Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan’s memo on job cuts also had an update on ending work from home: In September…
Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan confirmed that the company’s four-day office policy will be fully operational by September 2025, with all sites completing necessary improvements to handle full capacity. The update was included in a comprehensive memo to staff on July 24 that primarily focused on a 15% workforce reduction affecting approximately 15,000 jobs.“We are also on track to implement our return-to-office policy in September, with sites completing necessary improvements to operate at full capacity,” Tan wrote in the employee memo, which accompanied Intel’s Q2 2025 earnings report. The four-day office mandate was first announced in April 2025 and goes into effect September 1.
Intel’s 4 day office policy moves from announcement to full implementation
The chip giant first announced the four-day office requirement in April 2025, joining other major technology companies abandoning flexible work arrangements. Amazon mandated five-day office attendance in 2024, while Salesforce implemented a four-day requirement in October. Apple moved to hybrid work in 2022 but has since tightened policies.Tan had criticised “uneven” adherence to Intel’s existing hybrid policy during the Q1 2025 earnings call when he first announced the four-day mandate. “I strongly believe that our sites need to be vibrant hubs of collaboration that reflect our culture in action,” he said, emphasising that in-person work drives “better and faster decision-making.”
Workforce cuts and office mandates signal Intel’s major restructuring push
The simultaneous announcement of job cuts and office mandates reflects Intel’s broader transformation strategy. The company reduced management layers by 50% in Q2 while streamlining operations to compete more effectively in the semiconductor market.Intel plans to end 2025 with approximately 75,000 global employees, down from current levels through both layoffs and natural attrition. The company is also scaling back international expansion plans, canceling projects in Germany and Poland while consolidating operations from Costa Rica to Vietnam and Malaysia.
