The Great Office Debate: Are RTO Mandates Really About Collaboration or Control? | HackerNoon

Major corporations are dialing back on remote work policies, citing collaboration and innovation as key reasons.

In a decisive move that sparked widespread dissatisfaction, JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the U.S., recently ended hybrid work options for over 300,000 employees through a new policy that requires staff to return to work full-time. The decision aligns with similar actions by corporate giants, including Amazon, Walmart and AT&T, which have recently implemented stricter return-to-work (RTO) mandates.

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon’s traditionalist viewpoint mirrors a wider trend among CEOs who argue that remote work can’t match the productivity and engagement that in-person interactions offer.

Moreover, mandating federal workers to return to the office full-time was one of President Donald J. Trump’s first priorities after his inauguration. “Heads of all departments and agencies in the executive branch of Government shall, as soon as practicable, take all necessary steps to terminate remote work arrangements and require employees to return to work in person at their respective duty stations on a full-time basis,” he said in a statement.

The recentQ4 Flex Index Report highlights a significant shift in U.S. companies’ approach to office work. Structured hybrid models, where employees adhere to fixed office schedules, now make up 43% of organizations—more than double the 20% seen in early 2023. While some hail these policies as a way to enhance collaboration and innovation, others see them as a step back from the flexibility ushered in by the pandemic.

“For standardized tasks like call center work, collaboration plays a smaller role, making the flexibility of remote work often more beneficial than its drawbacks,” Anton Skornyakov, business author and co-founder of scrum training platform Agile.Coach, told me. “Leaders often grapple with inefficiencies stemming from miscommunication or a lack of accountability in remote work.”

Challenges of RTO Mandates: Logistical Struggles and Employee Frustration

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced many businesses globally to adopt remote and hybrid work models, to ensure employee safety. However, five years after the pandemic, many organizations are now re-evaluating these arrangements—citing productivity issues. With vaccines widely available and the virus under control, many of Fortune 500’s leaders see little reason to continue remote work policies. But the fear of severe illnesses continues to be a significant concern for many and still looms large. According to CDC data, there have been more than 1,216,305 deaths due to COVID-19 in the U.S., that too in the past three months.

“The momentum toward full RTO schedules across most industries signals that companies believe the pandemic’s impact has subsided. However, there’s no doubt that employees are now more conscious of the potential for illness spread in office environments,” Josh Schwartz, President and co-founder of Viking Pure Solutions, told me.

Schwartz added that employees want to feel assured that their employers recognize their concerns about proper health and safety control in the workplace.

On the other hand, AT&T, which began enforcing its own RTO mandate in November 2024, has encountered logistical issues at its Atlanta headquarters. Overcrowded parking lots, desk shortages, and elevator congestion have left employees frustrated. The company has acknowledged the problems and promised adjustments. Meanwhile, motivational signs encouraging stair usage, coupled with memos about limited workstation availability, have done little to ease concerns.

Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol, whose remote work arrangement allows him to live in California and travel 1,000 miles to Seattle on the company’s corporate jet, faced initial backlash from some employees—who argued he was receiving special treatment while the rest of the workforce was required to be in the office three days a week. Despite this, Niccol emphasized that he wouldn’t dictate which specific days employees should be present at the company’s Seattle headquarters. Such rocky implementations highlight the growing pains many companies face when reintroducing full-time office policies.

“Attempting to plan such large-scale process changes comprehensively upfront is rarely effective. Instead, the best approach to bringing employees back to the office is to treat the transition as a series of short, controlled experiments, each lasting no longer than a month,” said Skornyakov.

What’s Next for the Future of Work?

For employees disillusioned by stricter RTO mandates, options remain available. While some companies are reinforcing in-person work, others continue to embrace flexible remote policies.

​”I think a lot of office culture, organizations, were so central before [the pandemic] … the way that we did the work was more relationship driven. When things pivoted to more of the remote culture, now it’s about the work through relationships,” said Elizabeth Rafferty, Global Chief People Officer at Ness Digital Engineering, which allows employees to work remotely.

Regardless of in-person, remote, or hybrid, organizations should be transparent about their own initiatives from the outset, ensuring that employees understand that adjustments may happen regularly.

Moreover, it’s essential to communicate how these changes will be measured—prioritizing results over strict adherence to processes. By continuously iterating and refining based on what works, companies can ensure smoother transitions, maintain employee trust, and focus on meaningful outcomes.

For employees, as Skornyakov put it, “Treat changes to remote or in-office policies like experiments. Present them as chances to test, learn, and improve, creating a collaborative vibe. And if your company can’t get on board with that, the skills you acquired will make you a standout for companies like Spotify and others who value accountability and thrive on flexibility.”