January 19, 2025
Daily Commuting is the New Old Thing
In Boston, where I'm based, traffic is as bad as ever.
I know this from personal experience and from the testimony of my wife, who makes a daily commute to the city. In the early days of the pandemic, traffic on her route was nonexistent. Then it settled into a new pattern, with light traffic Mondays and Fridays and heavy traffic midweek. Now, she can count on heavy traffic every day.
Where are people going? To work! So much for those Covid-era predictions that work was changed forever.
What's Driving the Return?
Interestingly, the return is being driven by both employees and companies:
- Companies
Most companies want their employees in the office. They believe physical presence drives collaboration, culture, and mentoring. Among my clients, most mandate three or four days a week in the office, but they want more than that. The pressure to show up is both explicit and implicit.
- Employees
It's not just employers pushing for more office time. In today's tougher job market, employees (especially younger ones) have realized that being in the office increases their chances for advancement. There are social factors, too. Many people found remote work lonely. I've talked with many executives who missed the energy of in-person collaboration and chose to return to the office full time because it's more productive and engaging.
Not Exactly Like 2019
While traffic levels might suggest otherwise, office life isn't exactly like pre-pandemic days. Back then, employees were expected in the office every day without exception. Today, companies are more flexible, even as they pull people back to the office. They’ve learned that an occasional work-from-home day earns loyalty from employees and doesn’t hurt productivity.
Where Do We Go From Here?
My prediction? I expect most companies to continue pushing for more office time (especially if the job market stays soft), with an eventual return to a mandated 5 days a week. But they'll maintain some flexibility – perhaps a fixed number of remote days per year – to keep employees happy.
In short, the future looks a lot like 2019, but with a bit more flexibility built in.
