Yahoo’s CEO, Marissa Mayer, was in the news twice in the last week. She was praised for “putting her stamp on Yahoo” in the words of the New York Times. Then came another Times article, this one headlined: “Yahoo Orders Home Workers Back to the Office.” Here’s a quote.
“She started with free food and new smartphones for every employee, borrowing from the playbook of Google, her employer until last year. Now, though, Yahoo has made a surprise move: abolishing its work-at-home policy and ordering everyone to work in the office. “
This could be just another example of companies reacting to the over-hyping of working from home. Two recent well-publicized examples of this are Best Buy and the Bank of America, both of which are reviewing their teleworking policies. But the Yahoo case is very different.
For me the two critical words in the headline and quote are “orders” and “everyone.” That tells me that what’s happening at Yahoo is different from what’s going on at Best Buy where “all hands on deck” is part of a response to crisis. It’s different from Bank of America’s review of all teleworking to determine who should do it permanently, who should do it sometimes, and who should not do it at all. What’s going on at Yahoo is less about the best way for the company to work and more about power.
“Orders” means no consultation. “Everyone” means no considering individual cases. If you want to work here, you have to be here. Forget the way you’ve worked before. Forget any promises we’ve made to you. My way is that you will work here. The highway is right over there. Having more people work in the office may be a good idea, but this is not the way to make it happen.
There’s a straightforward connection to talent development. People don’t think about development or giving it their best effort when they’re being treated like inmates or indentured servants. They either hunker down to survive or start looking for a way to leave, or both.
Additional Resources
“Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer Demands Telecommuters Report to The Office” from the Huffington Post
“No more remote work at Yahoo” by David at 37signals
“Yahoo to Remote Employees: Get Your Butts in the Office” by Frank Roche at Know HR
“3 Ways Yahoo’s Marissa Mayer Did Us A Huge Favor” from Cali Yost
