Yelp Says Remote-First Policy Boosted Job Apps By 43%, Led To a More Satisfied Workforce (fortune.com) 16
Since implementing a remote-first policy in 2021, Yelp says it's experienced a surge in job applications and a more satisfied workforce. Fortune reports: Last year, the total number of job applicants was 43% higher compared to 2021, according to Yelp's 2024 Remote Work Report released earlier this month. The number of applicants for sales roles skyrocketed by 103%, and prospects for its general and administrative (G&A) positions shot up 52% over the same time period. Those increases fall in line with data that shows a tidal wave of applicants clamoring for remote jobs. "It's rewarding to see both the level of interest and the quality of our applicants," Carmen Amara, chief people officer at Yelp, told Fortune. "Remote work has allowed us to attract a number of candidates who previously would not have applied to Yelp due to their location."
Despite arguments that remote work weakens workers' connections and growth opportunities, Yelp says it has found the opposite to be true. About 90% of the company's more than 4,700 employees say they have found effective ways to collaborate remotely, and 91% say they are confident in upward career mobility while working out of the office. Flexible schedules have also facilitated a healthy work-life balance -- about 89% of the company's workers say they can manage personal and professional demands, and the same amount say that the remote model has allowed them to make positive changes for their wellbeing.
Notably, Yelp's global tenure has increased to 3.5 years in 2023, compared to 2.8 years the year prior. The company says it's using the money it saved from shutting down its underutilized offices in New York City, Chicago, and Washington D.C., to funnel back into employee benefits, professional development, and wellness reimbursements.
Despite arguments that remote work weakens workers' connections and growth opportunities, Yelp says it has found the opposite to be true. About 90% of the company's more than 4,700 employees say they have found effective ways to collaborate remotely, and 91% say they are confident in upward career mobility while working out of the office. Flexible schedules have also facilitated a healthy work-life balance -- about 89% of the company's workers say they can manage personal and professional demands, and the same amount say that the remote model has allowed them to make positive changes for their wellbeing.
Notably, Yelp's global tenure has increased to 3.5 years in 2023, compared to 2.8 years the year prior. The company says it's using the money it saved from shutting down its underutilized offices in New York City, Chicago, and Washington D.C., to funnel back into employee benefits, professional development, and wellness reimbursements.
Re:It depends. One size does not fit all (Score:5, Insightful)
I found "remote first" to be awesome. But when you have a hybrid approach where remote workers are treated as second class, then they begin to suffer. As a developer, collaborating remotely is far more productive. No more hunching over someone's screen or meeting about something in a poorly designed meeting room where nobody can actually get anything done. But it does take a certain mindset that a lot of people lack, so it's not for everyone... although in my opinion those who can't deal with remote sessions are probably useless anyways.
Re: (Score:3)
We know wfh works more often than it fails. The failures are the rare instances, so yes let's try wfh for everything and see what sticks.
Re: (Score:2)
True, which is why what is needed is flexibility. There will always be workers who want to work from the office full time. There will always be workers who want to work remote full time. There is a large collection of workers who want flexibility to choose to come into the office as the need arises.
The problem is, flexibility freaks management - that's why they want RTO mandates - 2 days, 3 days in the office, because they know 5 days is a non-starter.
RTO mandates suck, and are likely to result in less coll
Re:It depends. One size does not fit all (Score:5, Insightful)
Be it as it may, but at the end of the day, most people will prefer working from home and attracting talent will depend on your willingness to cater to that.
Re:It depends. One size does not fit all (Score:5, Insightful)
Merely the admission that remote working *could* work for *some* is already a victory, a progress from the past.
This is the same as not having to wear shirt and tie to work in an office. Once the unthinkable became acceptable, no one will think twice about it anymore.
Re: (Score:3)
Early in my management career it was zero regular wfh for everyone. The tools simply did not exist. No video chat, no smart phones, no vpn because (chicken n egg) no one was wfh, no nothing.
It's different now and no longer a serious technology issue. Now it's about people and project/work specific requirements. Some roles work great, some not so much. I was wfh the last few years. Was mostly ok first one. Second one was a miserable failure for the entire company because there were too many people who
Survival of the fittest (Score:5, Insightful)
Companies that are able to hire in more places and offer flexibility of how people work are going to win. Flexible work places perform markedly higher on both employee satisfaction and performance. If you are a highly sought after worker, everything being equal, would you pick a place that forces you to be in your cage every day, or one that allows you to work at the office or at home as you see fit? Well turns out highly skilled people prefer the latter so much they will take lower pay for it.
Then we have seen the results come in and Restricted-To-Office (RTO) offices have markedly lower business and productivity performance.
So not only are they having do settle for lesser employees, and have good employees run off to greener pastures that treat them like humans instead of cage-monkeys, they also are underperforming.
Companies survive if they adapt to the planet they live in. And companies that stay behind die. Clock is ticking on RTO companies. Once a company realizes that their competitors have zoomed passed them it's usually too late to start moving.
Re: Survival of the fittest (Score:2)
Oh I don't know, even in industries where there is a required physical presence I think there's an overestimate of the number of employees actually required on site. Keeping a local workforce has serious overhead, not just in terms of office space and infrastructure but also cost to employees in time and money that has to be compensated in higher wages or benefits relative to remote companies. The benefits the company recieves will need to be commensurate to that cost, or in the long term it will be overtak
Re: (Score:2)
@pz: Your comment is typical of those who are dead-set against giving wfm any traction. But your point is a straw man.
Nobody is arguing that every role is a fit for wfhm. Nobody is arguing to dismantle factories in favor of wfh.
So you're "right" but your point is inapplicable. You're "winning" against an argument that your opponent does not stand on.
sacto to sf (Score:2)
Well, I know of someone who lives in sacto and commutes to her job at yelp in sf. Pretty sure she prefers to work at home.
Lot's of job applications can have a flip side... (Score:2)
The increase in applications for remote jobs that I've observed is much more dramatic than indicated by this article. I'm seeing jobs with 200 applications per day. It's crazy. And these aren't high profile FAANG jobs. I'm talking regular companies with normal salaries.
I don't think this reflects a sudden glut of IT talent in the market. It's just that people apply for more jobs because, when you're not restricted by geography, why not? Ultimately, there aren't really 2000 people for every job, so it s