Q+A with Tangram CEO Joe Lozowski: The Long-term Risk of Remote Work

## Q&A with Tangram CEO Joe Lozowski: The Long-term Risk of Remote Work

While **hybrid work** dominates corporate discussions today, the conversation often misses critical elements that determine long-term business success. During the COVID-19 lockdown, most professionals experienced intense work-from-home arrangements, revealing both benefits and drawbacks. However, the current discourse fails to address essential in-person elements and their strategic implications for sustainable business growth.

### What's Your Biggest Concern About Remote Work Environments?

From a leadership perspective, my primary concern centers on the inability to create meaningful networks within organizations. Personal connections serve as vital channels for experienced professionals to transfer knowledge to newer team members. This steady knowledge exchange allows companies to maintain and strengthen their market position while enabling career development and succession planning.

Consider this example: A recent college graduate has worked at her company for nine months without meeting anyone in person—not even during her job interview. Their company culture discourages turning on cameras during video meetings, leaving her without face-to-face interaction. This represents a leadership failure that severely limits her ability to learn from colleagues, build beneficial relationships, and participate in company culture.

**Leaders must be present to nurture the collective "we" in organizations. The challenge becomes maintaining presence when team members themselves are absent.**

### Beyond Networking: What Makes In-Person Environments Irreplaceable?

Numerous nuances distinguish in-person work from virtual alternatives. We all recognize that sitting in a room with someone differs significantly from video calls. **"Reading the room"** and interpreting body language remain essential leadership skills. You notice when meeting attendees recoil, smile, lean forward, or show disengagement—these observations provide valuable insights.

In-person interactions also maintain standards of cordiality, politeness, and professionalism through natural human decorum. Remote meetings often lack this warmth, with participants sometimes not bothering to turn on cameras or maintain professional appearance.

We're also losing crucial **"in-between" conversations**—those impromptu hallway, breakroom, and lunch interactions that build personal connections and advance work in unexpected ways. Many impactful conversations begin with "Oh, I've been meaning to talk to you!"

### Who Should Own Workplace Model Decisions?

Currently, corporate real estate and HR departments handle most hybrid work planning. However, this massive shift in work patterns deserves **C-suite strategic priority**, ranking alongside acquisition strategies, pricing decisions, or R&D investments.

Beyond logistical questions about desks and HVAC systems, leaders must address fundamental strategic concerns:

- How will we implement hybrid work practically? - What's our strategy for building organizational networks? - How will we transfer knowledge and develop leaders? - What approach will strengthen culture in hybrid environments? - Which roles succeed in long-term remote situations? - How will hybrid work benefit both employees and company success?

### Practical Steps for Balanced Hybrid Environments

Companies can take several concrete actions to develop thoughtful hybrid workplaces:

**Strategic Planning:** - Make hybrid work a C-suite agenda item for the coming year - Hold in-person sessions pairing department leaders to discuss challenges and solutions

**Human Connection:** - Foster face-to-face interaction with dedicated budget support - Create clear schedules for in-person versus remote work days - Build bi-annual company events and regular social meetups - Require innovation and brainstorming sessions to happen in-person

**Safety and Support:** - Maintain clear safety protocols - Provide benefits and support for illness-related absences

### Potential Consequences of Excessive Remote Work

Companies that swing too heavily toward remote work may face significant challenges:

**Higher Turnover:** Employees often transform jobs into careers when they feel valued professionally and culturally within trusted networks. If work becomes solely about paychecks and screen conversations, retention suffers.

**Innovation Stagnation:** Great ideas may never develop due to limited collaboration. Consider how today's tech giants emerged: Mark Zuckerberg worked alongside other coders in a shared house to build Facebook. Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak collaborated in a garage. Elon Musk slept on factory floors in solidarity with workers. These scenarios seem impossible to replicate digitally.

### Is Constant In-Person Work the Solution?

Absolutely not—that approach is equally problematic. My company maintained flexibility and remote work options even before the pandemic. **The goal is intentional leadership that thoughtfully balances workplace approaches** to preserve the best benefits of physical environments.

Remote work may suit employees with established company networks and certain roles like coding. However, even remote workers need leadership, which functions best through in-person interaction.

### Could Fully Remote Models Eventually Succeed?

Possibly, but leaders must solve fundamental challenges: knowledge transfer, relationship-building, trust development, innovation, and succession planning. Companies that thrive with 100% remote work will demonstrate careful leadership and strategic planning beyond simple real estate cost savings.

**The innovators who make hybrid work succeed long-term will implement C-suite-led strategies with genuine solutions to these challenges.**

The future of work requires intentional design that preserves human connection while embracing flexibility—a balance that demands serious strategic consideration from organizational leaders.