The top 7 industries hiring for hybrid jobs right now, according to FlexJobs

After two years of working from home, some people have realized that they thrive in a remote environment, while others miss the office – but most people have decided that they want the best of both worlds.

Future Forum, Slack’s research consortium, spoke with over 10,000 knowledge workers in January and found that 68% of people prefer a flexible, hybrid work environment.

Remote and hybrid jobs are becoming more competitive, too: Jobs allowing employees to work from home full or part-time saw seven times more applications than in-person roles last month, according to new research from CareerBuilder.

To help people find the best hybrid opportunities, FlexJobs identified the top industries hiring for hybrid jobs in 2022, based on about 57,000 companies’ job posting histories on the site’s database between January and December 2021.

These industries had the highest number of hybrid job openings on FlexJobs last year and are expected to offer more hybrid opportunities in 2022.

FlexJobs defined “hybrid” as companies that require workers to come to the office 2-4 times each week or are “generally remote” with some in-office days each month.

Here are the top seven industries hiring for hybrid work, according to FlexJobs:

1. Sales

2. Project management

3. Computer and information technology (IT)

4. Medical and health

5. Accounting and finance

6. Marketing

7. Education and training

Some of these industries, like marketing and IT had encouraged hybrid workstyles before the pandemic, while others, like medicine and education, have been in high demand throughout the crisis, and are struggling to attract talent – pushing employers to offer more flexible job options to fill openings.

Even as more companies return to the office, we can expect to see an increase in hybrid job opportunities in the coming months as such roles balance leaders’ desires to have employees in the office and workers’ demands for greater flexibility in a tight labor market, Kathy Gardner, the vice president of communications at FlexJobs, tells CNBC Make It.

Gardner notes that all of these industries are “great starting points” for those interested in exploring a hybrid or remote-friendly career path, and based on hiring trends, should offer great opportunities for professional development and career growth.

To land a job in one of these fields, she suggests brushing up on the skills you need to be successful in a hybrid workplace including communication, time management, technological savviness and the ability to do focused, independent work.