IT Companies are Deploying New Strategies to get their Workforce to office

Technology firms are adopting various approaches to incentivize employees to resume working from the office. The extraordinary level of flexibility granted to workers during the COVID-19 pandemic is now being reduced as companies reaffirm their standards and assert influence over the workplace atmosphere.

Employees are confronted with a difficult situation, compelled to adhere to these company directives or risk facing consequences for not complying with the norms.

Cognizant‘s CEO, Ravi Kumar, unveiled plans for a new app allowing managers to generate rosters according to needs, complementing the FlexiSeat app for seat bookings across its premises. This tool aims to oversee adherence to in-office work policies, introduced earlier this year for enhanced monitoring of employee presence.

“Our collective goal is to ensure that we are in the office with a purpose,” TOI reported Kumar as saying in a memo.

He also noted that employees should attend the office three times weekly or as determined by their supervisor. Cognizant initiated the NextGen program to streamline its operational structure, consolidating and reorganizing office spaces to suit the hybrid work setup post-pandemic.

TCS has implemented a new policy linking employees’ quarterly variable pay to their office attendance. Those spending less than 60% of their time in the office will receive no variable pay, while those attending between 60-75% will receive 50% of it. This move underscores TCS’s emphasis on in-office presence and incentivizes employees to prioritize workplace attendance.

Dell Technologies intends to employ electronic badge swipes, VPN, and a color-coded system to monitor employee attendance. The system categorizes presence with four colors: blue (consistent on-site), green (regular on-site), yellow (partial on-site), and red (limited on-site). The Register initially reported this initiative. Although Dell has a substantial presence in India, it does not disclose its exact employee count there.

In contrast, Wipro has adopted a more lenient strategy. In a recent letter to staff, its Chief Human Resources Officer, Saurabh Govil, announced the establishment of local councils aimed at boosting associate involvement, interaction, teamwork, and connectivity. Govil also mentioned plans for increased on-campus activities to promote working from Wipro’s facilities throughout India.

Infosys’s employee experience platform, InfyMe, permits employees from specific business units to request work-from-home for up to 11 days per month. Last year, Infosys required certain junior and mid-level employees to return to the office for ten days monthly starting November 20, departing from some competitors enforcing a five-day work week.

Source: GWFM Research & Study