Why are companies mandating five days return to office? | Deep Dive podcast

Tech giant Grab has told its employees to return to the office five days a week starting in December. This follows other MNCs such as Amazon, Disney and Tesla. Reasons for returning to the office include the need for better collaboration and to drive productivity. But do these reasons for a return-to-office (RTO) stand up to scrutiny? Steven Chia and Crispina Robert discuss with guests Karen Teo, country manager for recruitment and talent firm Quess Singapore, and Dr Issac Lim, founder of Anthro Insights and lecturer at NUS Business School. 0:00 Intro 1:58 RTO for better collaboration? 3:37 Not all jobs need to be in the office 4:50 Who's more likely to demand a full RTO? 5:45 How COVID-19 changed the way we work 10:18 Has hybrid work arrangement worked out? 13:25 Face-to-face matters 18:25 Why work-from-home is terrible for micromanagers Listen to the Deep Dive podcast: CNA: https://cna.asia/48PyvRK Apple Podcasts: https://cna.asia/3Z6CNkn Spotify: https://cna.asia/4fuZ0yt Subscribe to our channel here: https://cna.asia/youtubesub Subscribe to our news service for must-read stories: Telegram - https://cna.asia/telegram WhatsApp - https://cna.asia/whatsapp Follow us: CNA: https://cna.asia CNA Lifestyle: http://www.cnalifestyle.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/channelnewsasia Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/channelnewsasia Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/channelnewsasia TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@channelnewsasia