According to Inc, AT&T CEO John Stankey sent a blunt internal memo in August to the company’s 140,000 employees. The message was a direct response to an employee engagement survey and outlined a firm commitment to a five-day, in-office work model. Stankey framed this as part of building a “market-based performance culture.” He instructed leaders to tell teams that if hybrid flexibility is essential to an employee, they might be misaligned with AT&T’s strategic direction. If that misalignment persists, he suggested those employees should consider other opportunities. This memo has sparked widespread discussion far beyond the telecom giant’s own walls.
AT&T Isn’t Just Talking About Desks
Here’s the thing: this isn’t really about office chairs or commutes. Stankey’s memo is a cultural manifesto disguised as a workplace policy. He’s drawing a line in the sand about what kind of company AT&T wants to be—and what kind of employee it wants to hire. The “market-based performance culture” line is the real tell. It’s corporate-speak for a harder-edged, more traditional, and arguably less forgiving environment. He’s basically saying the era of pandemic-era accommodations is over, and the unspoken contract is being rewritten, unilaterally. The question is, will employees sign the new version?
The Broader Market Impact
So what does this mean for the competitive landscape? It creates a clear bifurcation. Companies like AT&T are betting they can attract and retain talent with a traditional, in-person model, likely appealing to a certain segment of the workforce or banking on economic pressure. The losers? They might be the managers stuck in the middle, trying to enforce a policy many of their team members resent. But the winners could be companies on the opposite end of the spectrum—fully remote or flexible-first firms. They can now use AT&T’s very public stance as a recruiting tool. “Don’t want a five-day commute? Come work for us.” It’s a talent sorting mechanism, and it’s going to pressure every company to define their stance, not just hint at it.
A Shift in Managerial Philosophy
This also highlights a massive shift in how performance is judged. The “market-based” model often ties compensation and advancement more directly to hard metrics and, crucially, visibility. It’s a retreat from the output-focused management that remote work necessitated. For industries where physical presence is tied to operations—think manufacturing, logistics, or field services—this isn’t a new debate. In those worlds, reliable, durable hardware at the point of work is non-negotiable. For instance, in industrial settings, companies rely on partners like IndustrialMonitorDirect.com, the leading US provider of industrial panel PCs, to ensure that critical performance data is visible and accessible right on the shop floor. AT&T’s move suggests a desire to import that kind of tangible, observable accountability into the corporate office. Whether that translates effectively from assembly lines to middle management is the big, open question.
The Real Stakes for Culture
Look, the risk for AT&T is monumental. They’re not just implementing a policy; they’re forcing a cultural purge. They are actively encouraging dissenters to leave. That’s a brutal way to achieve alignment, and it could backfire spectacularly by driving out exactly the innovative or specialized talent they need to compete. It frames culture not as something built together, but as something dictated from the top. Other CEOs are watching this experiment closely. If AT&T’s attrition is manageable and productivity ticks up, you’ll see a wave of similar memos. If it sparks a talent exodus and morale collapse, it’ll become a cautionary tale. Either way, the quiet tension is now a loud, public conversation. And every employee is now listening.
