In many circles, Airbnb (ABNB) is considered ground zero for disruptors.
The peer-to-peer lodging service was founded in 2008 after two roommates, now-CEO Brian Chesky and Chairman Joe Gebbia needed extra money for rent. They put an air mattress on their living room floor and rented out the space.
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Back then, the likes of Hyatt (H), Hilton (HLT), and Marriott (MAR) weren't particularly phased about a couple of guys in San Francisco renting out their sofa. Fast forward 10 years, however, and Airbnb is now synonymous with a new generation of original and affordable travel.
After all, if you want to stay in an Edwardian castle on 2,000 acres of private U.K. land, a villa with a swimming pool and private restaurant on-site in Tuscany, or a contemporary art villa in the rainforest with an infinity pool on the surfer's mecca coastline of Costa Rica, you'd rent a room on Airbnb, not Hyatt.
Airbnb has been forging its own path in travel for over a decade. Behind the scenes, it's also been forging its own path in the workplace and was ranked the #1 best place to work by Glassdoor in 2016.
AirBnB
Airbnb CEO Says Work Needs to Be Flexible
By offering perks like travel credits, paid time off to volunteer, healthy catering in-office and generous leave time, it's no surprise that the company that encourages flexible vacationing also encourages flexible work.
On The Verge's "Decoder" podcast, Chesky told host Nilay Patel that Airbnb plans to do things a little differently now that the pandemic is officially over.
"I generally think the future is flexibility. Here’s the calculation every CEO has to make: are you more productive having people physically in an office together and then constraining who you hire to a 30-mile or a 60-mile commuting radius to the office?" Chesky asked, hinting at some CEOs who have taken more strident policies, like JP Morgan Chase's (JPM) Jamie Dimon.
"I think we’re going to start to live in a much more nuanced world where the companies aren’t going to have all the people in the office," Chesky continued. "They’re going to decide that some roles are most effective being on a small team in the office, but a giant sea of desks probably isn’t the most effective thing, and many roles will be much more effective when allowing flexibility so you can have a global talent pool."
Chesky added that in April 2022, the company adopted a policy that allows employees to live and work from anywhere.
The move may help to boost employee morale, which younger workers especially tend to seek. Some say they are even willing to trade for higher pay for it.
"We don’t want to recreate this world of Wall-E where everyone’s just staring at screens all day and no one has any interaction in the physical world," Chesky said.
By contrast, Jamie Dimon has been particularly outspoken about remote work, telling shareholders in 2021 that working from anywhere has "serious weaknesses," making apprenticeships are "almost impossible," and may "dramatically undermine the character and culture," of a company.
In an April 2023 staff memo, Dimon told all JP Morgan managing directors that they must return to the office 5 days per week. Most other employees are expected to be in at a minimum of 3 days per week.
"We completely understand that some people don’t want to do it — they can not do it elsewhere," he said in the memo.
