#inoffice

I am a fool. I underestimated Dallas commute, Parking and the 8 hour requirement. What a mess. Door to door is 11 hours for 5 days a week. What the he-l? How are my fellow 50 year olds taking it?

Sick of all the complaining about RTO as though it's somehow outrageous for a company to ask employees to work the way they were originally hired to work.

Companies are generally entitled to make reasonable changes to how work is performed. They can reasonably change your responsibilities, raise performance expectations, require compliance with workplace policies, and require employees to work from the office if that's what they believe is best for the business.

You don't have to agree with that philosophy, and it's perfectly reasonable to prefer remote work. But framing every RTO decision as the product of greedy executives or some malicious agenda ignores the fact that businesses make these decisions for a variety of reasons. Most companies would rather adopt policies that are popular with employees. When they see that a particular arrangement isn't delivering the results they expected -or isn't worth the cost- they change course.

In MN's case, employees are relatively expensive compared with many other locations. One of the main reasons those roles were based in MN was proximity to the company's headquarters and leadership. If employees are rarely in the office, that advantage is essentially gone. At that point, it's fair to ask why the company should continue paying MN labor costs instead of hiring elsewhere.

You may disagree with the decision, but it's not irrational. It's a business judgment about cost, collaboration, and the purpose of maintaining a headquarters workforce.

If in-office work is a condition of employment, your choices are to accept it, negotiate, or find another job. You'll be happier than complaining on here constantly.

That's not cruelty-it's how employment works.

Rumors that they are tracking that an employee is in office not only 3 days a week but a minimum of 8 hours in the building each of those days at CHQ? Does anyone know when that starts and how they’re tracking that? We currently don’t have the badge out system yet?

Work in 100 Magellan. This week, some of the common space/collaboration zones disappeared (big tables, couches). Cleared out just enough room on 3W to cram in 8 more desks between existing rows in a frw places. So I guess re-opening 200 to make room isn’t happening.

Are there still departments out there that think their manager is gonna help them from returning to the office? The other employees that ARE coming in won’t stand for it. You’re just fighting the inevitable. We’ve all had to come back in and so should you.

Anyone from dfs been asked to go to Plano office starting September?

Mandatory 5 Days (6 hours minimum) in the office starting after Labor Day 2026.

Are most Centene employees working from home right now, or in the office?

If you had to transition back to the office after a period of remote work, how was that adjustment?

Jeff doesn’t want you to make friends, he wants you to sit in your cube 5 days a week. Upper management have special privileges. Go ahead and leave, don’t stick around.

Since it hasn’t been asked yet this month and we’re already 1/2 day into July, when will the tracking report data be available for May. :)

Why four days? Simply put, four is twice as many as two.

As a result, employees should expect approximately twice the collaboration, twice the innovation, and, where practical, twice the culture.

While these projections have not yet been validated, they remain directionally encouraging.

The Value of Presence

Research consistently demonstrates that employees working in close physical proximity are more likely to:

• Ask if anyone has seen the conference room adapter.
- Spend fifteen minutes determining whose turn it is to reboot the meeting-room computer.
- Participate in spontaneous conversations that begin with, "Quick question..." and conclude forty-three minutes later.

These are the kinds of high-value interactions that cannot be replicated through purpose-built collaboration software specifically designed to replicate them.

Visibility Matters

Although employee evaluations will continue to be based entirely on performance and results, it is important that those results occur where they can be observed.

This allows leadership to appreciate the effort that accompanies the work, such as walking briskly between conference rooms while carrying a laptop.

Building Culture

Many employees have indicated that they already feel connected to their teams.
This is encouraging, but incomplete.

Organizational culture is strengthened through shared experiences, including:

• Searching multiple floors for an available meeting room.
- Listening to someone else's conference call while attending your own.
- Discovering at 11:58 a.m. that everyone had the same idea for lunch.

These experiences build institutional knowledge that is difficult to quantify, which is fortunate.

Addressing Productivity

Some employees have expressed concern that additional commuting time may reduce the number of hours available for focused work.

Leadership recognizes this possibility.

To offset the impact, employees are encouraged to become more efficient.

Frequently Asked Question
Q: If my team is distributed across three states and we still meet on video calls, why am I commuting?
A: While your meetings may still occur virtually, it is important that they occur virtually from the office.

This reinforces our shared commitment to flexibility

I’ve been hearing rumors about a 3 days in-office requirement, with Mondays and Fridays remote. Any truth to that?

🫩

How does such a scenario calc?! My laptop will ping to the network but I have 4 hours vaca time in workday. I’m guessing this is a double positive for “workable” days and days in office % but looking for confirmation.

If the answer is yes, did you receive any blowback so far?

Why is that?

If I take one day of vacation, does that count as an office day?

It was to go RTO full time.
You cannot go half a decade and blow it up like that.
It’s a cauldron of bad mojo and stupidity sprinkled with greed.
Bad corporate decision made my dei and fools.

A friend in GD was fired today for not going into the office. No severance package, realy firing. Has this happened in any other group? Was this just GD or did it occur in other BUs/CFs?

Now that we’re all back in the office four days a week, we’ve started noticing something interesting: there are a whole lot of headphones out there.

And listen, I get it. Sometimes you need to focus. Sometimes Teams is lighting up like a Christmas tree, your inbox is acting like it has a personal grudge, and you just need to put your head down and get through it. We are not trying to outlaw concentration, peace, or the occasional musical escape from reality.

But if everybody has headphones on all day, we may have accidentally recreated remote work, except now we added fluorescent lights, badge access, and a commute.

