TLDR: Big names like BlackRock and JPMorgan are mandating office returns to rebuild culture, learning, and visibility.
But mandates alone won’t deliver on these goals - the office has to be organised right to support these objectives.
To succeed, the office needs to be updated to effortlessly enable teamwork, reduce friction, and make showing up feel worth it.
In May 2025, BlackRock made headlines by requiring its 1,000 managing directors to return to the office five days a week - a sharp departure from its hybrid model adopted after the “forced remote” working of 2020.
And it’s not just Blackrock - JPMorgan Chase, Amazon, Barclays, and others have already made similar moves, citing familiar concerns: culture, mentorship, collaboration, and visibility.
This isn’t just about reopening buildings.
It’s about reasserting some old norms and challenging some of the changes we’ve seen in the working world. There are other factors at play too – like revitalizing areas which have been hit by the decline in office worker related footfall.
But if we’re really heading back and in many cases not being given much choice, there’s an important question:
Are the offices we’re returning to ready for what we need from them?
🧑💻🗓👨💼🏢📊 Why Are Companies Calling People Back?
The reasons given are pretty consistent and largely not without some merit:
“We can’t build culture on Zoom.”
“Junior team members aren’t learning by osmosis.”
“Innovation happens in person.”
“We need visibility to manage performance.”
Leaders like JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon have openly expressed concern that prolonged remote work limits development, especially for less experienced members of the workforce who miss out on organic learning and mentoring opportunities found in the office.
The physical office is being reimagined back to being the default workplace, as a strategic asset. An asset that facilitates trust, collaboration, and a shared sense of purpose. The much discussed “company culture”.
Then vs. Now: Has the Office Actually Changed, and what are the expectations?
Despite talk of reinvention, many companies are mandating a return to a version of office life that looks remarkably like 2019. But the context has changed — and so have people’s expectations.
Let's examine schedules and commuting, the purpose of the office and, finally, how we get value from real estate.
We will look at these in three different eras:
Pre-pandemic - how did things operate pre-2020?
Post-pandemic hybrid era - the initial return to office, dominated by hybrid working
Full return to office - what leaders are expecting with firm RTO mandates
📅 Schedules and Commuting 🚉
Pre-pandemic, whilst hybrid or remote work did exist - for most, it was 5 days per week in the office. It was assigned desks and static hours.
Commuting time and cost obviously increase significantly with a full RTO - will people accept this long term? Making sure the time and effort feels worth it will be key.
Some companies - like Lloyds Banking Group - have started linking bonuses to office attendance.
You must show up to get your bonus.
But visibility should be about building trust and alignment — not about watching who sits where, and who is doing what. Real value comes from designing spaces and systems that empower outcomes, not just attendance. Being in the office needs to deliver measurable value.
No one appreciates a big brother environment – but especially not one without purpose.
👨💼💻The Purpose of the Office 🔑
The office used to be the default location. That changed and many people realised they could work from anywhere. There are, however, some drawbacks to this that RTOs are looking to colve.
It's important when thinking about "measuring work" (leaders often cite wanting to "see" workers to know they are doing their jobs) that leaders find ways to measure the outcomes, not just the presence, of people in offices.
Expecting collaboration is not the same as enabling it.
💰💰Getting Value from Expensive Real Estate 📈🏢
There's no getting away from it - offices are incredibly expensive assets. Historically, commercial real estate has been one of the safest assets with significant debt collatoralised against it - so it's not a surprise to see leaders (especially those from invested financial institutions like Blackrock or JP Morgan!) wanting to ensure the value of it is protected.
Space utilisation in offices has actually often been poor - even pre-pandemic. It's just talked about more now. It's important to drive utilisation of space, make sure the space on offer is what people need - and that offices aren't just somewhere to turn up and work, but they technology in place really does enable people to do things they can't remotely.
That is what will decide whether leaders see their expectations from a return to office met or not.
The Risk of a Hollow Return
Mandating a return without redesigning the experience is a missed opportunity.
Otherwise workers will rightly ask: What’s the point?
A half-empty floor of people on individual video calls isn’t collaboration. It’s frustration — and it risks damaging morale more than boosting it. 
Things also don’t always go according to plan. Demanding workers return to the office is one thing – but they need to be helped towards achieving the goals the RTO had in the first place.
What makes a good office experience?
Returning to the office shouldn’t mean going back in time. It should mean going forward with purpose.
Want people to want to be there and not reject the RTO, then make sure the office empowers intentional collaboration, integrated technology and don’t forget about employee wellbeing, we aren't all the same!
To support culture, performance, and collaboration, the office must actually work.
As a starter:
- Spaces available when/where you need them - not a complex organisational process
- Know where your teammates are so you know where to be
- Simple tools to navigate the office experience from start to finish - ideally automated to reduce the need for user input
- Slick, seamless experience for clients and guests
- Integrated systems — no clicks, no chaos
Without these fundamentals, even well-intentioned RTO policies cause friction and fatigue, and likely won’t achieve the positive results leadership are hoping for.
Conclusion: Let’s Make the Office Worth It
Return-to-office mandates may get people through the door, but only a positive experience will keep them coming back.
Whilst a full time return to office isn’t for everyone - and as many companies have said - some people may choose to leave – what's important is making sure that work is intentional and purposeful. The office needs to deliver on what people need to be effective.
Yes - it is important that these expensive assets are well used, and the communities of businesses that rely on office related footfall thrive, but it's important that workers want to be in the office.
At AskAiB, we are helping organizations ensure that every day in the office is worth it — by connecting people to the spaces, tools, and teammates that make work better – without the headache and effort.
And the winners? They’ll be the companies who turn mandates into momentum — and spaces into experiences that matter.
