Happy Nice Mall

When Googlers returned to their mostly empty offices this month, they were told to relax. Office time should be “not only productive, but fun”. Explore a little here. Do not book back-to-back meetings.

Also, don’t forget to attend the special show of Lizzo, one of the hottest pop stars in the country. If that wasn’t enough, the company is also planning “pop-up events” featuring “every Googler’s favorite duo: food and loot.”

However, Googlers in Boulder, Colo. still remembered what they had given up when the company gave them mousepads with a picture of a sad-eyed cat. under the pet it was a defense: “You’re not going to RTO, are you?”

RTO for return to duty is an acronym born out of the pandemic. It is an acknowledgment of how Covid-19 has forced many companies to abandon their office buildings and empty cubicles. The pandemic has proven that being in the office doesn’t necessarily equal more productivity, and some firms continued to evolve without meeting face to face.

Now, after two years of video meetings and Slack chats, many companies are itching to get their employees back to their desks. But employees may not be too keen to go back to their morning commute, shared bathrooms, and non-duffy daytime wear.

That’s why tech companies with money to burn and offices to fill are rolling out the fun wagon, even if they make it clear that going back to the office is mandatory in most cases—at least a few days a week.

Lizzo will be performing for Googlers this month at an amphitheater near the company’s headquarters in Mountain View, California. When Microsoft reopened its offices in Redmond, Wash., in late February, employees were given music by local bands, beer and wine tastings, and even classes to make a terrarium.

Chip maker Qualcomm to celebrate its first official week in the office a happy hour With its CEO, Cristiano Amon, it distributed free food, drink, and T-shirts to several thousand employees at its offices in San Diego. The company has also begun offering weekly events, such as pop-up snack stands on “Take a Tuesday Break” and group fitness classes for “Tuesday Wednesday.”

“These celebrations and privileges acknowledge that companies know their employees don’t want to go back to the office, certainly not as often as they used to be,” said Adam Galinsky, a professor at Columbia University’s business school. At least for now, he added, companies prefer carrots over sticks: rewarding employees for coming to the office rather than punishing them for staying at home.

Before Covid hit, the biggest tech firms committed billions of dollars to build offices that are architectural marvels and trophies of financial success. Packed with possibilities and benefits, these sparkling offices are a testament to the long-held belief that face-to-face collaboration is still better at fostering creativity, inspiring innovation, and instilling a shared sense of purpose.

But for many employees who enjoy the freedom to work remotely, returning to the office, no matter how fancy, carries the fear of late summer, back to school. Few seem keen to return five days a week.

On Memegen, an internal company site where Googlers share memes, one of the most popular posts was a picture and title of a company cafeteria: You quit Google.”

Nick Bloom, an economics professor at Stanford University who surveys 5,000 workers each month, said most of them want to return to the office two or three times a week. One-third never want to return to the office and prefer to stay away.

By simply eliminating the commute to the office, the average worker will save an hour a day, so you can “see why employees don’t start getting free bagels to work or playing table tennis,” Mr Bloom said. The main draw to go to the office, according to surveysemployees want to see their colleagues in person.

After a series of delays, Google launched its hybrid work program on April 4, requiring most employees to appear in US offices several days a week. Apple began sending employees back to the office on Monday, as employees were initially expected to check-in at the office once a week.

On March 31, David Radcliffe, Google’s vice president of real estate and workplace services, emailed San Francisco Bay Area employees that the company wanted to make the return to the office “truly special.”

For years, Google has provided its employees with Wi-Fi-equipped luxury buses to make commuting more efficient and comfortable, but this goes one step further. starts a program for Pay back $49 monthly rental fee for an electric scooter as part of transportation options for staff. Google also plans to start experimenting with: different office designs Adapting to changing working styles.

When Microsoft employees returned to their offices in February as part of a hybrid work program, they were greeted with “appreciation events” and lawn games such as corn hole and life-size chess. There were spring basket making and canvas painting lessons. The campus bar has been transformed into a beer, wine and “mocktail” garden.

And of course there was free food and drink: pizzas, sandwiches and specialty coffees. Microsoft paid for food trucks with offerings like fried chicken, tacos, gyros, Korean food, and barbecue.

Unlike other tech companies, Microsoft expects its employees to pay for their own groceries at the office. One employee was amazed at how big of a draw the free meal was.

Mr Bloom said the challenge for companies is how they can balance the flexibility of allowing employees to set their own schedules with a tougher approach, such as forcing them to come on specific days to maximize the benefit of office time.

He said companies should focus on developing the right approach to hybrid working, rather than wasting time and effort to overwhelm employees with incentives like private gigs.

“Staff will not come regularly just to show off,” Mr Bloom said. “What are you going to do next? Take Justin Bieber and then Katy Perry?”

In keeping with Apple’s more restricted workplace, employees said they did not expect – nor heard of – any celebration for the return to office. At first, Apple asks its employees to come once a week. In late May, Apple is asking them to come on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays.

When Apple announced its plan to return to the office last year before another wave of Covid forced a delay, more than 1,000 employees signed a letter encouraging management to be more open to flexible working arrangements. This was a rare display of opposition from the lower echelons of the company, who have historically been less willing to openly challenge managers on workplace issues.

But as tech companies grapple with offering their employees greater job flexibility, firms are also shrinking some office benefits.

Meta, formerly known as Facebook, announced to its employees last month. reduce or eliminate free services such as laundry and dry cleaning. Like some other companies, Google said it has approved thousands of employee requests to work remotely or move to a different office. However, if employees move to a cheaper location, Google cuts the pay, arguing that it always takes into account where a person was hired when determining compensation.

Clio, a legitimate software company in Burnaby, British Columbia, does not force its employees to return to the office. But he threw a party at their office last week.

There was lively music. It featured an asymmetrical balloon sculpture in Clio’s signature bright blue, navy, coral and white colors – perfect for selfies. One of Clio’s best-known employees donned a safari costume to tour the facility. At 2 pm the company held a cake social event.

The company moved desks to the perimeter to make workspaces feel more homey—let’s Clions, whom the company calls employees, gaze at the cherry blossoms of the office complex as emails explode. “A foosball table has been upgraded to a workstation with chairs at each end so you can hold a meeting while playing the liston with your laptop,” said Natalie Archibald, Clio’s VP of Public Affairs.

Clio’s Burnaby office, which employs 350 people, is only open at half capacity. Spacing desks must be reserved and employees are given red, yellow and green lanyards to communicate their level of comfort with handshakes.

Only about 60 people showed up that Monday. “To make the IRL laugh instead of an emoji response,” Ms. Archibald said. “People are excited about it.”

Karen Weise contributing reporting.