COMPILED BY Prasanthi Vasanthakumar Dispatches A digest for diligent directors THE OFFICE DEBATE RAGES ON Forget inflation, supply chain problems and the war in Ukraine. Younger workers disagree. These digital natives grew up building What CEOs really want to talk about is hybrid work and how much relationships online and think managers need to learn how to they hate it, Gillian Tett writes in the Financial Times. The cultural manage virtually. They also find the office conversations that anthropologist and editor moderated two debates on economics, executives hold dear a drag on productivity. where “work from home” eclipsed supply and demand. Remote Most CEOs assume they can put the kibosh on remote work is the “single biggest issue,” bemoaned one boss of a work when summer ends or if a recession strikes. But surveys Midwest industrial group. consistently show that most people now working from home Middle-aged executives want employees in the office because expect to continue doing so. of culture, logistics and economics. All the participating CEOs told Is this corporate clash just a generational divide? And who Tett that meeting in real life is important for teamwork, creativity will prevail? “It is a fascinating moment to be a corporate and people management. anthropologist and a nightmare for those CEOs,” Tett writes.