愈來愈多研究表明，遠程辦公能提高工作效率、減少員工流失，並且對企業和員工來說更「省時慳租」。然而，近期不少大公司，如Meta, Google, Amazon, Goldman Sach等依然「開倒車」，希望員工回到辦公室，這顯然與研究結果背道而馳，背後的原因是什麼呢?
✳️ 以「自願離職」降低人力成本🤐
經濟不景氣下，許多大公司需要降低成本以保持競爭力，然而，進行大規模裁員不僅會上報紙，亦會對股票價格和客戶信心造成負面影響。HSBC 的資深經濟顧問(Senior Economic Advisor)，在接受NBC訪問時提及到，很多大公司在前幾年過度招聘，取消「遠程辦公」可以使無法接受回到辦公室的員工「自願離職」，而不需要支付額外的遺散費和影響公司形象。
✳️「遠程辦公」降低不動產價值📉
自「遠程辦公」在疫情中普及，office租金行情一路下滑，這對運作成本雖然利好，但對不動產則不然。不少大公司(特別是金融業)本身是商用物業持有人，這意味著，租金下滑會使不動產估價下降，從而令股價下趺，若他們不能增加office使用率令估價回升，則會面臨大股東壓力出售物業套現。因此，公司領導層會傾向召回員工回到辦公室，以維持股價。
✳️ 傳統管理層無法在「遠程辦公」有效管理🥸
傳統管理層習慣面對面指揮下屬工作，而「遠程辦公」使以往的管理工作成本增加。Slack 在2021年訪問了10,000名受訪者，調查表示，44%的高階管理層希望回到5天辦公室工作(基層員工為17%)，他們認為在辦公室工作能更有效令工作任務「上令下行」。
✳️ 回到辦公室能有效執行「非現金激勵」政策💵
Mckinsey&Company 的研究表明，非現金激勵比現金激勵更能激發員工的長期工作動力。然而「遠程辦公」使很多行之有效的「非現金激勵」政策失效，令員工在職業考慮上更專注於薪酬回報。因此，回到辦公室可以使員工更注重工作環境中可見的職場福利，如辦公室私人工作間、私人助理、公開嘉獎、員工活動等，而不僅僅是薪資水平。
誠然，企業在考慮「遠程辦公」上，遠遠不只是人才保留和工作效率等面向，經濟環境，股價表現，管理文化等亦是遠程辦公中的重要考量因素。我們可以預見，更多企業會採取「靈活上班」而非完全「遠程辦公」以在上述的考量因素中取得平衡。
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[Remote Work] Despite the benefits of working from home, many large companies still want employees back in the office. What are the reasons behind this? 🤔
✳️ Cost reduction through "voluntary resignations" 🤐
In a struggling economy, companies aim to cut costs to maintain competitiveness. However, mass layoffs can have negative impacts on stock prices and customer confidence. Companies, like Meta, Google, Amazon, and Goldman Sachs, may have incentive to reverse course to encourage employees' return to the office, allowing unwilling employees to "voluntarily resign" without additional severance payments and damage to the company's image.
✳️ Decreased property value due to remote work 📉
The popularity of remote work during the pandemic led to a decline in office rental prices, benefiting operating costs but not real estate. Many large companies, particularly in the financial industry, own commercial properties. The drop in rental rates reduces property valuations and subsequently affects stock prices. If they cannot increase office occupancy rates to restore valuations, pressure from major shareholders may force them to sell properties. Thus, company leadership prefers recalling employees to the office to maintain stock prices.
✳️ Ineffective management under remote work 🥸
Traditional management is accustomed to face-to-face supervision, which becomes costly under remote work scheme. In a 2021 survey by Slack of 10,000 respondents, 44% of senior management expressed a desire to return to a five-day office workweek (compared to 17% of junior staff). They believe that working in the office facilitates better operation management.
✳️ Effective implementation of "non-cash incentives" in the office 💵
Research by McKinsey & Company shows that non-cash incentives are more effective in driving long-term employee motivation than cash incentives. However, remote work renders many non-cash incentive policies ineffective, consistently shifting employees' focus toward monetary rewards. Returning to the office allows employees to prioritize visible workplace benefits, such as private workspaces, personal assistants, public recognition, and employee activities, rather than just salary levels.
Undoubtedly, companies consider more than talent retention and work efficiency when deciding on remote work. Economic conditions, stock performance, management culture, and other factors are important considerations. We can anticipate that more companies will adopt a "flexible work" approach instead of fully remote work to strike a balance among these factors.
