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Anybody's Job Going Back to the Office Fulltime After Being 100% Remote for 2 Yrs?

8,588 Views | 70 Replies | Last: 1 yr ago by aTm2004
Enviroag02
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My company is forcing everyone back to the office 5 days a week after we've been fully remote for over 2 years. I haven't talked to a single person who is in favor of returning to the office. Their reasoning is "culture". Ok...sitting in front of a computer in a cubicle while using Microsoft Teams (because Teams is still the most efficient method for contacting other groups) is good for the culture.
Sims
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We've been in the office full time since 2008.

There won't be a solution that applies to everyone. It will be industry and role specific and will ultimately come down to supervisors holding their people accountable and management holding themselves accountable.

Culture can be accomplished in a lot of ways, you just have to change your thinking a bit to the new reality of the workforce.
Hold on honey, there are people on the internet that are wrong.
The Lost
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We're going hybrid and will be going in t/th which I think it's great. There's tons of great networking from the office, but def don't need to be their daily. I get some roles are better than others when it comes to full remote, but think the mix in the middle is great.
Duncan Idaho
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But what about muh WaTeR cOoLeR cOnVeRsAtIoNs????!!!!1!1!2!1!!1!

We are supposed to go in one day a week ...to an office that has exactly zero of my account team.

Enviroag02
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Most people I've spoken with all the way from new employee to Director level have wanted a hybrid type arrangement with 1 to 2 days per week in the office. We even did some focus groups and it appears they chose something counter to the results of the focus groups.
texasaggie2015
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We've been back in the office for a little over a year but we're trying to get some sort of hybrid schedule going. I normally don't like working from home but wouldn't mind splitting it up to save some money on gas.
500,000ags
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Kind of odd they are doing a complete turnaround to 5 days a week in-office. In this labor market, that's a rather bold move.
AggieVictor10
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We've had the option to go back in some capacity for awhile and will likely be hammering down plans for some sort of hybrid work with options to work remotely.

I'm hoping to be able to travel to Texas a couple times a year and work remotely, so I can avoid using PTO when I go to visit friends and family, especially since the days when folks are working feel like a less efficient use of that time off.
GrayMatter
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Came back to the office full time since June of last year and then they changed it to a hybrid model a few months ago. Now I'm 3 days on and 2 off which is a nice break up from the daily commute.

Everyone seems to be happier with the hybrid model and it hasn't really been that different than during or even before Covid except for less noise.
Premium
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Been back since November of '20, everyone is still alive.
water turkey
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We went back to the office last week after being home for two years and we had 3 Covid cases this week…..
Bird Poo
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The ONLY reason we are doing the hybrid thing is to retain talent. Our technology people are all WFH full time because they can find another tech job very easily, and talent is hard to come by in that world.
normaleagle05
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500,000ags said:

Kind of odd they are doing a complete turnaround to 5 days a week in-office. In this labor market, that's a rather bold move.

Yesterday my wife's employer announced out of the blue their intention to test this theory.

Last week you couldn't get an authorization to go to the office for an hour. Next week it's open, next quarter it's mandatory.
Enviroag02
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normaleagle05 said:

500,000ags said:

Kind of odd they are doing a complete turnaround to 5 days a week in-office. In this labor market, that's a rather bold move.

Yesterday my wife's employer announced out of the blue their intention to test this theory.

Last week you couldn't get an authorization to go to the office for an hour. Next week it's open, next quarter it's mandatory.


Gas utility company?
OnlyForNow
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You've go a superspreader in your office!
htxag09
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My company has gone to a hybrid schedule. Personally, I think it's smart for a couple reasons: retaining & recruiting talent & can work towards a smaller footprint and save money in real estate, utilities, etc.

That being said, if you don't like it, look elsewhere. You either dislike going into the office enough to move on or you don't. Should be opportunities out there in this market.

