As reported by Business Insider (BI), Dell employees who opt for 100% teleworking will not be eligible for promotion. Remember that Dell's previous position on remote work was different. At the time, based on the words of the brand's CEO, Michael Dell, “if you rely on forced hours spent in a traditional office to create collaboration and provide a sense of belonging within the organization, you are doing things wrong.”
As BI reports, the majority of the company's workers will be considered “remote” or “hybrid” from May onwards. Anyone who works under a hybrid regime must attend the company approximately three times a week, as reported by Ars Technica. Those who always stay at home find themselves unable to progress and may even have to change roles.
Dell believes that the current landscape requires in-person connection
Illustrative Image (via Copilot AI and Wikipedia)
From the company's point of view, the current technological landscape means that there will continue to be a face-to-face connection between workers. Dell advocates a “flexible” approach, which it considers essential to continue innovating and differentiating itself in the market.
As previously mentioned, Dell's new policy changes the company's approach to teleworking. According to the same source of information, an anonymous employee of the company states that he has been working remotely for more than a decade, like around 15% of Dell's teams, he explains.
About two years ago, in 2022, Michael Dell wrote as a supporter of teleworking. According to him, “we did not find significant differences between team members who worked remotely or in the office, even before the pandemic forced everyone to return home. The perception of unequal opportunities is just one of the myths of hybrid work” (via Ars Technica).
Some employees complain about the impact of the new measure on Dell workers
At the time in question, the company gave workers the option to choose what benefited them most. However, the new changes may suggest that Dell intends to discourage employees from staying at home.
As Ars Technica reports, the measure in question has not been very well received by some employees. One of them, anonymously, revealed that they are being “forced” to make a decision that could “affect” many of the workers.
Although Dell's objective is to encourage face-to-face contact, a study carried out by the University of Pittsburgh reveals that the obligation for workers to travel to an office has no direct relationship with an increase in company productivity.