In September, Amazon announced that it would be ending its hybrid work policy. This makes it the latest of a number of high-profile businesses, including Boots, Disney and Nationwide, which have mandated people return to the office full-time. Victoria Lewis-Stephens outlines the considerations for employers that follow suit.
There’s a wealth of evidence that this policy shift runs counter to what many employees want. Our latest research found that more than half (57%) of UK and US office workers would leave or consider leaving their company if their employer limited the amount of flexibility they offer.
Amazon’s announcement – and those of other back-to-the-office organisations – amounts to a really drastic change of direction. More than that, some will perceive it as it’s taking away a ‘benefit’ that some employees will have made life decisions based on.
Let’s talk about it
The advantages Amazon puts forward in its memo – that employees would be “better set up to invent, collaborate, and be connected enough to each other” – are valid. But it does highlight an organisation deliberately backpedalling to a pre-Covid approach rather than trying to come up with ways to improve and enhance its virtual collaboration.
Amazon office return
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Not to mention, the tone of the communication, “We’ve decided that…”, is hardly one that implies a shared culture or genuine connection with the workforce.
Plus, and this is perhaps the most important point, this is not an inclusive decision. Some people have changed their lifestyles and where they live based on hybrid working. Others’ circumstances and personal responsibilities will mean that five days a week in the office simply isn’t viable.
This means organisations demanding a full-time return to the office will lose some of their workforce, plus the skills and diversity of thought that those people bring with them.
This is why it’s so important that businesses engage with employees to understand their perspectives before implementing or revising any major working policy. Hybrid working may be a compromise – and something most organisations still haven’t wrapped their heads around – but leaders have to have conversations with employees to make it work. The same is true for any return to full-time.
If they want ‘better connection and invention’, why are they not demonstrating and living these behaviours when make these decisions? Have they consulted with employees? Is the office set up for modern ways of working? Hint: most aren’t.
Most of all, do people understand and buy into the rationale behind a change to existing working patterns, or is it just a decree from the out-of-touch bosses?
Communicating change means bringing employees on a shared journey that finds the balance between what leaders want and what employees want.
Why full-time might sound appealing
Of course, there are arguments in favour of a return to the office. The question is whether Amazon can sell the upsides of doing so to their people and future talent. Will younger employees change their perspective on how they want to work? And is Amazon a strong enough brand for their policy not to matter?
The upsides are there if you want to see them. Being physically in the office can help people get past silos and build networks faster and more effectively. It can also help employees develop faster, with mentors and role models on hand to guide the way.
It’s not just professional networks, either. Those of us who were brought up in the office environment have social networks too. Many have ‘work friends’ from years ago that we still meet regularly. The younger generation, notoriously already suffering from a global epidemic of loneliness, don’t have that option. The question is, do they want it?
Plus, for an organisation like Amazon that employs so many warehouse employees, it’s important to remember that many never had the option of working remotely to begin with. Shift patterns provide their own level of flexible working, admittedly.
Can Amazon re-invigorate the ‘campus mentality’? It’s an intriguing question and we’ll have to watch this space. But the real question is – did companies work hard enough to make some of these things happen remotely?
Managing the risks
Overall, this is about communication, inclusivity and tone of voice. The right language, approach and channel can make all the difference in engaging people with change successfully – especially when it’s likely to be high risk and/or divisive.
For companies that pride themselves on knowing every little detail about their customers’ likes, dislikes and needs, and communicating with them in a way that tries to build community and engagement, it seems odd that they don’t try to understand their own workforce just as deeply.
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