Why do companies want to return to the office?

blue_blue

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122861038#Comment_122861038

LOL. You're so deluded.

blue_blue

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122862028#Comment_122862028

A fully remote contract will be a hiring incentive for companies to poach top talent where employees get the hump with RTO plans.

A common fallacy in all these arguments. Why is it ALWAYS the "top talent" are obsessed with WFH and will leave when they have to socialise in the office again?

Top talent can like the office too.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122862145#Comment_122862145

Office days are largely unproductive. Lateness due to traffic is an issue. Too much chatting and grabbing coffees. Lunch breaks running over. Unnecessary meetings and huddles. Essentially too many distractions.

A good manager would have a word with their employees and these trivial issues would be resolved in 2 mins.

Padre_Pio

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122868789#Comment_122868789

We should be, but companies want to make profits and keep shareholders happy, so there's that.

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122871203#Comment_122871203

Amazon doesn't have the greatest track record when it comes to working conditions or safety hazards resulting from prioritizing speed over safety, …

"...Amazon warehouses had a rate of 7.7 injuries per 100 workers, compared with 4.0 injuries for every 100 workers at all other warehouses. Amazon’s serious injury rate was 6.8 per 100 workers, compared with 3.3 for every 100 workers at all other warehouses..."

When it comes to places like Google or tech it's long been the case they give you everything on site so you work long hours and don't need to go home. Been there worked the all nighters, endless weekends.

"..The median age of Google and Amazon employees is 30, whereas the median age of American workers is 42…"

None of that has anything to do with WFH. It's about getting people to work longer and longer hours.

Flinty997

It's all moot. You have to do what your employer requests or vote with your feet. The legislation is toothless and basically meaningless.

FishOnABike

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122864885#Comment_122864885

Definitely. I've taken fewer sick days beause I can work from home. Same for practically everyone on my team.

I would have had to take the best part of two weeks sick leave ealier this year with COVID. WFH meant I could continue to work with no time off needed and no loss in productivty.

If I was in the office, all work would have to get done in core business hours. Doing this, some tasks would take several times longer. WFH I don't mind checking in a few times to monitor long running tasks to ensure there are no problems and take corrective action if there is. I've completed tasks in 24 hours that would have taken days if limited to office hours.

techman1

As for WFH I never want to see the inside of an office again, but that's just me, I'm late in my career.

Others may need the office and the office may need them.

YYes But it's not just about you and your wants, it's also about the company and your colleagues especially new hires that need to be trained up on the skills that you picked up by working on site from your peers back in the day when you were a young clueless graduate .

CptMonkey

Companies want people back because they spent a fortune on offices and the managers realise they are surplus to requirements when they can't micro manage their employees.

Former Former Former

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122871419#Comment_122871419

 Why is it ALWAYS the "top talent" are obsessed with WFH and will leave when they have to socialise in the office again?

I suspect the 'top talent' in question is often the person making the statement that the top talent all want to WFH.

A good manager would have a word with their employees and these trivial issues would be resolved in 2 mins.

Yep. And a good manager would structure the in-office days to be productive by scheduling meetings/tasks that can be done better in person. Bringing people in and just having them do the same work they do at home, but in the office, is pretty pointless.

Cyrus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122885847#Comment_122885847

ah thats it, you have cracked it, management are redundant, if only people would be left to do their job without any oversight everything would work so much better.

Flinty997

When it comes to RTO there really isn't a reason other than they can.

Arguments around productivity or output are moot because the vast majority don't measure or quantify it other than visual check of attendance which has been demonstrated to be utterly flawed.

https://www.uctoday.com/collaboration/its-time-to-rethink-return-to-office-mandates/

twin_beacon

My own 2 cents.

I am a software engineer, pre covid I was full time in our Dublin office, we also have offices in North America, and had some contractors in Eastern Europe. Since March 2020, the whole company has been WFH, with no push to return to the office. We have actually reduced our office space so it would not be possible to have everyone in on the same day.

I would not like a full time return to the office, but I wouldn't complain if we were back one day a week, as long as the members of our team in Dublin were back on the same day. I find when I have a lot of work to get through, and I know exactly what I am doing, then I get a lot more done at home as there are less distractions. However, if I am in the middle of something, and I have to join a call, I often just keep working and ignore whats happening on the call. I am also not the only person that does that on the team.

I also do miss being able to just walk to someone's desk to ask a question and get an answer there and then, rather than waiting to get a response to an message.

Finally, I am starting to feel a little isolated over the last few months, its been 18 months since I sat in the office with my team. If/When I change jobs, I actually wouldn't like a fully remote role.

