RTO Is Dead. Here’s How Small Businesses Can Win Over Employees

It’s looking like 2023 killed the return-to-office movement. And: The new work normal provides an opportunity for smaller players.

Last year, work-from-home time flatlined at around 30 percent, about half of the pandemic high, according to the WFH Research project. New RTO mandates have also slowed: Employers called 1,165,790 workers back to the office in the third quarter of 2023, according to the real estate services company JLL. In the first quarter of this year, it estimates that just 459,580 employees will be called back.  

In 2024, RTO policies generally just aren’t a priority for many CEOs, despite recent high-profile crackdowns from big players like Bank of America, Google, and Amazon. A mere 4 percent of U.S. CEOs are prioritizing bringing workers back full-time, and only 27 percent say maintaining hybrid work is a human capital priority in 2024, according to a recent survey from the Conference Board. 

All this seems to indicate that most companies have settled into a new status quo–that hybrid work is here to stay. But now, leaders must fine-tune the best approach to balance “the benefits of in-person work with the desires of their workforces,” per Glassdoor’s 2024 Workplace Trends report. Otherwise, in a still-strong labor market, companies could lose their people to others doing it better.   

Small-business owners are well-suited for this challenge, though, as they can be “more nimble and flexible” than their larger counterparts, says Gleb Tsipursky, a behavioral scientist and the CEO of Disaster Avoidance Experts, a future-of-work consultancy. Here’s how to take advantage of the new work normal. 

Make a strong case  

First, leaders need to make sure their workers understand why their in-office time is meaningful. “And so far, I’d say people don’t believe it,” says Peter Cappelli, a professor of management at the Wharton School and the director of Wharton’s Center for Human Resources. The solution, says Cappelli, is a clear message that comes from the top.  

Specifically, leaders need to communicate with transparency about how in-office time would make employees’ work better, says Caitlin Duffy, research director at Gartner. Use data-driven reasoning to explain why it makes sense for their role instead of just talking about what they’ll get if they show up.

“Focusing super intensely on carrots and sticks could be missing the forest for the trees,” Duffy says. “Employees want to feel heard. They want to feel understood.”

About those carrots and sticks–tread carefully  

In 2023, companies used a combination of carrots and sticks to try to lure workers back to the office, according to the Glassdoor trends report. But in 2024, the report predicts more “carrot sticks,” or “policies somewhere between to gently reward and enforce RTO,” to take advantage of in-office benefits without alienating workers.  

Examples of these might include more in-person mentoring opportunities or recognition for employees taking part in social activities, according to the report. Duffy says that she’s seen companies allow more flexible hours. Companies can also look for ways to ease the burden of commuting, says Micah Remley, CEO of the workplace platform Robin.  

Remley implemented this tactic at Robin, abandoning subsidized monthly commuter passes and instituting daily commuter benefits to better suit the company’s hybrid schedule. Through this program, Robin covers the cost of each employee’s daily commute, with a monthly cap. The result, he says, is a 40 percent increase in employees coming into the office.  

Support managers  

Leaders may need to communicate the “why” behind the company’s new work status quo, but bosses will play a crucial role in the execution, Cappelli says. Thus, aligning in-office time for bosses and their reports can be more effective and attractive. “I want to go in and schmooze with the boss, except she’s not there,” Cappelli says. “So why should I go?”  

But managing a hybrid workplace can come with unique hurdles for managers: 81 percent of HR leaders say that managers are the ones enforcing RTO mandates for direct reports, according to Gartner. And yet, 73 percent of hybrid managers and senior leaders are still unprepared to lead hybrid teams, according to Gallup data. Here, small businesses have an advantage, as they can more readily train their managers and adapt their work culture based on this training, says Tsipursky.  

Leaders should also empower their managers to make decisions in this new workplace, Remley says. For instance, the sales team might have more in-office needs and benefits than the engineering team. As he points out, “for me to say, ‘Hey, it’s one-size-fits-all across everyone’ really doesn’t take into account the differences between different roles.”  

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