Why investment firms need a clear return-to-work policy

While investment firms might find themselves tempted to kick the return-to-work decision down the road, research from Deloitte suggests that might not be the best way to support worker resilience.

Drawing from a survey of investment managers in the U.S., Deloitte said in its 2022 Investment Management Outlook report that most firms have adopted a hybrid approach, while only a few have declared and put in place long-term strategies to either return to the office or be highly flexible on getting people back to the workplace.

“There are interesting cultural dynamics at play in these approaches that firms may consider as they formulate their long-term strategy,” the report said.

Nearly three quarters of participants said their firm is likely to either call the majority of workers back as soon as possible or be highly flexible on their return strategy. As for the state of their company culture since the onset of the pandemic, nearly two fifths (38%) of that cohort said their culture has become much stronger.

Among survey respondents whose firms are likely to take on a more complicated hybrid model for the long term – sitting on the fence between extreme flexibility and a “back to the office” stance – only 25% indicated said their firm’s culture has gained in strength.

“The firms in the middle may be suffering from a spectre of uncertainty haunting employees,” the report said. “Developing and communicating these vital return-to-the-workplace plans optimally is tricky and impactful – especially for the firms that choose a hybrid end-state.”

A strong firm culture, the report continued, is critical to mitigating risks to staff resilience, which is linked to elements such as employee productivity, well-being, improved risk appetite, empowered decision-making, and team collaboration.

According to Deloitte, respondents who reported a much stronger overall culture at their firms compared to the start of 2021 were:

• 61% more likely to indicate they’ve gotten much stronger in empowered decision-making;
• 58% more likely to say their risk appetite has become stronger;
• 37% more likely to report much stronger employee engagement and productivity;
• 27% more likely to say collaboration across teams has gotten stronger; and
• 25% more likely to report much stronger employee well-being.