• by Ray Schultz , June 6, 2024

International publisher Axel Springer wants all employees to work in the office five days a week. 

The decision by the Axel Springer board applies not only to staffers on German publications Bild and Welt, but to those working in all units, including Business Insider and Politico, according to MedienInsider. 

Managers were asked to present their views on how this would work from the legal and operational standpoints by July, it adds. 

Like companies and industries, Axel Springer loosened up workplace requirements during the pandemic. 

But CEO Mathias Döpfner feels there is strength in personal interactions, a fact that came into focus during a recent company management meeting in Warsaw, the report says. 

In effect, there will be no more hybrid model, but a return to the standard five-day-a-week regime that existed prior to the pandemic. 

It is not yet clear how this will affect recruitment and retention – this is happening as U.S. firms like Gannett are giving up office space and allowing more flexibility. But Döpfner has enunciated the slogan, “Office first.”