These managers argue that spontaneous hallway chats, whiteboard sessions, and faster decision cycles require colocation, especially for teams used to in‑person workflows. They insist that company culture only happens in the office and that loyalty, engagement, and shared identity are impossible to sustain remotely.

They also frequently say juniors cannot be effectively trained without being in the office near seniors to absorb knowledge and norms. In my experience, leaders who teach are vanishingly rare.

Companies talk a good game. The reality is something else. According to Gallup’s latest American Job Quality Study, only 28 percent of workers get any mentoring. Even if you consider that a somewhat successful number, a closer look reveals that much of this mentoring consisted of a few early meetings, followed by the mentor putting off the junior employee as “real work” got in the way. Mentoring is a good idea, but without follow-through, it’s a waste of time.

I have never had a positive mentor at work, I have only ever been hired for “good jobs” under the condition that I already know how to do everything and will not be trained on anything more. I have however been let go for ridiculous RTO nonsense. This makes me frequently not want to exist.