Slack’s influential remote work think tank reportedly axed as parent company considers return to office

Slack’s Future Forum, a think tank and research group focused on remote work, will reportedly shut down as senior leaders of parent company Salesforce advocate for back-to-office policies.

Established in 2020, the Future Forum consortium saw workplace messaging giant Slack, business consultancies, and management thought leaders produce influential research on work-from-home policies worldwide.

Its reports broadly reflected the positive outcomes associated with hybrid working policies across the globe, even after the end of COVID-19 restrictions ushered workers back into the office.

The value of workplace flexibility was keenly felt in Australia, according to the Future Forum’s April 2022 Pulse report, which showed local knowledge workers wanted flexible schedules more than professionals in any other nation.

Its latest Future Forum Pulse findings were revealed in February and optimistic blogs, with titles like ‘Want to boost productivity, decrease turnover, and improve organizational culture? Offer your employees more flexibility’, appeared the same month.

Its most recent newsletter, published on March 16, expresses similarly positive viewpoints.

“The workplace’s radical transformation over the past few years hasn’t just changed where and when people work,” it reads.

“It’s also shifted how we work together—giving rise to a slew of new approaches for collaborating across locations and time zones.”

But Fortune now reports Future Forum will close at the end of March, citing screenshots the publication obtained from the Future Forum Slack channel.

“We remain committed to flexible, inclusive work at Slack and will carry forward your impactful work,” Slack CEO Lidaine Jones reportedly told staff.

A Slack spokesperson confirmed the decision to move away from the Future Forum structure in a statement provided to SmartCompany.

“Future Forum served as an authoritative voice and trusted data source on designing a future of work that is flexible, connected, and inclusive when the world needed it most,” they said.

Fortune states leadership did not express a reason for the cut-back.

The decision comes after Marc Benioff, CEO of Slack owner Salesforce, publicly advocated for the benefits of working in the office.

“Are we not building tribal knowledge with new employees without an office culture?” Benioff asked staff in a message viewed by outlets including CNBC.

The decision comes amid a broader cost-cutting focus at Salesforce, which has resulted in significant layoffs.

“Slack and Salesforce remain committed to deep research on the future of work, and designing products that make work more productive, simple, and pleasant for our customers,” the spokesperson added.