Google Wants Employees Back in the Office, Considering 'Attendance' in Performance Reviews In an email, a Google executive reportedly told employees that many new features and products unveiled during Google's developer conference last month were "conceived, developed, and built by teams working side by side."
By Madeline Garfinkle •
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Over the past three years, remote and hybrid work has swept the workforce, and some employees prefer doing their jobs from the comfort of their own homes — much to the chagrin of many companies that want their workers in the office.
Now, Google is set to crack down on employees who haven't been coming into the office.
On Wednesday, Google's Chief People Officer, Fiona Cicconi, told employees in a company-wide email that new initiatives will be taken regarding the hybrid work policy will be enforced, The Wall Street Journal reported, including issuing reminders to workers with frequent absences, tracking office badge swipes, and factoring attendance in performance reviews.
Cicconi wrote in the email that Googlers who spend at least three days a week in the office "feel more connected to other Googlers" and it is "magnified when teammates work from the same location," Cicconi wrote in the email, viewed by WSJ.
"Of course, not everyone believes in 'magical hallway conversations,' but there's no question that working together in the same room makes a positive difference," the email said.
Cicconi added that many of the new features and products unveiled during Google's developer conference last month were "conceived, developed, and built by teams working side by side."
"Our hybrid approach is designed to incorporate the best of being together in person with the benefits of working from home for part of the week," a spokesperson for Google told Entrepreneur. "Now that we're more than a year into this way of working, we're formally integrating this approach into all of our workplace policies."
A recent survey from CNBC and Survey Monkey found that 56% of respondents believe those who work in-person are more likely to "advance further" than remote and hybrid workers — up from 47% in October 2021.
Remote and hybrid work has been under fire from CEOs and business owners, from Elon Musk to questioning the "morality" of at-home work to Martha Stewart saying remote work will send "America down the drain."
Despite 78% of remote and hybrid workers saying the model has improved their overall well-being according to a 2022 Cisco survey, others believe that working remotely hinders one's capabilities.
Related: Why Elon Musk and Other Tech Leaders Are Right to Ban Remote Work
