Michael Page’s Post

As a hybrid company, I think we’re doing it better than most. Here’s why: After COVID restrictions were lifted, LeanData employees came back a year earlier than most other companies. We didn’t wait to see what Meta and Google were going to do. We formed our hybrid vs. remote guidelines by team. A team was either hybrid or remote, with no outliers. We also made a very conscious decision when hiring new employees. They had to follow the hybrid or remote status of their team. Because if you’re coming into the office, you need to know that the majority of the people you’re going to interact with will be there. If you’re coming into the office to be on Zoom, it’s a waste of time. The other policy we implemented was designated hybrid days. It’s very clear what days an employee is in-office and what days they are remote. They do not get to pick their days. This way, you can expect to see other people in-person. Here’s the key: If you come into the office it has to be an in-person experience. On in-person days (for LeanData that’s Monday and Wednesday), there’s company lunches, snacks, employee events, meetings in conference rooms – everything tailored around that in-person experience. It makes people who are on a hybrid schedule look forward to Mondays and Wednesdays. There’s a tangible energy in the office. And, because of our policies, we have less attrition on our hybrid teams compared to other companies. Three in-person days a week may be the norm, but I’ll take two great days over three crappy days. Because in the end, for most folks, there’s more to coming to work than just the job. #HybridWork #RemoteWork #CompanyCulture #EmployeeEngagement #WorkplaceStrategy #TeamCollaboration #OfficeLife #HybridTeams #FutureOfWork #EmployeeExperience #HR #LeanData

❕ IN OFFICE VS REMOTE ❕ 🏠 🏢 Possibly the biggest debate on LinkedIn... and one we could argue about ALL DAY! 99% of my work is with start-ups, a lot of whom come through Y-Combinator The current YC Batch is only 29% with some remote element (either fully remote or Hybrid) with the rest requiring a full-time in office presence. Rather than debating which is better (we can all understand the arguement on both sides), I think the better question is about at what cost this comes... If you are based in either SF or NYC, asking for an in office presence is pretty standard, but what I can say is a hard requirement on 5 days can often be a dealbreaker for 10x candidates who have multiple offers on the table, and who your competitors may be offering 3/4 days instead or more of a "flexible" model. The other issue can be talent pool, if you are hiring for a very specific or niche skillset, you could be looking at a talent pool of only 40 engineers within a commutable distance, who may not want to move to an early stage start-up, and even if they do, are more likely to have their head turned by fully remote opportunities. Something working with Realm can do, is allow us to guide and consult on the market at the time of hiring, give you an insight into what your peers and competitors are offering, as well as help negotiate and be the middle ground between top tier talent that may be put off by requirements on a JD... Want to get to know more about either the talent we are working with (SF/NYC and Remote) or roles we are working on at the moment? Drop me a message and let's get a call booked in 📞 p.s hybrid model can't be beaten for me personally, love being in office with the team and the collaboration it brings, but I also love the time I save commuting! #go #rust #gopher #rustacean #ycombinator #softwareengineers

🌐 Big Tech: Remote Work or Return to the Office? 🌐 As companies navigate the best work models post-pandemic, big tech is split. Some are pushing for in-office returns, while others stay fully remote or hybrid. 👉 Amazon recently made headlines by announcing a 5-day office mandate starting in 2025. CEO Andy Jassy believes the change will strengthen team collaboration and culture, aligning Amazon with a more traditional work setup once again. This decision builds on Amazon’s earlier move from hybrid to more frequent in-office requirements. 👉 Spotify, on the other hand, is keeping it remote-friendly with its “Work From Anywhere” policy. Since 2021, Spotify has allowed employees the freedom to choose where they work best—whether at home, in the office, or somewhere in between. This approach lets Spotify tap into a global talent pool, attracting employees who value flexibility and work-life balance. In fact, according to recent research, nearly 96% of tech companies are still offering remote or hybrid options. Meta, Apple, and Microsoft also continue with hybrid models, seeing it as the best of both worlds for in-person collaboration and flexibility. 📊 What’s Next? The trend shows a divide: companies that push for office returns may find value in faster decision-making and team synergy, while those embracing remote work could attract talent looking for freedom and a healthier work-life mix. 💼 Where do you stand? Are you a fan of remote, hybrid, or full office work? Personally I miss the office work a lot, however I can hardly imagine working-from-office 5 days in a row. And what are your preferences? #RemoteWork #ReturnToOffice #TechJobs #WorkFromAnywhere #Amazon #Spotify #HybridWork

Spotify is a remote-first, work-from-anywhere company. Their stock price is also up ~150% year-to-date. Coincidence? Well, they aren't planning any #returntooffice mandates like Apple, Amazon, or Dell. And yet, they are (financially) one of the best-performing companies in the world. Since going remote-first in 2011, Spotify has seen employee retention improve by about 15%. Their HR leader has some amazing and spicy quotes in various interviews related to #remotework that are worth sharing.... - "You can’t spend a lot of time hiring grown-ups and then treat them like children." - “We are a business that’s been digital from birth, so why shouldn’t we give our people flexibility and freedom?” - “Work is not a place you come to, it’s something you do.” You can look to some of the pioneering remote-first companies like Atlassian, GitLab, Buffer, Zapier, and Automattic to see other examples of high-growth companies who adopted flexible work models and perform at exceptionally high levels. You can also look at new players like Airbnb, Dropbox, and Remote who have similar remote-first organizations and are among some of the best employers in the world. What do all of these companies do, in addition to being remote-first, that helps them increase employee engagement, retention, and alignment? They plan regular in-person team retreats. (And some of them use offsite. com...others will soon!) But back to the whole #returntooffice thing... I think it's a joke that companies think they *must* be in the office 5 days per week to perform well. How do they expect to recruit and retain top talent? Why would top talent go to companies like Spotify who treat them like adults? --- I'd love to hear what you think in the comments below.... And repost if you found this insightful! Finally, follow me Jared Kleinert if you haven't already for daily posts on remote work + employee engagement ideas.

