NORC at the University of Chicago is one of the largest independent social research organisations in the United States. Established in 1941 as the National Opinion Research Center, it delivers insights and analysis to inform decision-making.

In November 2023, NORC released the findings from two surveys. In the first survey, the researchers surveyed 1,099 HR representatives of companies from a broad mix of industries where at least 10% of employees were either fully remote or on a hybrid schedule. It included open-ended follow-up questions that yielded a wealth of information about employers and employees as viewed through the HR lens. The second survey involved 2,242 adults, of whom 1,160 were paid employees working in-person, remotely or hybrid.

The results are interesting.

Result 

9 in 10 employer return-to-office policies focus on employee productivity, company culture, and collaboration.

6 in 10 HR representatives said there had been no change in their company’s plans to return to the office because of any local surges of COVID-19 cases.

Less than half of employees are described as happy or comfortable about returning to the workplace.

3 out of 4 HR representatives say retaining those who don’t want to return to work in the office is a problem, while 1 in 5 calls it a major problem.

When asked, “How big of a problem is it for your company to lose employees who want to stay remote but whom the company is not willing to let work remotely? 73% said it was a major or minor problem.

Most HR representatives said companies are having a problem with employee retention. About a quarter said their company is not having retention issues with employees who want to stay remote but whom the company is not willing to let work remotely. But about a fifth said it was a major problem, and more than half indicated it was a minor problem. When asked open-ended questions about the biggest challenge in planning for or implementing your company’s return to office, several people mentioned employee retention.

Marjorie Connelly, Senior Fellow, Public Affairs and Media Research at NORC said:

“While most employees say they are required to work in person, many who work remotely at least some of the time say there is no reason they need to be in the office. The survey of HR representatives indicates that companies need to determine priorities about whether and when to work in offices and explain these decisions to retain their workforce.”

Nearly a quarter of HR representatives cite a loss of flexibility or work-life balance as the top reasons they think employees are unwilling to return to the office, and an equal number mention the ease, convenience, and increased productivity of working from home.

Among employees who always work in person, 75% say their employer requires all personnel to show up at the office.

David Dutwin, senior vice president of Strategic Initiative and director of NORC’s Center for Panel Survey Sciences, said:

“Working from home is unlikely to completely go away, but many employers believe working together and in person is a huge factor in creating workplace culture. This creates a tension employers and employees will have to navigate.”  

My analysis

Much of what I am about to say, I have said before, but those who should be listening have their heads in the sand because they do not like the truth and the reality.

Wrong focus

9 in 10 employer return-to-office policies focus on employee productivity, company culture, and collaboration.

If the reasons being cited for a return to the office are productivity, culture, and collaboration, then they are the wrong reasons.

Productivity

Just being in an office does not make you more productive. Productivity doesn't just happen. It is intentional. Each individual and team should determine when they believe they will be more productive in the office. It should be an informed choice 

In May 2023, I wrote an article called “Dumb and Dumber”, which referenced research proving that employees are more productive working from home.

Nicholas Bloom, William Eberle Professor of Economics at Stanford University, writing for The Hill in September 2023, says productivity generally increases when employees work remotely. He also references his 2010-2012 study, which found a massive 13% increase in productivity in remote workers. He says:

“The productivity boost came from two sources. First, remote employees worked 9 percent more in minutes per day. They were rarely late to work, spent less time gossiping and chatting with colleagues, and took shorter lunch breaks and fewer sick days. Remote employees also had 4 percent more output per minute. They told us it’s quieter at home. The office was so noisy many of them struggled to concentrate.” 

The biggest issue I have with bosses quoting productivity as a reason for employees to return to the office is that they have no idea what productivity is. They measure what workers put in rather than what they put out.

I wrote about this in the article “What companies need is better management.”

They also fail to recognise that many organisations made record profits during the pandemic when many employees worked from home.

Culture

Culture does not live in an office. If you think you have a culture problem, you have a leadership problem. I will not argue this one again – I will just put this here.

Culture does not live here.

RTO? It is not happening.

Collaboration

Collaboration doesn't just happen because you enter an office. It is intentional. Teams should decide where their collaboration will have the optimum outcomes.

It could take place in-person, virtually, or a blend of both.

According to McKinsey, virtual work remote collaboration accelerates innovation, not holds it back.

“Although it may come as a surprise to some, boldly innovating through remote collaboration has been a fixture in the scientific community for decades. In the 1980s, researchers adopted a way of working called the “collaboratory,” a virtual space where scientists interact with colleagues, share data and instruments, and collaborate without regard to physical location. Breakthroughs achieved through virtual collaboration include the Human Genome Project and the ATLAS project at CERN, which involved 1,800 particle physicists across 34 countries.”

If my best collaboration partner is in Canada, should I wait until they can afford the airfare to Melbourne or get their travel approved and booked by their company? Hell no, I’m on Zoom right now.

Implications

HR representatives are telling NORC that less than half of employees are happy or comfortable about the return to the office. Are they advising the executives who are mandating the return?

They also say that a return to the office is a problem for employee retention. It is impacting employees who are being mandated to return to the office.

This makes absolute sense and should be a concern. Answer this.

Which of your employees are most likely to leave for a company with a fully remote or hybrid policy where the employee controls their schedule?

The answer is your talent.

The dilemma is, then, how are you going to replace your talent? You won’t be able to as the talent is working for the organisations that give them the autonomy and flexibility to work where they want, when, and how they want. They are working for organisations that treat them as adults.

Whilst HR may know this, the executive has yet to wake up to the fact. They may not feel the talent drain yet, especially in the finance sector, as many employees are tied to the organisation with the golden handcuffs. But I assure you, the slow burn will become a wildfire as other companies start the war for talent and offer the same or equal benefits, autonomy and flexibility.

The priorities

“…companies need to determine priorities about whether and when to work in offices…”

It is not about priorities. It is about providing ‘guidelines’ for when it makes sense to be in-person in the office. Individuals and teams can then work with those guidelines to determine when to be in the office.

The guidelines should be co-created between employer and employee and subject to continual improvement. Co-creation brings many ideas and feedback from many places. The challenge is that it requires a mindset shift for executives and senior management. It depends on them embracing a humble, empathetic, listening, and participative leadership style.

(BTW - I can help with that mindset shift.)

Guidelines could include:

·       Who are the hybrid employees?

·       Guidance on what sort of outcomes could best be achieved in the office for both individuals and teams?

·       The default starting position for days employees must be in the office is zero.

·       The leader and team decide when to go into the office – when, how often, and for how long.

·       The focus must be on outcomes and value-add, not activity and face time.

·       When asked, “Was it worth the commute?” the answer will be “Yes.”

·       Be prepared to experiment. There is no one-size-fits-all model.

·       Be empathetic to each team member’s specific preferences.

Note: This guidance assumes the team leader has received education and training on how to lead the hybrid team effectively. Otherwise, the team may be subject to a leader who wants things to return to how they were before March 2020 and dictates a total return to the office.

(BTW - I can help with that too.)