As I said, I think remote or hybrid solutions are smart. But that depends on having the right people. In my previous job, I had hell getting ahold of some people, lots of excuses for things being late, etc. when working from home. Everyone loves to claim that productivity is up, you can do more in shorter time, etc., etc.. But the simple fact is a decent chunk of people don't do **** when they are working remote.
Petrino1
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htxag09 said:

As I said, I think remote or hybrid solutions are smart. But that depends on having the right people. In my previous job, I had hell getting ahold of some people, lots of excuses for things being late, etc. when working from home. Everyone loves to claim that productivity is up, you can do more in shorter time, etc., etc.. But the simple fact is a decent chunk of people don't do **** when they are working remote.
But this is also true for employees working in an office. When I worked in an office, half my coworkers walked around wanting to chit chat about little Tommy's tee-ball game, or whatever the latest office gossip was. I would walk around the office and see half of the women online shopping or guys checking their fantasy football lol.

The truth is a lot of employees dont do crap all day, whether its sitting at home or in an office.
500,000ags
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This is me playing devils advocate because I am interested. I don't quite buy that we are suddenly super productive at home, but I also don't buy that a material chunk of people don't do *****

Could you give an example of your prior role where someone missed a deadline or literally could not be reached. Are we talking entry level people, people with experience, non-degree roles, degree roles, etc.
Capitol Ag
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I have loved the work from home aspect of Covid. Not b/c of covid. Doesn't scare me and I am way over it. But b/c of the new work/life balance created by not having to commute to work and back (plus the money saved on gas and tolls) and being around the house. I have never been one to enjoy the office honestly. Also never cared for the "team building" stuff personally. I do my job the best I can, respect and help my office mates and otherwise view "work" as a means to an end. Pay bills, survive, savings etc. I know I would do nothing but train and travel if I won a huge lottery. Not a fan of the whole staying at the office thing and am a supporter of more outside the box work schedules.

For reference, I am now a teacher. The office culture is not in a school. It is very different and I do not at all mind being here. My wife still does her marketing from home and will for the foreseeable as well. It allows her to be home, get work done and we don't have to wait for her commute and keep the kids at home after school without doing daycare which is expensive. Hopefully they keep her home. or only go to a hybrid. I was hoping that the pandemic would create a work from home culture. We will see how things play out in the future.
htxag09
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Y'all are correct that there are people who don't do squat, whether in the office or at home. But the difference is when they're in the office, they're a little more accountable. You can walk over to them and get them to do something for you if needed. I'm in supply chain/category management so thinking along of the lines of a buyer when I need a PO for an expedited item.

Also, my main point was around the people who need supervision because they're just lazy. My brother fits into this category. He is a good and hard worker when in the office. But he will be the first to admit that he's happy they're back in the office full time and he's surprised he didn't get fired. He just found it too easy to plop his laptop on the couch, turn on the tv, and do nothing unless he absolutely had to. The temptation of being able to do that was too much for him. He needs more accountability.

Again, I think a hybrid approach is the way to go. Just pointing out how critical needing the right team is to go that route. Since COVID, I'm with my third company (laid off from the first, second wasn't a good fit so wasn't there very long). This is the only company of the three where I haven't noticed a significant lag to get things done when people are working remote.
Bullpen Chias
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We are three days/wk. we would be five but, as someone mentioned earlier, it's a very competitive market to be five days a week right now. And I work for a company a lot of people want to work for.
aduey06
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Never underestimate the micro managing abilities of a mid level manager. I think we are all going back sooner rather than later.
Stymied
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We've gone hybrid as well but slightly different than many of the examples above. We are expecting leaders, especially Directors and above to be in the office nearly all of the time. Non-mgmt has more flexibility and can work hybrid but we expect people to be in the office if needed (big meetings, presenting to leadership, etc). We are trying to not do a set schedule though and driving everyone to at least come in on the same days 1-2 days a week.

I think it will be interesting to see how things evolve. The big learning point will be in how people are promoted and brought into management. While there is a lot of talk that WFH won't be a detriment to advancement, I'm pretty skeptical. I think those with more face time will have an advantage.
normaleagle05
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Enviroag02 said:

normaleagle05 said:

500,000ags said:

Kind of odd they are doing a complete turnaround to 5 days a week in-office. In this labor market, that's a rather bold move.

Yesterday my wife's employer announced out of the blue their intention to test this theory.

Last week you couldn't get an authorization to go to the office for an hour. Next week it's open, next quarter it's mandatory.


Gas utility company?

