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Virtual meeting company Zoom makes VERY ironic new rule for its workers
Zoom - the popular virtual meeting company, has announced a very ironic new rule for its employees.
The platform, which became massive during the coronavirus pandemic and has continued to thrive with remote-based companies, has changed its tune for its own workers.
Matthew Saxon, Zoom's chief people officer, recently implemented a new rule that would make employees who live within 50 miles of an office have to work from there twice a week.
In the US, Zoom has four offices- its headquarters in San Jose, California, and three other locations in Santa Barbara, Denver, Colorado and Kansas City.
Saxon, who joined the 17.3billion company in 2022, revealed that in a week the new rule drastically changed the workplace dynamic for Zoom employees.
Zoom- the popular virtual meeting company, has announced that employees have to come back to work in the office. (pictured: Stock image)
Matthew Saxon, Zoom's chief people officer, and his colleagues recently implemented a new that employees who live within 50 miles of an office, have to work from there twice a week
'We've seen a revolution, honestly, in how we work, and I’m not just talking about Zoom.
'I talk about moving from surviving to thriving, and I think by and large, we check the box, as a society, on whether we can survive remotely. The question is still out on whether we can thrive, and what that looks like now,' Saxon told Fortune.
He added that although the company is known to connect people virtually, a lot of the designs and features are actually created in the office.
Saxon, who joined the 17.3billion company in 2022, revealed that in a week the new rule drastically changed the workplace dynamic
Saxon also mentioned how customers range from at home workers to those who are in the office full-time.
'We’ve got customers who are completely in the office. We’ve got customers who are completely remote, and we’ve got all the various flavors of hybrid in between.
'We want to ensure we’re very customer-centric; that means really, truly understanding the customer use case and pain points,' he said.
Despite making employees come into the office twice a week, Saxon will continue to work from home in Austin, Texas.
'I think I can manage people at Zoom effectively while working fully remotely.
Saxon said that although the company is known to connect people virtually, a lot of the designs and features are actually created in office
'I go into the office from time to time, obviously, for my role, but the majority of the time, I’m home,' he told Fortune.
He explained that the push to have employees in the office was introduced so co-workers can collaborate together in meetings and training sessions.
Saxon emphasized that he believes those who come into the office should solely work on group tasks, otherwise it would be the same as working from home.
'A sprinkle of in-person work every so often can really help, but again, we found people coming into the office to do their individual contributor work.
'In that case, there’s no real difference if you’re sitting on a Zoom call,' he added.
He made sure to note that employees that decide to independently work are just as valuable for the company.
Saxon also said that he's seen the direct impact on employees and bosses who work face-to-face in the office.
'Proximity bias certainly exists. I think it’s incumbent upon us to make sure that we have a quality of information flow, so things like asynchronous work can happen.
'We also need to make sure we have some degree of reporting and metrics.'
Staying up to date on metrics can help make it fair for both at home and in office employees when it comes time for raises and promotions.
When questioned by employees as to why they need to return to the office, Saxon said he was honest with them.
'We had a good, honest conversation about our products, our customer base, and how we’ll improve.
Saxon also said that he seen the direct impact employees and their bosses experience when face-to-face in the office
'When we had a more laissez-faire approach to coming in on certain days, it was sub-optimized, and we heard that from employees. So we said, "Okay, well, let’s try this different model." I think it’s been a good success,' Saxon said.
The company previously announced the same rule for UK employees in August 2023.
The company has a workforce of between 5,000 and 10,000, according to its LinkedIn page, with around 200 working in its new UK office in London.
A spokesperson for the firm previously said: 'We believe that a structured hybrid approach – meaning a set number of days employees that live near an office need to be on site – is most effective for Zoom.
'As a company, we are in a better position to use our own technologies, continue to innovate, and support our global customers.'
The company also have offices based in India, China, Japan, Singapore, Australia, Amsterdam and Karlsruhe in Europe.
In February, the company's CEO, Eric Yuan (pictured) slashed Zoom's workforce by about 15 percent, or about 1,300 staffers. He also cut his own $1.1million salary by 98 percent
In February, the company's CEO, Eric Yuan slashed Zoom's workforce by about 15 percent, or about 1,300 staffers. He also cut his own $1.1million salary by 98 percent.
Yuan, who founded the company in 2013, said the layoffs impacted every department in the company, and that fired employees are going to receive up to 16 weeks salary and healthcare coverage.
In his message to employees posted 30 minutes before the emails were sent out, Yuan wrote: 'We have made the tough but necessary decision to reduce our team by approximately 15 percent and say goodbye to around 1,300 hardworking, talented colleagues.
'I know this is a difficult message to hear, and certainly not one I ever wanted to deliver.'