PHILADELPHIA — IBM has recently issued a stern directive to its managers: either show up at the office or step down from your role.
According to an internal memo dated January 16 from Senior Vice President John Granger, the tech giant is making a strong push to end remote work. The memo instructs all U.S.-based managers to either start reporting to the office immediately or relinquish their managerial roles.
From now on, executives and managers are expected to be physically present in the office at least three days a week. Remote workers who live more than 50 miles away from an office have been given until August to relocate closer. However, there will be certain exceptions for employees with medical conditions or those serving in the military.
The company’s drive to bring employees back to the office is further complicated by its recent efforts to downsize its real estate holdings.
Several IBM offices have been closed since the onset of the pandemic, leaving some remote workers in a predicament where they may have to relocate over large distances to retain their jobs. Offices that have been closed include those in Philadelphia, central New York State, and Iowa.
The consulting firm has made it clear that workers who fail to comply with the new policy will have to “separate from IBM”. The company plans to use badge-in data to monitor office attendance and ensure adherence to the new policy.
IBM’s move away from remote work has been gradually intensifying since the pandemic. Some teams have already implemented in-person policies, and CEO Arvind Krishna has openly expressed his preference for office attendance.
In a May interview with Bloomberg, Krishna stated that promotions would be less likely for remote workers, although he also mentioned that workers would not be forced to return to the office.
Furthermore, Krishna revealed that the company intends to use artificial intelligence to replace approximately 7,800 jobs over the next five years. At the same time, the company is also planning to reduce its workforce.
During the announcement of the fourth-quarter results last week, CFO James Kavanaugh stated that the company’s restructuring budget would remain the same as last year. Despite slashing 3,900 jobs in January 2023, Kavanaugh assured that the company was still hiring.
IBM is not the only company pushing for a return to the office. However, according to a CEO survey by The Conference Board, many CEOs are abandoning the fight to bring employees back to the office full time.
The survey found that only 4% of U.S. CEOs and 4% of CEOs worldwide are prioritizing a full-time return to the office. Instead, the top internal priority for business leaders is attracting and retaining talent. The Conference Board surveyed over 1,200 executives, including 630 CEOs, across the United States, Latin America, Japan, and Europe.
However, this doesn’t mean that some U.S. companies aren’t adopting a strict stance in the new year.
UPS recently announced that it is scrapping its hybrid work policy and is now requiring corporate employees to return to the office full time. The new policy will take effect on March 4, according to an internal memo shared with CNN.
In the latter half of 2023, several major companies announced stricter office work policies, but none of them announced a full return. In August, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy warned employees that non-compliance with the 3-days-a-week in-office rule could jeopardize their employment at the tech giant.
Last year, Meta informed employees that after Labor Day, managers would monitor attendance for its own 3-day-a-week policy. Even Zoom, the company that facilitated the work-from-home era, has called its employees back to the office.
An EY U.S. survey of C-suite corporate leaders revealed that full-time remote work dropped from 34% in 2022 to a mere 1% in 2023. The study also found that senior members of companies are more frequently present in the office and that hybrid work is now “firmly established.”
Agree Working remotely has become the new normal for many employees. It’s important for companies to be flexible and understanding instead of forcing employees to return to the office or lose their jobs.