JPMorgan is asking its managing directors to come into the office five days a week, effectively ending remote and hybrid work for its senior staff, according to an email sent to staff Wednesday.
“Our leaders play a critical role in reinforcing our culture and running our businesses,” the memo states. “They have to be visible on the floor, they must meet with clients, they need to teach and advise, and they should always be accessible for immediate feedback and impromptu messages.”
The bank also acknowledged that some employees have not been meeting their requirement for in-office work. Those who do not comply with the new directive, it warned, could face unspecified “corrective action.”
The bank also emphasized that it has found ways to automatically track employees’ attendance, and it asked that all employees enter their time into the company’s system when they are out of office.
“You should know that there is significant work underway to automate attendance tracking related to business travel and client meetings (e.g., leveraging corporate travel data, Outlook Calendars, etc.), and to generate routine reminders when a manual entry is needed,” the memo said.
This attendance tracking is important for “real estate, resiliency and security” reasons, the memo explained. “This data will help us understand what’s working and what’s not in terms of keeping all of our employees productive and safe,” the company wrote.
In-person work is important for the bank’s corporate culture, the memo suggested.
“Working with one another — in person — is optimal for our company, our clients and our culture,” it said. “Being together greatly benefits mentoring, learning, collaboration and execution — it is truly the foundation of our culture.”