Sunny Disposition

I have all my workers who can work remotely doing so. It gave me the chance not to renew leases on two buildings. If companies aren't trying to downsize on office space they are in la-la land. It costs a fortune and it can be eliminated. For some companies it might be a long term thing, but everybody needs to be working on it. i suspect they are, even the very biggest companies, but they feel they aren't organised enough to go the whole hog yet.

Backstreet Moyes

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122886440#Comment_122886440

These really seem like problems you have and need to work on.

It is very selfish to expect everyone on your team to go in on the same day to suit you.

In our place it's one day a week that the person chooses that best suits their schedule.

While you like to walk to someone's desk to ask a question, I hate anyone interrupting me while I am trying to focus on something, which is why I love working from home.

If something is urgent fair enough, the beauty of being at home is you can cut out distractions and respond to someone when you have the time to do so.

When I go in I try to find a room so I can get work done, the amount of people who want to drop by for a chat with you or with the person beside you when they are not busy is very annoying.

These are the people in our place who talk about people working from home doing non work activities on their breaks while they wander around looking to gossip in the office half the day.

I am not saying you are one of those people, but from what I can see you have an office to go into when you want.

maninasia

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122859837#Comment_122859837

Worked in same place for years , never got any mentoring 'on site'. Got my mentoring from meeting my manager at various work sites and customers sites and training and coaching and kick off sessions . Was not necessary to go an office everyday in the slightest to learn.

purplefields

Introverts = nose down and working. Generally want to WFH

Extroverts = manager types. Generally want to RTO so they can boss the Introverts around.

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122886909#Comment_122886909

Mentoring in my experience is not about the location, but the willingness of the person to mentor other people.

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122886958#Comment_122886958

Don't agree that's just another sweeping generalisation. Not everyone keeping quiet it's working, and not everyone who is social isn't working.

That's another form of judging a book by it's cover with no metrics.

purplefields

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122887000#Comment_122887000

9/10 cases it is true.

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122887038#Comment_122887038

Why have science when old wives tales are so much more accurate.

Sunny Disposition

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122886958#Comment_122886958

In my experience there is a good bit of truth to this. Capable introverts tend to be the best employees, there are probably heaps of people like this on boards.ie. Paradoxically these people might benefit from being in an office on a personal level, while the best way to get a tune out of extroverts is to isolate them;)

Padre_Pio

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122886909#Comment_122886909

Your job where you're at "work sites" and "customer sites" is likely not representative of the vast majority who work in an office.

Considering you have "work sites" and "customer sites" I doubt you would be eligible for 100% WFH anyways.

Backstreet Moyes

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122886958#Comment_122886958

I really find it's dependant mostly on home circumstances.

People with young families generally want to work from home.

Younger generation with no kids or no office at home prefer to go into the office.

More elderly people tend to go into the office to meet up with people.

HurlingBoy

People with young families benefit most from WFH but it is important to have a balance. Half empty offices can lead to poor morale and if some people are flaunting the rules on WFH policies it can also lead to poor morale. Introverts do become more introverted WFH. There is no simple solution. Flexibility is key but unfortunately too many workers cannot be trusted to be productive from home which leads to companies enforcing rules and 1 size fits all policies.

twin_beacon

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122886890#Comment_122886890

Im not expecting everyone to go into the office (in a hypothetical world as we are not returning to the office) on the same day to suit me at all. What I mean is if the day I go into the office (or any other member of my team goes into the office), and there is nobody else from the team in the office on that day, then it just becomes a box ticking exercise of being in the office one day a week. If the whole team was in the office for one day a week, we would probably combine a few meetings into that one day, then have less meetings to dial into when working from home. Anyway, ifs and buts, we aren't going back to the office any time soon.

Yes I have an office to go into, but its empty 5 days a week.

dulpit

I'm lucky, I have to go only once a month. Tomorrow I'm going. The other guy on my team can't go tomorrow, so we'll still do the normal calls on teams and I'll be doing the same work I do at home, except I get to drive to limerick and leave home at like 07:30.

But that's a box ticked for HR, so...

MojoMaker

Crazy sh1t isn't it?

martingriff

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122861081#Comment_122861081

Dumb jesus do you also say just by a house or just get a better job as if it is that easy and money grows on trees. People had to go far out as it was what was within there means.

Also WFH during those showed people there was others ways to do stuff and it worked. They were as irked withe same things as they are now.

Are there wasters of course but they are the Sam either on site or at home.

ledwithhedwith

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122892724#Comment_122892724

Nah I know plenty of people who bought further out and went lavish on it. What a dumb thing to do when wfh isn’t in your contract. Zero sympathy for those that shortsighted and taking on 35 year mortgages.

martingriff

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122861393#Comment_122861393

How long does it take you to walk around the building get the info then walk back to you place then get a phone call in 5 minutes