The debate on workplace flexibility has reignited with recent announcements from major international and local institutions like Meta’s Instagram and the National University of Singapore mandating five-day return-to-office policies. Can a blanket mandate alone meet the needs of a modern workforce?

Our latest JLL Workforce Preference Barometer reveals that 69% of Singapore employees currently face mandated office attendance requirements, with the tech, education and banking sectors leading the charge. Leaders driving these policies cite benefits like increased productivity, enhanced innovation through collaboration and stronger culture.

One surprising finding is that 63% of employees in Singapore report positive sentiment toward return-to-office policies – but only when they're thoughtfully executed. It seems the conversation today is less about whether mandates will happen and more about how they're being implemented.

The point of contention isn't necessarily being in the office, but how office time is designed and communicated.

From my perspective, the fundamental issue with blanket five-day mandates is that they prioritise presence over purpose. This explains why employees resist going to the office for "not meaningful enough a reason"; they aren’t seeing adequate return on investment for their commute time and effort.

Such blanket return-to-office mandates risk creating ‘empty attendance’, where organisations fill seats without meaningful outcomes or experiences.

Successful return-to-office policies must be able to answer this question: What specific outcomes require employees to be physically together, and how can these interactions be intentionally designed into the workplace?

With 61% of Singapore workers saying they would choose a new employer based on flexibility, it’s clear that flexibility has become currency for talent retention and attraction. Rather than fighting this trend, forward-looking organisations can leverage it.

Effective office policies require what I call 'hyper-design'—deliberately planning in-office days to achieve specified objectives and outcomes. This means moving beyond hoping collaboration will happen organically to actively enabling opportunities for brainstorming, problem-solving, relationship building and mentorship.

For example, a hyper-designed office day might include a strategic planning session where participants are whiteboarding together, team catch-ups over coffee or lunch, collaborative workshops and client presentations.

By empowering employees with flexibility to design their in-office days purposefully, organisations can reduce frustration from employees reluctantly commuting just to take video calls from their desk.

However, hyper-design depends entirely on what the physical office can deliver, from diverse meeting and collaboration spaces to seamless technology and quality amenities for health and well-being. These should surpass what employees can access at home.

According to JLL research, 82% of employees who are satisfied with their workplace feel positive about in-office attendance policies. Similarly, 74% of those unhappy with their workplace feel negative about the same policies. These numbers tell us that a compelling workplace experience can determine policy success.

Instead of simply mandating presence, organisations with well-designed workplace experiences can gain competitive advantage in the fight for top-tier talent who increasingly view flexibility as non-negotiable.

The organisations winning the talent war won’t be those with the strictest attendance policies, but those creating such well-designed workplace experiences that employees genuinely value their office time.

1. Design for outcomes, not attendance: Map specific business objectives to office days and ensure your space supports these activities with appropriate technology, furniture and acoustics.

2. Invest in the experience gap: Identify what employees can't get at home and amplify those benefits—whether it's high-quality F&B options, enhanced wellness facilities, or inspiring collaborative spaces that spark creativity.

3. Enable flexible orchestration: Give employees and teams the autonomy to design their in-office days around collaboration needs rather than arbitrary schedules.