Over the past two years, a growing number of large enterprises, from Amazon to JPMorgan Chase, have rolled out stringent RTO mandates, often requiring three to five days a week in the office. Many leaders argue this is essential for reinforcing culture, collaboration and innovation. But these policies often collide with employee expectations forged during the pandemic: flexibility, autonomy, and a reworked sense of what work can be.
Data suggests the tension is real. A Robin Powered survey of nearly 600 full-time employees in companies with flexible work policies found that while 45 percent of employees with a mandate report being expected in the office four days a week, only 24 percent actually are. Owl Labs’ 2024 State of Hybrid Work Report found that 47 percent of employees polled would leave a business if it mandated a full-time RTO. Meanwhile, in studies across the US, people cite commuting time, lack of office resources, and inflexible arrangements as top barriers.
The stick approach, rigid mandates with little scope for discretion, often breeds resentment, even attrition. A MIT Sloan Review article from last November argues that mandates hurt rather than help, damaging engagement and increasing turnover, especially among high performers or those with caregiving responsibilities.
There is another way. A progressive, incentive-led model, the “carrot” approach, recognises that presence must be earned and enabled, not forced. It places trust at the centre and treats the workplace as a destination people want to visit. As survival in enterprise tech, HR, facilities, and collaboration increasingly depends on how well companies manage RTO, understanding what makes the carrot model work is vital.
Designing the Physical Office as the Carrot
If employees are to be drawn back, not dragged, the physical workspace must matter. Jane Sartin of the Flexible Space Association emphasises that office design and amenities are not just niceties but central to how people feel about returning.
“There’s now a huge variety in what workspaces look like," she told UC Today. "Some feel almost like five-star hotels, others are more basic, but the range means businesses can find something that suits their needs and their people."
Amenities like roof terraces and outdoor space are surprisingly impactful draws. Private spaces such as phone booths or single-person pods are increasingly essential when much work still involves calls and online meetings. As Sartin outlined:
If people don’t have that privacy, they may think, ‘Well, I can just do this better at home.’ So these facilities matter, not just the nice areas to sit in, but the practical design that makes the office a comfortable and functional place to work."
Flexible workspace offerings are also being used strategically: companies with headquarters in major cities are adopting satellite or flexible offices closer to where staff live, reducing long commutes. Weekday communal breakfasts or informal gatherings help too. As the Robin Powered survey suggested, over half of respondents said the availability of amenities (coffee, food, kitchen facilities) and proximity help increase their desire to come into the office.
For those managing business technology, contact centre managers, AV planners, and real estate/facilities teams, this means thinking beyond layout plans and square footage to inclusivity of spaces: quiet zones, breakout/collaboration zones, on-site perks, and critical support like booking systems and equipment readiness. The goal is to reduce friction, making office attendance less of a chore and more of a gain.
Culture, Trust and Human-Centred HR Policies
Physical design alone is not enough. The way HR, leadership and culture treat people matters even more. Doug Betts, of Sure Betts HR Solutions, argues that rigid policies risk eroding trust—and once trust is lost, loyalty and productivity tend to follow.
The main risk is that after five years of flexibility, people have adapted. If you suddenly mandate days in the office, it feels like treating adults like children, and that erodes trust. Without trust, you lose loyalty and productivity."
Betts adamantly rejects the language of top-down policy. "I don’t even like the word ‘policy,’ because it sounds top-down. Telling people they must be in from Tuesday to Thursday feels outdated. We’re no longer in the industrial era."
Instead, he recommends co-creation, asking staff what they want, designing experiences that make commuting worthwhile, such as team days, client engagements, and mentoring that feel genuinely valuable.
He emphasises the critical role of communication style: “HR policies need to be written in a human way, not legalistic. Wording, tone, and comms should align with company values, not just slogans on the wall and embedded into everyday work.”
Measuring what matters is part of this approach. For Doug, metrics around turnover, sickness, engagement, psychological safety, and the ability to suggest improvements need to be core indicators. If collaboration and team building are better now than in full remote working, then you have success. If people are only “smiling through gritted teeth,” then the model is failing.
This alignment, between purpose, autonomy, and experience, is at the heart of carrot-based models.
