Amazon CEO Andy Jassy recently told employees that those who do not want to return to the office at least three days a week should consider finding employment elsewhere. According to a recording obtained by Insider, Jassy stated “It’s past the time to disagree and commit,” adding that if employees cannot commit to the new hybrid work model, “it’s probably not going to work out for you at Amazon.” He characterized the decision to have employees return to the office part-time as a “judgment call.” Notably, Jassy said employees are free to leave if they do not want to comply with the hybrid work requirement. This makes clear that Amazon has not changed its stance on returning to office work despite some employees preferring full remote arrangements.
It’s funny, because the original purpose of that phrase was “There is a period during which you can voice your concerns about new or changed ops and procedures, and once the dust has settled, you’ll feel better about what comes out of the oven because you had a hand in making it.” Instead, the new age Jack Welch management types saw the phrase and decided it means “You don’t have to like what we say but you have to obey it.”
Surprisingly, the latter interpretation does not lead to a happier healthier workplace with high retention rates. Who would’ve thought?
Thanks for the history, I am not surprised it evolved like that. Reminds me of Agile. It was a great concept that morphed into ‘micromanagement with extra steps’ in many shops.
It’s not intended to. It’s intended to make the CEO happy.
I suspect that the natural next evolution is dropping the option to disagree, and requiring fake enthusiasm a la Walmart.