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Just in case you weren’t quite sure where he stood on the matter, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon has once again reaffirmed his belief in the return-to-office (RTO).
The chief executive controversially called his staff back to the office five days a week earlier this year, addressing the journey in an interview with Bloomberg last week.
According to Dimon, the model is helping JPMorgan’s Gen Z staff get up to speed – “you can’t learn working from your basement,” he said – and has not led to any notable attrition at the Wall Street firm.
Dimon stands firm on power of in-person work
In March, JPMorgan Chase’s controversial return-to-office finally came into effect, after weeks of back and forth between disgruntled employees and an insistent executive team.
While some staff rallied against the move, including with an anti-RTO petition signed by roughly 1,000 employees, Dimon smacked the movement down, famously stating: “I don’t care how many people sign that F***ing petition.”
He subsequently apologized for his four-letter outburst, but said that no criticism would deter him from what he believes to be the best course of action for his firm.
Although the RTO got off to a rocky start, including desk capacity issues, spotty WiFi, sick employees, and noise complaints, Dimon remains bullish on the operational model. “I think our employees will be happier over time,” he noted.
Elsewhere in the Bloomberg interview, he addressed the general controversy and criticism surrounding his move to order 300,000 employees back to the office full-time.
“I gave a very detailed answer about why [work from home] doesn’t work for young people, why it doesn’t work for management, why it doesn’t work for innovation,” he said. “I completely applaud your right to not want to go to the office every day. But you’re not going to tell JPMorgan what to do.”
RTO helping drive Gen Z ‘apprenticeships’ at JPMorgan
The CEO told Bloomberg that his firm experienced no extra attrition after the mandate came into effect and claimed that a return to full in-person work has helped drive innovation and support early-career learning.
“It is an apprenticeship system,” Dimon said, noting that it allows younger employees to spend time with more senior colleagues. “You can’t learn working from your basement.”
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“I’m not even against work from home—I’m against work from home [when] it doesn’t work,” he added. Roughly 10% of JPMorgan still work remotely, such as temporary call center staff.
JPMorgan’s heightened expectation for in-office attendance comes as other firms such as Amazon, Uber, and Google also mandate more in-person work.
Chief executives like Dimon, Amazon’s Andy Jassy, and Uber’s Dara Khosrowshahi have said spending more time working in person will drive collaboration, learning, and creativity.
While JPMorgan’s boss claimed that the move to limit remote working opportunities has not harmed retention, previous studies have indicated that failing to offer hybrid or work-from-home flexibility could be costing employers top talent.
However, some studies show that while Gen Z may not feel too warmly about the prospect of completely losing the freedom to work remotely, they do recognize that in-person work can boost their careers, relationships, and personal development.