Is Remote Work the Rug Being Pulled Out from Under You? 🤔 After speaking with many top talents in Backend Engineering across Berlin on behalf of our new, large US client, it's becoming clear that some tech companies need to listen to their employee's wants, or they will lose their most valuable assets! Many people have told me they want to leave their employer, as their company wants them to spend more time in the office. At one point, remote work was the new normal, but now some tech companies are reversing course and bringing employees back into the office. As a result, top talents are curious about the market and searching for new remote gigs! Do these companies believe true collaboration and communication can only happen in the office? Why make such a ripple in the water with such a drastic change? Was the work-from-home movement just a trend? #RemoteWork #WFH #FutureOfWork #HybridWork #TechIndustry #RemoteJobs #WorkLifeBalance #EmployeeRetention #BackToOffice #TechTalent #WorkplaceTrends #JobMarket #RemoteOpportunities #TechCareers #WorkFromAnywhere #EmployeeSatisfaction #OfficeVsRemote #TalentAcquisition #FutureOfJobs #WorkCulture #RemoteWorkRevolution

Have a look at this... Spotify’s bold take on remote work. "Our employees are not children." They trust their team to get the job done—whether that’s from home, the office, or anywhere in between. And they’re not alone. Shopify: Still "Digital by default & remote first" Microsoft: Hybrid, up to 50% remote Spotify: Remote-first with full trust in employees Pinterest: Flexible hybrid model Salesforce: "Success from Anywhere"—remote work thrives Slack: Remote-first, work from anywhere Big Tech continues to embrace flexibility. Remote work isn’t just a trend—it’s a strategy. Is your company adapting? What do you think of Spotify's take?

After 3 years, its so interesting to see the divide on in-office and remote work policies across industries. Japanese companies are thought to be conservative, but many have embraced WFH fully and expected to continue. -Big Tech: Many want employees to be back in the office [Google, Amazon, Apple, Tesla], while others continue full remote [zoom, Shopify, coinable, airbnb etc], -Banks: Surprisingly a lot of WFH continues. Most companies seem to embrace a “let’s be in the office 2-3 times per week” but it’s also not mandatory, but you also can’t not come. -Recruiting: Mostly back in office lol -Consulting: Mainly remote -Manufacturing: Hybrid work unless in factories. Grow is a fully remote business from Day 1. While there were a lot of new communication bottlenecks at the start, once everyone is used to it and the team has trust in each other, Remote is the way to go! #startups #venturecapital #networking #careers #technology

Is there a “right” answer to the remote vs. in-person debate? Maybe, but it feels like the jury is still out! I mean, back in the day (aka pre-2020), I was practically a permanent fixture at clients’ offices, hitting 8-10 onsite meetings a week like it was my full-time job (oh wait, it was). Now? I can count my in-person meetings from the last couple of years on two hands, while my daily Zoom/goto/google/teams marathon has upped its game to 4-8 calls a day without even breaking a sweat. Here’s the big question: Are companies like Amazon and JPMC about to pull everyone back into the office grind? Or is Spotify the trendsetter, paving the way for a 100% remote world in tech? Or maybe we’ll get a nice blend: a few days at home to save our commute sanity and a few in the office to remind people we actually exist. Personally, I’m rooting for the “3 in, 2 out” setup—because, you know, I’ve just spent a 30+ year career leading technology groups, but hey, what do I know? 😄

For me, having the choice to work from home or head into the office has been a game-changer. It means I can tailor my work environment to fit my needs, whether that's focusing quietly at home or collaborating in person with my team. On the days when I do choose to go into the office, it’s a very intentional decision, so I arrive more engaged and ready to contribute. This freedom enhances my productivity and work-life balance, making every day more fulfilling. It’s not a trend; it’s a sustainable approach to modern work that respects individuals and their needs. Last week, I had the pleasure of providing insights to BuiltIn, which made me reflect on the hybrid model, how we implement it at NextRoll, and why I think it’s effective. Check it out! #HybridWork #NextRoll #Flexibility #WorkLifeBalance #Productivity #Collaboration #FutureOfWork

Consider how many years/decades/centuries/millennia we've had to "design" what working in person looks and feels like. Now take your average company that tried to do all that while "remote" or "hybrid" (in the last 4 years). Unless companies are willing to approach this as a new design problem ... as something they'll need to work at and iterate on ... not a panacea, and not a sacrifice ... then of course something will be missing from non in-person work. Hot take: companies that aren't willing to do this, should go back to in-person work and see what happens. You have no interest in figuring out how to thrive in the new reality, so just admit things will not work, and that you are not willing to make it work, and cut your losses. My guess is that in the near future we will see: 1. Remote or mostly hybrid companies who commit to making it work, and end up attracting really stellar employees because they do. They will be highly competitive, and will be rewriting the "script" we've evolve for centuries. 2. Companies who have no interest in making it work, but who did well before, and will continue to do reasonable well. They will lose high potential people to the #1s above, but it will not make a big dent. Gradually the innovation from #1 above will seep back into these companies, and over a long period of time they will eventually be forced back to remote/hybrid. 3. A lot of companies that aren't willing to make #1 work, but are also having a very hard attracting the people they need, will do remote. This is sort of the worst of both worlds. They will have trouble thriving at all.