With the consolidation of home office and hybrid work, a silent challenge has impacted the careers of many professionals: the proximity bias. A study conducted by economists from the British universities of Nottingham, Sheffield, and King’s College indicates that remote workers have fewer chances of receiving promotions and salary increases, even when they outperform their in-office colleagues. The reason? The unconscious tendency of leaders to value more those who are physically close on a day-to-day basis.
Virgilio Marques dos Santos, co-founder of FM2S Education and Consulting, career manager and PhD from Unicamp, warns that this distortion can harm both professionals and the companies themselves. “The proximity bias causes ineffective managements to end up promoting those who are visible in the office, and not those who deliver better results. This damages fair work valuation and reduces talent retention,” he states.
The problem intensified after the pandemic, when many leaders, accustomed to the in-person model, started to associate productivity with physical presence. However, innovative companies have already realized that the most important thing is to measure results, not the time spent in the office. Technology giants, like Google and Microsoft, have adopted more flexible models, focusing on delivery and work quality, regardless of the employee’s location.
How to avoid the proximity bias?
To ensure a fair evaluation, Santos recommends some practices:
– Performance evaluation: instead of focusing on physical presence, companies should establish clear performance metrics to evaluate their employees;
– Regular meetings with everyone on the team: remote employees may be overlooked in daily interactions. Structured meetings ensure balance in communications;
– Use of productivity tools: management software allows monitoring performance objectively, reducing the reliance on in-person observation;
– Inclusive organizational culture: leaders should be trained to recognize and avoid proximity bias, ensuring decisions are based on real merit.
For the expert, the future of work is not in constant supervision, but in a relationship of trust and appreciation of results. “Companies that understand this will be ahead, attracting and retaining the best professionals, regardless of where they are,” he concludes.
