We're all inundated with how virtuous being 'progressive' is. It's all over the media, and we hear about Wells Fargo's progressive efforts all the time.
But how does RTO square with progressiveness?
The R in RTO is 'return'. As in, go back to how we used to do things. If we did something one way decades ago, then it must be the best way to do something today. Right?
Why was every office worker physically in the office during in the 1980s and prior decades? Simple. There was no high speed internet. Technological limitations mandated that everyone co-locate in a common building.
But that's not the world we live in anymore. People don't turn a crank on the front of their car to start it. People don't use payphones anymore. Video rental stores no longer exist. The list goes on. Technological advancements change how we live and work. You know, 'progress'.
So again, how does RTO square with progress and progressiveness? How does assuming that a decades-old way of doing things is the best way to do something today?
I say 'assume' because the rationale we've been given says things like 'we feel...', 'we believe...'. The company heads are now making policy based on emotion??
Should we also go back in time for other office practices, like blatant sexism and racism? Slapping secretaries on their rears, 'joking' with a minority that the silverware has been counted, etc.?
If not, why not? How are we picking and choosing which decades-old ways of doing things equate to 'progress'?
I guess the stagecoach really is an appropriate mascot. It's a large spectacle that reminds everyone how stuck in the past the companies current leaders are.
(Some may want to point to in-office expectations prior to COVID as 'proof' that it's not outdated. Being in-office prior to COVID was also outdated though. Things were gradually getting to be more and more WFH - not just at Wells but elsewhere too. COVID showed the world that long-term WFH was easily sustainable.)