Amazon’s CEO Says It’s Time to Get Used to the Daily Commute Again

The future of work might not look as different from its past as we once thought. 

In a message to Amazon.com (AMZN) employees, CEO Andy Jassy told the tech and retail giant’s workers that, starting next year, five days a week of in-office work would be the norm.

“Before the pandemic, it was not a given that folks could work remotely two days a week, and that will also be true moving forward,” Jassy wrote. “Our expectation is that people will be in the office outside of extenuating circumstances.”

Amazon’s quite-public announcement—it was published Monday on the company’s website—was the latest development in the post-pandemic evolution of the office. Many companies that were quick to embrace distributed workplaces enabled by technology have rolled things back, though some surveys indicate that remote and hybrid arrangements are still popular among both companies and employees.  

Aim is to Strengthen Culture

The company’s news was part of a lengthy memo—“Hey team,” it opened, “I wanted to send a note on a couple changes we’re making to further strengthen our culture and teams”—that also covered efforts to “flatten” the organization, root out “bureaucracy or unnecessary process,” and rework offices that had been reworked into flexible spaces to accommodate assigned desks.

Jassy’s message allowed for the possibility of exceptions, whether for immediate needs (like sick family members) or work-related contingencies (like travel or project-specific work) but made clear that the goal was to get people together. 

“If anything,” he said, “the last 15 months we’ve been back in the office at least three days a week has strengthened our conviction about the benefits.”