Are Managers More Invested in Their In-Person vs. Remote Employees’ Growth?

In the age of return-to-office mandates, business leaders seem to be increasingly prioritizing in-person work, citing easier collaboration, management and project efficiency. To better understand managers’ perceptions of in-person versus remote workers, in June, ResumeBuilder.com surveyed 626 managers who supervise both in-person and remote employees.

Overall, managers report that in-person workers have better professional skills than remote employees. When asked if in-person or remote workers are easier to train, 76% believe in-person employees are more trainable. Only 15% think remote direct reports are easier to train, and 10% believe there is no difference between in-person and remote workers.

The majority (58%) say that in-person employees are better leaders, compared to 13% for remote workers, and 29% think they have the same quality of leadership skills. Additionally, 53% of managers believe in-person direct reports are better communicators, whereas 20% believe this of remote workers and 27% say the groups are equivalent.

Many managers (45%) also see in-person employees as more accountable, 31% think remote workers are more accountable, and 24% report no difference between in-person and remote direct reports. In terms of trustworthiness, 40% favor in-person workers, compared to 26% who say remote workers are more trustworthy and 34% who say in-person and remote workers are the same.

“With the advent of remote work, managers have had to adapt to overseeing their teams without the traditional in-office presence. The old management techniques no longer apply effectively to a remote workforce, highlighting a need for new training and strategies,” says says Resume Builder’s Chief Career Advisor Stacie Haller. “This shift has revealed that many managers lack the training and experience necessary to manage and motivate their staff when they can’t physically see them working. As a result, they tend to focus on managing those they see, where they feel they have more control and influence, often viewing remote workers less favorably.”

Haller believes this bias will become increasingly detrimental to the organization’s culture if a portion of their employee population is not getting the support they need, or if they are facing disadvantages by not being in the office, observing, “This will cause employees to leave and join other organizations where they feel more valued. In today’s world, information is shared and it will be harder for these organizations to attract talent that prefers remote work. Managers need the training to support all of their employees — regardless of where they are working.”