The goal of being in the office together is to make it easier to collaborate. That means quick questions, hallway conversations, shared problem-solving, and those little “hold on, I know who can help with that” moments that save everyone from three meetings and a mystery spreadsheet.

So in the spirit of encouraging more cross-team collaboration, USB headphones issued for Teams calls will need to be returned at the front desk. Going forward, Teams calls taken in the office will be expected to use speakerphone whenever possible. This helps keep conversations open, accessible, and aligned with the collaborative environment we are trying to build.

We want to make sure we’re using our in-office time to actually connect with the folks around us, not just sit near each other while everyone broadcasts “do not disturb” from the ears up.

So let’s keep an ear open, say hello to the people around us, and make the office feel a little less like a silent library and a little more like a team.

Does anyone know whether badge swipes are actually being tracked and if they are to what extent?

I’m not trying to call anyone out, and I certainly won’t be naming names, but it’s getting increasingly difficult to justify coming into the office five days a week when the building feels emptier by the day.

The communication around RTO has been incredibly vague. Other than the dry a$$ generic email that went out in January, there hasn’t been much clarity on expectations, enforcement, or how compliance is being measured.

If badge swipes aren’t being tracked, what exactly is the point of complying and coming in?

I'm looking forward to reading all about "return to office" four days a week tomorrow in this forum.

Heard there are changes coming to WPE . What is it, 4 days a week or non consecutive days in the office?

That seemed to be the only qualification for people who were promoted. Not really anything other than their manager liked them and they were in the office.

Does the power structure in this company understand that forcing people into the office on Thursday next week after having Memorial Day off feels like a punishment for having the audacity to acknowledge a federal holiday?

I know they don't care but really? Waste our money and time and the company's utility bills because we've just GOT to have 3 days in the office?

Zero benefit, only inconvenience and annoyance. I suggest everyone just chit chat all day and use the bathrooms as often as possible.

Are there any changes to 5 days?

“All managers are mandated to be in the office logged into the LAN 11 hours per day or they will be terminated.”

We can’t make this place rules up!

At AT&T, I’ve come to understand that the true path to long-term success isn’t just about individual performance—it’s about alignment, proximity, and shared commitment to the mission. For many of us who have advanced in this company, moving closer to the operational and strategic center in Dallas has been a turning point in our careers.

I made personal sacrifices to climb the ladder of success—leaving behind familiarity, adjusting to new routines, and prioritizing the demands of the role over comfort. Those decisions weren’t easy, but they created real opportunities for growth, visibility, and collaboration that simply aren’t as accessible from a distance.

Dallas represents more than just a location; it represents focus, teamwork, and accountability. Being physically closer to leadership and cross-functional teams strengthens communication, accelerates decision-making, and reinforces the shared obligation we all carry to deliver for customers and for each other.

From a business perspective, this alignment matters. When teams operate with tighter coordination and fewer barriers, execution improves. That kind of operational efficiency and cohesion is ultimately good for performance—and by extension, supportive of long-term shareholder value and stock strength.

In that sense, moving to Dallas isn’t just a personal career decision. It’s a commitment to the broader team, to the company’s direction, and to building a stronger, more unified organization.

Fidelity Investments will require many employees to return to the office five days a week. This new policy begins in September for staff at its Boston headquarters and other locations. Managers at the vice president level and above are also included across all company sites. Previously, most employees worked two weeks in the office out of every four. The company believes physical presence fosters connection, mentorship, and learning.

Boston, Massachusetts

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2026/04/30/newsletters/fidelity-return-to-office-five-days-boston/

Is there any truth to the rumor that people who received inconsistent performance rating last year due to not following in-office adherence will be laid off? I am on a very small team and I believe I am the only one on my team who got an IP so I’m freaking out. My role is a grade level 3 phone role.

Lack of enough presence in office in Q1 may also be on chopping block next week

Rumors are rampant on why the changes to number/hours in office have not been communicated. I’ve heard they want to wait until after the survey, or I’ve heard it’s because there’s some employment/legal issues that need to be addressed first. I’ve also heard it’s on pause until they have more data and what / who needs to be addressed (like coffee badgers) But does anyone have reliable information?

Has anyone been flagged for not coming enough?

Only working 2 days this week due to pto. I will be 20 minutes short of the in office expectations. I know days average out over time but if I worked more than 8 hours last week, will that cover me?

Many of us have contracts with no office requirement and I think if they force us in it could be a miscalculation in some states especially in MA.

#LifeAtATT

“5 DAYS. ONE TEAM. MORE SOON.” WTF... seriously? It’s being framed like some kind of exciting announcement, when for many of us even 3 days in the office already feels excessive and outdated.

If this really means pushing to 5 days, it’s not going to strengthen the team. It’s going to do the opposite. The best people will quietly start looking elsewhere, and those who stay? Don’t expect engagement or extra effort. You’ll get the bare minimum, because that’s what this kind of decision signals back to employees.

And honestly, if last year’s VOE survey results were already bad, just wait for this year’s after this kind of policy. It’s hard to imagine them improving under these circumstances.

Personally, I’m already planning my coping strategy: books on my phone and tuning out as much as possible. Though that might be difficult with coworkers who treat zoom calls like they’re shouting across a stadium instead of speaking at a normal volume.

It’s frustrating to see something that impacts people’s daily lives so heavily being communicated with vague slogans and zero transparency.

By this time next year, should we expect it to move to 5? Anyone jumping ship?

Cats out of the bag boys and girls. If you’re in certain sites you’re going back 100% from September.