Yes. And apparently one run by tone deaf leadership.
jtraggie99
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I was working from home before COVID and have no intention of going back into an office. We do have people that have gone back into the office, but some of that is voluntary. That being said, I work in software and we've always had at least some remote people. We also don't hold people to rigid work schedule's and it's more about getting done what you need to get done. If you aren't, it will show itself before long...
500,000ags
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NoahAg
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water turkey said:

We went back to the office last week after being home for two years and we had 3 Covid cases this week…..
Do you have to use vacation days to go to all the funerals?
Let's go, Brandon!
swimmerbabe11
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Im hoping to get hired soon to a company where I'll be working mostly remote, but traveling to Austin weekly or biweekly or a couple of times a month, plus flying to mexico once a month or so.
I'm very much hoping that they are never going to properly ask me to relocate to Austin.
Enviroag02
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normaleagle05 said:

Enviroag02 said:

normaleagle05 said:

500,000ags said:

Kind of odd they are doing a complete turnaround to 5 days a week in-office. In this labor market, that's a rather bold move.

Yesterday my wife's employer announced out of the blue their intention to test this theory.

Last week you couldn't get an authorization to go to the office for an hour. Next week it's open, next quarter it's mandatory.


Gas utility company?

Yes. And apparently one run by tone deaf leadership.


Same company. My entire group is against it but they've said it's non-negotiable. I'm curious what other groups are thinking and saying. Leadership can't be getting positive feedback right now.
OnlyForNow
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For those of you wanting 100% remote, are you already a manager or staff? How do you expect junior staff to get mentoring from you or other managers when it's 100% remote?



normaleagle05
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It's somewhere between extremely unpopular and actually sharpening their pitchforks. I'll be shocked if there isn't a mass exodus of qualified talent this summer. I told her to polish her resume and start looking just to see what she finds.
Enviroag02
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normaleagle05 said:

It's somewhere between extremely unpopular and actually sharpening their pitchforks. I'll be shocked if there isn't a mass exodus of qualified talent this summer. I told her to polish her resume and start looking just to see what she finds.


My wife also works at the company. I tend to think there will be a mass exodus as well.
AggiEE
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OnlyForNow said:

For those of you wanting 100% remote, are you already a manager or staff? How do you expect junior staff to get mentoring from you or other managers when it's 100% remote?





You can mentor through screen sharing and a phone conversation or video telecon. I don't see how it's that much more difficult for computer-oriented task based work.
OnlyForNow
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I think that's the problem, lots of people in my industry are screaming "yes work from home" but we're in consulting and making professional relationships with clients and learning how to conduct, hold and run meetings with multiple stake holders is not something you just start the job with, these "kids" who would otherwise be new middle managers are purposefully leaving opportunities to grow and go work from home typing away at a key board and doing zoom meetings 99% of the time.

I do not see that as a positive as someone who runs a group and is interviewing/hiring.
AggiEE
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OnlyForNow said:

I think that's the problem, lots of people in my industry are screaming "yes work from home" but we're in consulting and making professional relationships with clients and learning how to conduct, hold and run meetings with multiple stake holders is not something you just start the job with, these "kids" who would otherwise be new middle managers are purposefully leaving opportunities to grow and go work from home typing away at a key board and doing zoom meetings 99% of the time.

I do not see that as a positive as someone who runs a group and is interviewing/hiring.

While it may be different for consulting where client relationships matter, if you are doing technical work the only thing that matters is performing your job. You don't do that necessarily by being in an office. Your job is to design/produce whatever widget you are developing, which is mostly done on a computer these days.

But there is a big divide between boomers that cannot adjust to a remote environment (especially managers), and the actual people coming out of college that want work life balance and remote work helps accomplish that. In an environment with labor shortages, and where the impediments to remote work are low (and where competitors will offer it), you simply cannot mandate that sort of old-guard and stodgy work culture and remain competitive.

I have found that the switch to remote work has been much better when it comes to pointless meetings, distracting cube farm environment with zero privacy, and it has lessened the amount of social conversations. Is it perfect? No, training and mentoring can be more challenging, but I think its one that is overcome with a forward thinking company that puts forth the resources necessary to make it a more common thing. At the very least, you don't need to go into the office 5 days a week. One or two days of "collaboration" days is sufficient. My company has adopted something similar, but I'll be honest that those days my team is not nearly as productive.
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