Shifting from Enforced Return-to-Office Policies and Other Anticipated 2025 Work Trends

Administrator -

Every year brings about unexpected shifts that alter our interpersonal interactions, work methods, and perception of the world. Reflecting on the tumultuous 2024 and the post-COVID era, we should anticipate continuous change and disruptions to conventional work norms in 2025.

Here are my top three anticipated transformations in the workplace, which highlight the rise and fall of trends for 2025.

Toward the end of 2023, we observed a surge in enforced office returns for employees following years of successful remote work during and post-COVID. The resentment towards these policies gradually heightened throughout 2024, leading us to question their efficiency if not their popularity.

Capitalizing on this backlash, companies like Spotify, under Chief HR Officer Katarina Berg, strengthened their work-from-anywhere policies, commenting, "It's inconsistent to spend so much on hiring mature individuals and then treat them like minors."

Consequently, we anticipate a decline in mandates and an increased support for remote work in 2025, even expanding the availability of coworking spaces and results-oriented work environments (ROWE) that focus on outcomes rather than hours spent working.

In a similar vein to the office return mandates discussed above, employees are mobilizing against perceived mistrust. With advancements in technology come improvements in employee surveillance. Staff members are frustrated by the priority given to productivity at the expense of employee well-being. Despite the mixed evidence regarding the benefits of increased surveillance, employees are subjected to increasingly stringent scrutiny.

Recently, AI emotional tracking has been deployed to monitor employees' biological cues, such as facial expressions, tone of voice, and other indicators used to gauge their emotional states.

The invasion of privacy and lack of autonomy have met with resistance; employees are demanding boundaries on what stakeholders can leverage against them.

Wokeism, or the label for anything deemed too progressive or left-leaning, is on the rise. DEI programs and initiatives are being reviewed, scaled back, and criticized. In some cases, initiatives have been introduced ineffectively, leading to criticism from majority groups who feel overwhelmed by the need to tread carefully. Anti-woke sentiments from the political right are being used to challenge DEI, while cost-cutting measures necessitate reductions in spending.

This dynamic may explain why both employees and leaders are experiencing DEI fatigue. Intersectionality remains a relatively new concept, though it is essential for fostering inclusive workplaces. However, the capacity to adopt and implement inclusivity at work is shrinking.

Women and marginalized individuals may face leadership challenges in this atmosphere of DEI fatigue. In times of crisis, these individuals may be placed in precarious or toxic leadership positions. This pattern identified in 2007 by Professors Michelle Ryan and Alex Haslam as the "glass cliff" continues to be a topic of discussion, as listed by MIT Sloan as one of the top 5 Working Definitions of 2024. Keep an eye out for this trend as companies seek to recover in any way they can.

An Exciting 2025 Ahead

Buckle up for a year filled with exciting developments. The future of work is in a state of flux and expansion. How will you navigate 2025 to your advantage?

  1. As we approach 2025, the glass cliff phenomenon, where women and marginalized individuals are placed in precarious leadership positions, continues to be a topic of discussion, and efforts should be made to mitigate this trend.
  2. By 2025, there might be a decrease in the acceptance of AI emotion tracking and employee surveillance due to privacy concerns and the prioritization of employee well-being over productivity.
  3. With the rise of anti-woke sentiments and DEI fatigue, companies in 2025 might need to find new ways to implement diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives effectively and sensitively to foster a more inclusive work environment.

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