Whitepapers

TASA ID: 22108

Picture this: a large tech company decides to bring employees back to the office, believing that this will encourage mentoring and support organizational continuity. For example, consider what Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff said in Spring 2023 on the “On With Kara Swisher” podcast: “For our new employees who are coming in, we know empirically that they do better if they’re in the office, meeting people, being on-boarded, being trained. If they are at home and not going through that process, we don’t think they’re as successful.” 

That’s why Salesforce decided to change its policy from its previous fully flexible model: for example, the company’s Chief People Officer, Brent Hyder, wrote in a September 2022 company blog post that “at Salesforce, we’ve never had office mandates, and we never will.” However, in the Spring of 2023, Salesforce demanded that sales and marketing staff come to the office four days a week. We’re seeing many tech, finance, and other leaders make similar claims and adopt similar policies.

Certainly, these changes at Salesforce and other companies represent well-intentioned moves trying to develop the careers and performance of junior staff. Unfortunately, the evidence shows that they are misguided in the post-pandemic world. The result? Resentful senior staff, lackluster mentoring, and a suboptimal work environment. Here's why, and how to fix it.

TASA ID: 22108

According to a recent survey conducted by job site Monster, more than one in four (26%) US workers would rather undergo a root canal procedure than work in their offices five days a week. Additionally, nearly two in five (38%) workers said they would quit a job that required just one day onsite. These staggering statistics reveal a clear shift in workers' attitudes towards the traditional office environment, and companies that fail to adapt to this change risk losing their most valuable asset: their employees.

As a highly experienced expert in the field of hybrid work, I talk with 5-10 leaders every week about how to make hybrid work serve their needs well. I ask them what their top concern is, and most say it’s hiring and retaining talented staff.

TASA ID: 22108

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many businesses to adapt to remote work, and the results have been surprising. A new study from the Becker Friedman Institute at the University of Chicago found that remote work saved about two hours per week per worker in 2021 and 2022. Workers allocated 40 percent of time savings to work and about 11 percent to caregiving activities.

That’s over 45 minutes more work per week! No wonder extensive data shows that workers are more productive when working remotely.

As a highly experienced expert in hybrid and remote work, I have consulted for many companies on this topic. In addition, my clients invariably express surprise over the clear data showing the improvement in productivity caused by remote work.

TASA ID: 22108

They say remote and hybrid work is bad for employee mental well-being and leads to a sense of social isolation, meaninglessness, and lack of work/life boundaries. We should just all go back to office-centric work - or so claim many traditionalist business leaders and gurus. For example, Malcolm Gladwell said that there is a “core psychological truth, which is we want you to have a feeling of belonging and to feel necessary… I know it’s a hassle to come into the office, but if you’re just sitting in your pajamas in your bedroom, is that the work life you want to live?”

TASA ID: 22108

55% of Americans are worried by the threat of AI to the future of humanity, according to a recent Monmouth University poll. In an era where technological advancements are accelerating at breakneck speed, it is crucial to ensure that artificial intelligence (AI) development remains in check. As AI-powered chatbots like ChatGPT become increasingly integrated into our daily lives, it is high time we address potential legal and ethical implications.