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Corporate America is coming around to remote work. But more big changes lie ahead.
Article

Corporate America is coming around to remote work. But more big changes lie ahead.

Flexible work is here to stay. But the shape it will take is up for debate in virtual board rooms around the world.

Taylor Telford
The Washington Post, 2022
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Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Analytical
  • Applicable
  • Concrete Examples

Recommendation

Many CEOs worry that remote work damages corporate culture and productivity, and some companies are forcing staff members to return to the office. As Taylor Telford reports in The Washington Post, JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup have mandated that employees get fully vaccinated and show up in their cubicles. Google acknowledges the necessity of remote work, but it’s buying its current office in the United Kingdom and building another one. Telford notes that CEOs may be at loggerheads with their workers given that in January 2022, fully 55% of remote employees said they’d consider quitting if their company eliminates working at home.

Summary

After almost two years, working remotely has become the norm for millions of employees.

Business leaders may want to entice their staff members back into the office, but any arguments about reduced productivity and profits are moot. As workers learned to work remotely, companies continued to realize profits.

Even those chief executives who want people to come to work at their corporate offices have accepted that with COVID still active, upward of 10 million jobs unfilled, and the resultant labor shortage, the hybrid work model is here to stay.

Remote work benefits employees by giving them greater control over their schedules and sparing them the cost, time loss and inconvenience of commuting. When staff members work at home, employers benefit from reduced overhead and building costs. 

Columbia Business School Professor...

About the Author

The Washington Post reporter Taylor Telford covers national and breaking news.

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