Instagram chief orders staff back to the office five days a week in 2026

Summary

Instagram chief Adam Mosseri is ordering most US staff in his organization back to the office five days a week starting February 2, according to an internal memo obtained by Business Insider.The memo, titled "Building a Winning Culture in 2026," says the change applies to employees in US offices with assigned desks and is part of a broader push to make Instagram "more nimble and creative" as competition intensifies."I believe that we are more creative and collaborative when we are together in-person," Mosseri wrote. "I felt this pre-COVID and I feel it any time I go to our New York office where the in-person culture is strong."Earlier this year, Amazon told many corporate employees to return to the office five days a week. Other tech giants such as Alphabet, Apple, and Microsoft have taken a slightly softer approach, generally requiring staff to be in the office at least three days a week.The memo, first reported by Alex Heath's Sources newsletter, also announced a slew of other changes. Recurring meetings will be canceled every six months and only re-added if "absolutely necessary." Employees are encouraged to decline meetings that interfere with focus time."I want most of your time focused on building great products, not preparing for meetings," Mosseri wrote.The Instagram chief also called for more product prototypes than slide decks."Prototypes allow us to establish a proof of concept and get a real sense for social dynamics, and we use them far too infrequently," Mosseri wrote."2026 is going to be tough, as was 2025, but I'm excited about our momentum and our plans for next year," Mosseri wrote. "These changes are going to meaningfully help us move Instagram forward in a way we can all be proud of — with creativity, boldness, and craft."Meta declined to comment.Read the full memo below:Building a Winning Culture in 2026We've made good progress this year on Instagram standing for creativity and Threads standing for perspectives, but we still need to do more if w...