MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.–There’s a new questions for CU leaders to Google—and in this case it’s literally about Google itself and its return to work policies, which may set an example for others.
According to the company, it is now rethinking its long-term work options for employees as the coronavirus pandemic continues, as most of them say they don’t want to come back to the office full-time.
Sixty-two percent of Google employees want to return to their offices at some point, but not every day, according to a recent survey of employee office preferences the company released this week. As a result, Google is working on “hybrid” models, including rearranging its offices and figuring out more long-term remote work options, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said in an interview with Time magazine.
“I see the future as being more flexible,” Pichai told Time. “We firmly believe that in-person, being together, having a sense of community is super important when you have to solve hard problems and create something new so we don’t see that changing. But we do think we need to create more flexibility and more hybrid models.”
Earlier in the summer, the company gave staffers the option to work from home through July 2021. Facebook has announced a similar timeline, while Twitter has said its employees can work remotely “forever.”
‘Always Made Me Wonder’
In its newest survey, 10% of Google employees — down from 20% surveyed in May — said they don’t want to come into the office at all in the future. Fifteen percent said they’d only want to come into the office “Ad hoc” or for particular events.
Employees’ reasons for wanting to return to offices included face time with colleagues, the ability to socialize, and better collaboration opportunities, the survey showed, according to MSNBC.
“It’s always made me wonder — when I see people commuting two hours and away from their family and friends on a Friday, you realize they can’t have plans,” Pichai told Time, referring to Silicon Valley’s long work commutes. “So I think we could do better.”