We’re returning to offices because of money, control, status, and power

I don’t know the exact numbers on “return to office,” and frankly I don’t entirely care. I know that it’ll eventually be high, variants be damned. The first reason is entirely logical and logistical: it’s nearly impossible to run a fully-remote company (it is doable, but hard) because so much around communication becomes an even bigger train wreck than usual, and if you’ve never met anyone in real life, the social-emotional capital part of the work equation basically doesn’t exist. As a result, a bunch of people end up getting treated like shit. It’s lame. The secondary reason is that “work from home” works for older, more established professionals, who also tend to have dedicated space in their homes. They’re notable enough in the company that being seen around and “face time” can matter less. If you are 25, you absolutely cannot work from home even if your work is amazing, because you will lack access to “those who matter.”

So far, then: age + logistics means fully-remote can’t scale. Then we need to get into pure psychology.

First up on that side: executives pay for these buildings, often on 7-to-10 year leases, and executives hate spending money. You think they’re going to pay for six floors in downtown Chicago and let people work in their (sic) PJs at home? Absolutely not. They need to justify…