Proximity bias, or "an unconscious—and unwise—tendency to give preferential treatment to those in our immediate vicinity," can impact an employee’s ability to be included and get promoted. As more organizations embrace hybrid work, time spent in the office is no longer the signifier of high performance and dedication it was pre-pandemic. To provide the right work environment to meet employee needs and demands, leaders must recognize their biases and push back against them, particularly in a time when companies are experimenting with new policies around flexible work and striving to meet shifting employee demands.
The Employer/Employee Divide
At the height of the pandemic in 2020, our collective experiment with widespread remote work was still in its early stages. While many employers began to weigh the pros and cons of permanent hybrid work options—others, notably in the finance sector, remained defiant. Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon referred to remote work as an "aberration" that his organization would "correct as quickly as possible." JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said remote work "doesn’t work for those who want to hustle."
In 2022, this "aberration" is becoming the new standard for many workers. A study from the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business also found productivity throughout the pandemic to be higher than anticipated:
"In an analysis of the data collected through March 2021, [researchers found] that nearly six out of 10 workers reported being more productive working from home than they expected to be, compared with 14 percent who said they got less done. On average, respondents’ productivity at home was seven percent higher than they expected. 40 percent of workers reported they were more productive at home during the pandemic than they had been when in the office, and only 15 percent said the opposite was true. The researchers argue that the work-from-home trend is here to stay, and they calculate that these working arrangements will increase overall worker productivity in the U.S. by five percent as compared with the pre-pandemic economy." [emphasis mine]
Additionally, Slack’s Future Forum survey of more than 10,000 employees and leaders found that around 40 percent of executives ranked potential inequities between remote and in-office workers as their top concern. However, those same leaders are twice as likely to prefer office-based work arrangements, contrasting with the preferences of their employees. Leaders of hybrid workforces must understand and support the needs of their employees while also working to reduce any resulting inequities.
"If the office reopens and executives are first in the office, and even if they say you have a choice whether or not to come in, it sends a very powerful signal that the choice you have now is between your family or your career,” said Darren Murph, GitLab’s Head of Remote. “If you have two playing fields to administer, they are inequitable by design."
DEI and Remote Work
Diversity, equity, and inclusion are hugely important, not only ethically, but also for an organization’s bottom line, as businesses that prioritize DEI are more profitable and experience increased employee retention. As part of efforts to create more inclusive environments, leaders should also take this opportunity to set clear expectations for hybrid arrangements and choose the right work model to ensure employees have the best opportunities to connect with their colleagues and managers. The Future Forum survey referenced above also found that demographically, white male workers are spending the most time in the office, whereas women, people of color, and working moms are more likely to embrace flexible working arrangements. At its worst, proximity bias can entrench existing workplace inequities, putting employees who are already marginalized at further disadvantage.
Like all biases, proximity bias is a part of the cognitive decision-making process our species evolved to prioritize group safety. But in the modern world, the prioritization of in-groups doesn’t necessarily equate to sound judgment. Making decisions based on data and accrued knowledge can help ensure that our innate preferences for those nearest to us doesn’t result in favoritism or reduced opportunity for remote workers.
Proximity bias is subtle but nefarious, allowing people to create a halo effect around those nearest to them and relegating others with less contact to fewer opportunities for advancement and development. To maintain worker trust and build a culture of collaboration, it’s imperative for leaders to understand and confront these biases for a more cohesive and equitable environment for everyone—otherwise, their best employees will seek out new roles that better meet their needs.

Entering the Tween Years of Smart Workspace
Digital Solutions & Strategy Lead
January of every year seems to bring out the crystal ball gazers of every tech industry. A new year – and some would argue (incorrectly, but maybe that’s just me and Seinfeld) a new decade – gives rise to reflection as the last year closes and the annual cycle begins anew.

Education From Afar: Perspectives on Virtual Learning
Communications Lead
Host’s goals of providing increased digital and virtual learning options have been on the agenda for some time. However, with a global pandemic shuttering offices throughout the world, our learning and development professionals have had to expedite these options to ensure that new hires receive the same level of expert training, even if the training isn’t performed in person.

Leading Virtual Teams
Global Hospitality
Leading virtual teams can become untenable if you expect the virtual world to correlate perfectly with a traditional office environment. According to a recent study by the Harvard Business Review, 82 percent of virtual teams fell short of their goals. With that said, everything that makes for a strong leader in an office is twice as important in the virtual landscape.

Bringing a New Member onto Your Remote Team
Director, Global Hospitality Operations
New employees join organizations every day, including during this unprecedented time where many are working remotely during the COVID outbreak. While it's a best practice to spend face-to-face time when onboarding, right now that's just not an option most of the time. Employee onboarding lays the foundation for the success of new hires at your company and provides a baseline to make connections going forward.

The Leader's Role in Fostering New Social Norms as Workplaces Reopen
By now, almost all organizations around the world are somewhere on their re-opening journey, whether starting to plan, bringing employees back to the workplace, or assessing “what’s next” for the future of their work environments. Companies and organizations are appropriately focused on a range of activities such as resetting the physical work environment to achieve social distancing, installing signage, adjusting building systems, securing sustainable quantities of supplies, and adapting service levels in areas such as cleaning and food service.
The Double Shift Juggling Parenting and Working During the Coronavirus
Director, Deployment and Operations
Working parents are facing a particularly challenging time, as the boundaries between work and home have completely broken down, resulting in the need for parents to juggle between parent mode to work mode and back again each day. The “double shift” is now the “double double shift.” Between putting three meals on the table, homeschooling, hosting Zoom meetings and conference calls, doing laundry, cleaning the house and trying to be present as both an employee and a parent, working parents are struggling and facing burnout.

Patrick Goes to Work
Global Hospitality Lead
When I’m focused on exciting new projects and things are going well, it’s always a surprise when they go awry unexpectedly. However, surprise doesn’t adequately cover our collective reaction to the rise of a global pandemic.

Customer Service Keeps Us Connected, Safe and Well – Let’s Celebrate It!
Global Hospitality Lead
I think it’s worth our time to reflect on what customer service has meant to us in the past, what it means right now as our social lives are stunted by pandemic concerns, and what it will look like once we finally navigate our way through this challenging era of our lives.

The Employee Experience Formula That Inspires Innovation
Host Labs Lead
It will likely come as no surprise that our evolving workspaces, enabled by technology, outfitted with the most coveted amenities and served by hospitality experts, are designed to make employees feel valued, signaling to them that the work they do is important and impactful. But what about when the workspace provided by an employer is removed (even temporarily) and placemaking becomes a virtual endeavor?

Delight in the Workplace: An Opportunity for Limitless Value
Host Labs Lead
As surprising as it may seem coming from a commercial real estate company, the Host team obsesses over enriching lives and creating delight for people who work in the buildings we manage. We consider the daily journey of our customers and map both their current and best experiences in the workplace.

Why Workplace Experience Platforms Need the Human Element

Thoughtful Reads: The Importance of In-Between Moments

The Value of Authenticity
Employee Experience

Thoughtful Reads: Guide to the Hybrid Workplace

What We've Learned: Host Conversations #1

What Is the Workplace Experience Anyway?
Employee Experience

5 Hospitality Skills That Prepare You for the Corporate World

Thoughtful Reads: Tech Tools for Hybrid Work

Small Things: Host Team Recipes #1
Hospitality

Employee Experience Can Make or Break Your Business
Employee Experience

Thoughtful Reads: The Sensitivity Revolution

Host Conversations: Customer Service Week

Three Key Drivers of Employee Wellbeing
Wellness

Thoughtful Reads: Worker Risks Are Paying Off
