Good morning!
When it comes to return-to-office mandates, many companies, including JPMorgan, Google, and Bank of America, have stuck to their guns with office attendance expectations—often creating strife with workers in the process. But tax services giant H&R Block took a different approach.
The company, which has around 70,000 employees including part time and seasonal workers, announced its first hybrid policy in March of 2021, requiring its then-2,000 corporate workers to show up at an office Tuesday through Thursday. But after a COVID surge forced them to postpone the RTO push, management hired several remote corporate employees, and high-performing staff was clear about how much they preferred remote work, the executive team rethought the mandate.
“The combination of those steps forced us to say: What’s our real beliefs on this? And why are we considering asking people to return to the office so many days of the week?” Jeff Jones, H&R Block’s CEO, tells Fortune. “And the answer to that question was: There isn’t a good reason why we would do that.”
The company decided to do away with its company-wide return-to-office policy for corporate employees and instead allowed individual teams to set their own office attendance requirements. Currently, more than 610 corporate employees, or around 25% of the staff at H&R Block’s headquarters, work remotely. The company is also actively trying to sublease half of the office space that makes up its Kansas City headquarters.
“We have no plan to go backward,” says Jones. “We’re taking steps that are one-way doors that you don’t reverse.”
Field associates who primarily work from the road meeting clients across various different regions were already remote or hybrid before the pandemic depending on their roles, and remain so. The same is true for professionals employed as seasonal workers in local H&R Block offices between January and April.
Despite the company’s RTO reversal for corporate workers, it still holds events where employees can meet in person. Once every quarter, the company hosts “block parties,” where workers travel to its Kansas City headquarters for gatherings and one-on-one meetings. Workers aren’t required to attend, but 550 people badged into the office for the most recent block party. By comparison, around 250 people badge in Tuesdays through Thursdays, the busiest days for in-office attendance. Specific corporate teams also host their own gatherings throughout the year. For example, Jones says the executive team meets in person for at least two days per month.
Jones is clear-eyed about how the RTO landscape looks for many other companies. But he’s confident in his decision to let individual teams decide how they want to work.
“I know that there are CEOs whose orientation is, ‘I want people in’ and they chose to make mandates. If that works for them, fantastic,” says Jones. “My personal style is: I want to hire great people, empower them as best as I can, and hold them accountable to outcomes. I don’t want to micromanage how many hours a day they’re on Teams, or how many days a week they’re in the office, as long as we’re delivering on our commitments.”
“I recognize that’s not for everybody, but it’s working well for us,” he adds.
Paige McGlauflin
paige.mcglauflin@fortune.com
@paidion
Today’s edition was curated by Emma Burleigh.
April 16, 2024: This story has been updated to reflect the number of full time, part time and seasonal employees who work at H&R Block.
Around the Table
A round-up of the most important HR headlines.
- Spirit Airlines will furlough pilots and push back deliveries of Airbus planes to keep costs tight as the company struggles with a blocked merger and aircraft engine issues. New York Times
- Google Cloud and Bayer are joining forces to create AI tools for radiologists, weeding out redundant tasks for workers as the profession struggles with burnout. Quartz
- A surge in immigration following the pandemic is helping keep the labor market hot without making inflation worse. NBC News
Watercooler
Everything you need to know from Fortune.
Helicopter boss. Elon Musk swears he doesn’t micromanage his employees, but says that in order to create perfect products, he presses staffers to pay attention to detail. —Shelly Banjo, Bloomberg
Influencer exodus. Working in tech no longer guarantees job security, and the industry’s layoffs are pushing some part-time content creators to pursue influencing full-time. —Brooke Schultz, AP
Standing firm. Gen Z workers aren’t willing to compromise on their beliefs—more than half would reject a job offer if the boss’ mission didn’t align with their social and political values. —Chloe Berger
This is the web version of CHRO Daily, a newsletter focusing on helping HR executives navigate the needs of the workplace. Sign up to get it delivered free to your inbox.
