Blurring boundaries: How remote and hybrid work reshape learning in SMEs after the pandemic

Abstract

Purpose This study aims to examine how remote and hybrid work arrangements, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, reshape organizational and employee learning in small and medium enterprises (SMEs). It addresses gaps in research that have focused mainly on large organizations, under-theorized sociomaterial learning dynamics and rarely examined informal digital micro-practices and resilience in SME hybrid contexts.

Design/methodology/approach The authors conducted a multi-case qualitative study using in-depth interviews and digital work diaries with employees and managers from eight SMEs across creative, IT, consulting and retail sectors. The analysis focuses on how sociomaterial interactions between people, technologies and spaces reconfigure workplace learning practices, drawing on sociomateriality, workplace learning and resilience perspectives.

Findings This study identifies several interrelated themes: technology functions simultaneously as an enabler and disruptor of learning; boundaries between personal and professional learning become blurred; informal digital micro-practices emerge as important sites of learning; and social isolation and knowledge fragmentation create challenges for sustaining collective learning. SMEs navigate trade-offs between flexibility and connectedness by developing learning ecosystems that combine digital tools with interpersonal collaboration. Overall, SME learning in hybrid contexts is reconceptualized as a distributed, sociomaterial and micro-practice-driven process.

Originality/value This research addresses theoretical gaps concerning SME-specific hybrid learning, the sociomaterial nature of digital micro-learning practices and the relationship between blurred personal–professional boundaries and resilience in dispersed work settings. It advances sociomateriality and workplace learning theories by conceptualizing SME learning in hybrid work as a distributed, boundary-blurring learning ecology and by proposing a framework that explains how digital micro-practices, boundary dynamics and resilience capacities interact. In practical terms, it offers guidance for SMEs seeking to design lightweight but effective digital learning infrastructures that support resilience, innovation and employee engagement in hybrid workplaces.