As companies continue to debate the future of remote work, Sridhar Vembu has said Zoho will not expand its work-from-home policy after internal discussions concluded that face-to-face collaboration works better for research and development teams.
Sridhar Vembu said in-person collaboration led to faster problem-solving and stronger outcomes.
He added that collaboration becomes more fluid in person and often results in better solutions.
“Collaboration happens more fluidly face to face and we come up with better solutions,” he said.
Instead of widening remote work arrangements, Vembu said Zoho would focus on other ways to cut fuel consumption and improve sustainability efforts.
As companies continue to debate the future of remote work, Sridhar Vembu has said Zoho will not expand its work-from-home policy after internal discussions concluded that face-to-face collaboration works better for research and development teams. The Zoho founder said the company had reviewed the idea after PM Narendra Modi recently urged citizens and organisations to reduce fuel consumption and unnecessary travel amid rising global crude oil prices. Sridhar Vembu said in-person collaboration led to faster problem-solving and stronger outcomes. (Image via Twitter)
“Ultimately, after a lot of people inside weighed in on my X post, we decided not to expand WFH because the productivity of face to face problem solving is much higher in R&D. I have experienced this in my own development team - issues take longer to resolve when you are not meeting the people involved in solving the problem,” Vembu wrote.
He added that collaboration becomes more fluid in person and often results in better solutions. “Collaboration happens more fluidly face to face and we come up with better solutions,” he said.
Instead of widening remote work arrangements, Vembu said Zoho would focus on other ways to cut fuel consumption and improve sustainability efforts. “We are looking at electric bus fleets and electric cooking in our canteens to save fuel. We have made heavy investments in solar already,” he wrote.
