Can you make a career out of smart working? The New York Times posed the question by telling the stories of young American students who took internships in companies and major investment banks last summer. As much as the companies pledged to “bridge the gap,” many would have preferred to be in the office. In fact, remote work is often favored by employees with certain common characteristics: they have been with the company for several years, are professionally established, know their manager, feel comfortable in their role, and want to balance work with family responsibilities and personal leisure. On the other hand, for those entering the labor market today, smart working could be an obstacle.

Hybrid work For those just starting out on a career path, in fact, working in isolation can make it more difficult to fit into an organization, and consequently prolong any career moves. While U.S. President Joe Biden recalled all federal employees to return to the office a few days ago, it is now well established that smart working will remain in stronger or weaker forms in most American companies. And so companies are scrambling to look for new ways to include workers with hybrid or fully smart working contracts. Some through leadership courses, some by identifying mentors within the company to support employees working remotely.

To be there and not to be there The hope is that these efforts to engage remote workers will help counteract the tendency of managers to consider more employees who are present in the office. According to a survey conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management, 42 percent of managers surveyed admitted that they often overlooked remote workers when distributing assignments(Bloomberg). And not for personal or punitive reasons, but simply because they were not there. An attitude that psychologists have labeled “proximity bias.”