"Be Visible On Floor": JPMorgan Calls Top Executives To Office On Weekdays

JPMorgan Chase & Co. told its managing directors that they now must be in the office every weekday, ending a hybrid-work practice that arose during the pandemic. 

"Our leaders play a critical role in reinforcing our culture and running our businesses," the bank's operating committee said in a memo to staff. "They have to be visible on the floor, they must meet with clients, they need to teach and advise, and they should always be accessible for immediate feedback and impromptu meetings. We need them to lead by example, which is why we're asking all managing directors to be in the office five days a week."

Wall Street firms, like companies throughout corporate America, are rethinking their work-from-home rules as the Covid-19 pandemic recedes. At New York-based JPMorgan, employees at retail bank branches and in check processing must be in daily, while others are allowed to take advantage of a hybrid-work model. Still, those workers must be in three days a week unless they have senior-management approval.

"Most of you are following your hybrid models, but there are a number of employees who aren't meeting their in-office attendance expectations, and that must change," the operating committee said. "You're responsible for meeting your hybrid model requirements. Your manager is responsible for ensuring that attendance requirements are being met and in cases where they aren't, taking the appropriate performance management steps, which could include corrective action."

One motivation for bringing workers back to the office might be the new headquarters JPMorgan is building on Park Avenue in midtown Manhattan. The 60-story skyscraper, which will house as many as 14,000 employees, will have yoga and cycling rooms, meditation spaces, an abundance of outdoor areas and a state-of-the-art food hall.

"JPMorgan Chase has been in the city for 200 years, and this is the headquarters of JPMorgan, in the best city in the world, in the best country in the world," Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon said at an event at the site a year ago.

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