TCS Asks Staff to Report to Office Five Days a Week, Marking End of Hybrid Working Policy

India's IT giant Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is all set to end the hybrid working policy for its employees. The country's largest IT company has reportedly asked employees to return to office starting October 1. The decision was conveyed to the employees through an internal communication that was reportedly sent in the mid of September 2023. The company has asked employees to attend the office five days a week mandatorily.

At present, TCS employees work from the office for three days a week. "As communicated by CEO and chief human resources officer (CHRO) in various townhalls, it is mandatory for all associates to attend office on all the working days (5 days per week if there are no holidays) starting 1 October 2023," the official mail read. Zoom Ends Work-from-Home for Workers, Asks All Its Employees to Return to Office.

It must be noted that in its Financial Year 2023 annual report, TCS highlighted the importance of returning to the office. The annual report also stated that more than half of the company's workforce was hired after March 2020. The report also stated that new employees benefit from physical interactions with senior colleagues and leaders.

TCS implied that working from the office would help new employees learn from the leaders's behaviors and their ways of thinking. "Without those interactions, employee engagement as well as acculturation got badly impacted. All these factors led us to gradually bring back people to our offices during the year," TCS's FY23 annual report said. Work From Home Policy Fallout: Remote Work Trend Estimated to Slash USD 800 Billion Off Office Building Values Worldwide, Says Report.

TCS is one of the largest private employers in the country, with a workforce of over six lakh people as of March 2023. The move by TCS is likely to affect a large number of its employees, who will now be required to commute to and work from the office. In August 2023, video conferencing platform Zoom announced its decision to end work-from-home (WFH) for its employees.