The Dangers of the New "Return to Office" Trend: Why It’s Not as Beneficial as It Seems

A new trend is emerging: many companies have recently announced that they are replacing post-pandemic hybrid flexibility with a strict “return to office” (RTO) policy, requiring employees to be in the office five days a week. 

The stated reasons? “Collaboration, productivity, and culture development.”

The suspected underlying reason? An easier path to workforce reduction.

The impact? All the issues leaders want to avoid when it comes to people management: erosion of trust, a significant drop in motivation, increased stress, and the loss of top talent.

These broad policy changes often stem from depersonalized decision-making. It’s painful to consider the individual human impact, so we put up blinders. But in the end, this results in depersonalized policies received with intense personalization. 

So, let’s personalize it upfront through the lens of my own story…

The greatest gift the pandemic gave me was the opportunity to rethink my before-and-after school routines as a parent. Pre-pandemic, I would wake my girls early and rush them off to daycare in a frazzled state. After school, they’d return to daycare until until I finished a long day of meetings and work. We’d all come home exhausted, stressed, and disconnected, dreading a repeat of the same routine the next day.

COVID changed all that, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I stopped sending them to daycare and instead restricted meetings to school hours (as much as possible). Morning and post-school time together radically changed our family dynamics. We’re closer and less stressed, and the energy and passion I pour into my work have grown tenfold as a result. 

Many others experienced a similar positive shift thanks to the pandemic. Research from Gallup, Stanford, and others has shown that allowing employees a few work-from-home days each week boosts productivity, reduces burnout, and improves overall engagement. Hybrid work, when feasible, provides the ideal balance: face-to-face collaboration plus flexibility that reduces stress.

The flexibility adopted during COVID was a step in the right direction. But now, this sudden reversal to 100% RTO policies is a significant step backward.

Some executives believe they now hold the upper hand, thinking the younger generations, who have known only a job-seeker's market, will be forced to comply. However, they may be in for a rude awakening. The rise of the gig economy shows that many workers are willing to leave corporate benefits behind in favor of the freedom and flexibility of solopreneurship.

I believe these strict return-to-office policies will cause companies to lose their best talent while retaining disengaged workers who are simply coasting until something better comes along. 

Leaders, don’t depersonalize your decision-making, and don’t let your preference for in-person work blind you to the benefits of flexible options. The best policies are born from creative approaches and genuine care for your people. Remember: without employee success, there is no business success.