Hi There!

I hope your Friday is going well. Welcome back to another episode of Ask Ash, where I interview WatchMojo Founder & CEO Ashkan Karbasfrooshan and ask him questions about various topics, ranging from covering what is going on in the news, to giving career advice to students & entrepreneurs.

Facebook announced that they would be delaying their return to the office until January of next year. Additionally, LinkedIn announced that their employees can work remotely permanently if they chose to do so. Lots of companies are pushing back their return to the office, or even allowing them to work remotely forever. I wanted to get some of Ash’s thoughts on this delay, and why companies are delaying their returns, although they are trying to get their employees back ASAP.

Facebook today delayed the return to the office to January 2022… Any thoughts on companies that are trying to get employees back to the physical office that keeps delaying their plans?

Well, COVID doesn’t care about companies’ plans. Naturally, for a firm like Facebook, it’s easier to just say “we’re punting until the new year” but the pandemic cares even less about the Gregorian Calendar! But that said, I think this is the ultimate “peeing in the wind” phenomenon where employees are just feeling more and more emboldened to push back because many don’t want the commute or a return to the old way. As much as companies may start small, it’s a process and in the end, over time, many will want a full return to the pre-Covid reality which many will find illogical. Wars, pandemics, and other such major events bring major changes… and organizations that realize that and capitalize on the disruption will thrive. 

I have been consistently patient and adopted a wait-and-see approach… listening to the company. Indeed, in our new Insights initiative, we asked our Staff and YouTube Community whether or not they would look for another job if their employer would force them to return to the office. In the anonymous surveys,

– One third (34%) of the larger WatchMojo Community said they wouldn’t search for a new job and stay put

– But I was super thrilled to see two-thirds (65.2%) of the WatchMojo Staff say they would be fine to return to the office and keep the same job/employer. Obviously, that is a source of pride… but I’m in no rush per se to return, either… especially given the variants that keep popping up. 

In fact, my main concern has always been in the mid-term, where those who work from home may be overlooked for promotions and opportunities… but that is a long-term problem which I think can be addressed, as well.

Lastly, if you want to submit questions to Ash directly, you can do so by clicking the link here: https://watchmojo.com/suggest/AskMojo%20-%20WatchMojo’s%20founder%20Ash