Jeff Schwartz

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Great post from Brian Elliott on Nick Bloom’s latest research on where we are right now in the hybrid work journey. The focus has shifted (again) from ‘where?’ and ‘when?’ to ‘how?’ How do we manage distributed work at scale while still investing in meaningful, in person relationships and connections that actually compound trust.

In my teaching with Stephan Meier at Columbia Business School on strategy, leadership, and the future of work, this is the area we keep coming back to: how to create, manage, and continually redesign distributed workplaces and workforces as the operating environment changes. Not as a one-time policy decision, but as a living system that leaders have to run. That’s the real work.

Before the end of January, take the time to read the piece Brian shared and then go one step deeper: re-read it with your own organization in mind. Where are decisions getting made today (the office? home?) When are teams together (which days of the week) and why? And, most importantly, what mechanisms are you using to make ‘in person’ moments count when they happen, without accidentally turning proximity into privilege.

I also keep thinking about how this connects to what Josh Bersin and Kathi Enderes at the The Josh Bersin Company have been teaching the market: the future is not a debate about location. It’s a design problem about capability, leadership, talent density, and the operating model for enterprise AI. If 2026 is about building the future, then hybrid work is one of the construction sites we can’t ignore. I couldn't agree more.

Spot on.

https://lnkd.in/eNTawzkm

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