in 2020. They gave businesses a way to test in-office time without committing to a full office lease. By 2025, however, the model is faltering and looking completely outdated. What was once an agile bridge is now slowing companies down as they want to grow.
The temporary appeal of hybrid
After COVID, hybrid working was messy and part time offices (PTOs) had become common. Some teams wanted one or two anchor days in person, and part-time office space really solved that problem. It gave early-stage firms access to central locations with minimal commitment, even luring fully remote startups back into physical collaboration.
Yet the benefits were short-lived. Legal disputes over cleaning, handovers between tenants and data security created headaches for office providers. For occupiers, the model became more of a stepping stone than a long-term solution. Hubble data showed that one in four PTO users quickly sought additional days or shifted into full-time arrangements. What a mess.
Why hybrid is maturing in 2025
Today’s hybrid office looks very different from 2021. Surveys across the UK show 83% of organisations still support hybrid working, but employees are now coming in more often, with three or four days a week in-office becoming common, especially in non-technical roles like biz dev, sales, and marketing. Strong culture-led companies no longer rely on office working mandates, teams actually want to be there.
This shift exposes the weakness of the ‘PTO’ model. Two days of office use no longer fits most workflows. It fragments culture instead of strengthening it. And for growth-stage businesses, it makes scaling more complicated than it needs to be.
Hybrid offices and the breaking points of part-time use
PTOs are fading because they are:
- Operationally clunky for landlords and operators who must manage multiple occupiers in a single space.
- Strategically weak for fast-growing teams seeking culture and cohesion.
- Out of sync with a maturing hybrid office working model that leans closer to full-time presence.
- Poor value compared to emerging managed and flexible office options that deliver speed, control and stability.
This decline has pushed the office market to ask an even bigger question: with demand for small high-quality spaces rising and the original WeWork model now proving a dud for many, how are the established providers choosing who gets them?
Why is office supply tightening and why are leases still a problem?
The shift away from part-time office space is being reinforced by market supply. Demand for small private offices of 2 to 20 desks is growing across UK cities, especially London. Operators increasingly prefer full-time tenants because they bring stronger yields and simpler legal frameworks than fragmented arrangements.
Subscription models and day-access packs from operators like IWG and Workspace help create cleaner revenue streams while reducing churn and disputes.
For occupiers, though, the alternative is not simply signing a traditional lease. Long contracts are still a liability for fast-changing businesses. Artificial intelligence, automation and market volatility make scaling unpredictable.
The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025 highlights this reality, with 86% of companies expecting technology and especially AI to alter operations by 2030. In such an environment, five to ten-year lease commitments can feel crazy, and only amplify risk for too many growth businesses.
This tension is leaving both sides of the market searching for a better option: landlords want stability without operational headaches, while companies need security and flexibility. That unresolved gap is powering the rise of managed space.
What makes managed office space the smarter middle ground?
Managed space has become the clearest answer to the gaps left by both flexible and traditional leases. Rather than temporary access or rigid commitments, it gives companies a private, branded office that feels like their own but without the long-term liability. Fit out, capex and operations are included, saving both time and upfront cost.
This model is also being reshaped by landlords themselves. According to Yardi’s 2025 market review, traditional owners like GPE, British Land and Grosvenor are expanding into managed offerings. They see stronger yields from flexible contracts of 12 to 36 months, while occupiers gain both faster move-in and security of tenure.
How do flex, managed and leased office options compare?
The office workspace market now provides three clear choices depending on stage and stability:
- Flexi space is best for short-term use, project teams or small headcounts.
- Managed space fits scaling organisations that want culture, custom design and quicker delivery.
- Leases suit enterprises with predictable teams and stable growth plans.
The key is that labels matter less than outcomes. Yardi’s analysis of 1,200 UK flex locations shows occupiers care most about whether their workspace helps them scale and attract talent, not the contract type.
In 2025, managed office space is proving to be the option where speed, certainty and brand value converge, setting the stage for how growth-minded businesses plan their next workspace move.
Why managed space is the real answer to today’s office challenges
The shift is clear: part-time offices were only a temporary COVID fix, but today’s updated hybrid reality demands something far smarter. Teams are in-office more often, landlords want stability, and traditional office leases remain too rigid. Pure flex is too short-term. Managed space meets both sides in the middle.
At ADAPT, we’ve built our service around helping growth-focused businesses cut through their dead end options. Through exclusive access to managed and off-market spaces, we connect companies with offices that scale with them, without the traps of multi-year leases or the inefficiency of part-time office rentals.
By tailoring every search to a company’s culture and growth plans, we ensure the office accelerates progress rather than holding it back.
Over the past 20 years we’ve seen what works and what doesn’t. The companies that thrive are those that find a balance of security, flexibility and identity in their space.
That is why our clients, from early-stage teams to scale-ups, see ADAPT not just as an office space finding but as a trusted partner for creating long-term workplace environments that attract talent, foster culture and avoid costly mistakes.
The problem often isn’t that businesses need less office space by square foot, it’s that they need a better office and don’t know which way to turn. Flexible and managed office space delivers the control and culture teams crave, without the weight of a long lease. That’s the shift we’re helping our clients embrace every day.”
Chris Meredith, ADAPT CEO & Founder
What can you do to get ahead of the office space shift?
If your team is outgrowing a part-time space, stuck in a lease that no longer fits, or simply unsure what kind of office model makes sense next, you’re not alone. With WeWork as we knew it a thing of the past, the market is changing extremely fast, and the old defaults no longer apply.
ADAPT is here to show you a better path forward. From flexible start-up offices to fully branded managed office spaces, we’ll help you secure a solution that meets today’s needs and tomorrow’s ambitions. That’s what we call the ADAPT difference. You can get started right here.
