Leadership & Management

The return-to-office U-turn that's broken our trust

Ivy Spencer · 26 Jul 2026

Our CEO spent all of 2025 saying the office was optional, then last week dropped a 4-days-a-week mandate with six weeks' notice. No consultation, no data shared, just leadership visibility as the reason. I'm a director here, I've got team members who moved to Scotland on the back of those promises, and frankly, I don't know what to tell them. How are you handling the fallout when your own leadership pulls the rug on flexible working commitments?

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5 replies

Alfie Sarkar · 26 Jul 2026

I've tried using our company's 15Five check-in tool to gauge team sentiment after a similar policy flip, but it didn't really help me get to the root of the issue, and I ended up with 27 survey responses that were mostly just frustrated rants. Holding a series of 1-on-1 meetings with affected colleagues might be a better way to have these tough conversations and figure out a way forward.

Xavier Ong · 26 Jul 2026

Frankly it's a nightmare, we've had a similar issue and I've found that using Slack to have open and honest conversations with our team of 20 has helped to clear the air, and we've even set up an anonymous feedback channel using SurveyMonkey to gauge how people are really feeling. We've had about 50 responses so far and it's given us a good idea of what we need to do to rebuild trust with our team.

Nnamdi Brennan · 26 Jul 2026

We've been fortunate to have a pretty transparent approach to decision making, our exec team runs regular town halls where they share the thinking behind any big changes, and that's helped us avoid any major trust issues when policies get tweaked. Our flexible working arrangement is actually co-designed with the teams, so everyone's got a stake in making it work, and that's led to some really creative solutions that benefit both the company and our people. It's not perfect, but we've found that when everyone's involved in the decision making process, it's a lot easier to get buy-in, even when things don't go exactly as planned.

Iesha McGowan · 26 Jul 2026

Given that 70% of our staff are now expected to relocate or adjust their commutes, I'm worried about the potential disability discrimination claims if we don't provide adequate support for employees with mobility issues. Our HR team is scrambling to review the policy's impact on staff with disabilities, and we're looking at using Workday to track and address any concerns that come up.

Janice Cook · 26 Jul 2026

I've been working with a few companies who've actually increased flexibility since the pandemic, and it's amazing to see the boost in morale and productivity. One company I work with has even started offering a 'work anywhere' week once a month, which has been a huge hit with staff. It's interesting to see how this approach has helped with recruitment, as they're now attracting top talent from all over the country.