Nationwide announces permanent shift to work-from-home

In the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, Nationwide is changing its operating model

Nationwide announces permanent shift to work-from-home

Insurance News

By Ryan Smith

Nationwide has announced plans to permanently transition to a hybrid operating model comprising primarily work-from-office in four corporate campuses and work-from-home in most other locations.

“We’ve been investing in our technological capabilities for years, and those investments really paid off when we needed to transition quickly to a 98% work-from-home model,” said Nationwide CEO Kirt Walker. “Our associates and our technology team have proven to us that we can serve our members and partners with extraordinary care with a large portion of our team working from home.”

The four main corporate locations will include central Ohio; Des Moines, Iowa; Scottsdale, Ariz.; and San Antonio, Texas. The locations were selected based on current large concentrations of employees, flexibility to serve customers across time zones, and ongoing access to employee talent and subject-matter expertise, Nationwide said.

“Our goal is to ensure that when a recovery comes, we’re prepared to win business with competitively priced solutions while enhancing our resiliency and operational efficiency,” Walker said. “We’re technology-enabled, people-connected and mission-driven. I remain extremely optimistic about our future.”

Nationwide plans to exit most buildings outside of the four designated campuses by November 01. Employees in other locations will move to permanent remote-working status. Those locations include Gainesville, Fla., Harleysville, Penn., Raleigh, N.C., Wausau, Wis., and Richmond, Va.

Exceptions include Nationwide Pet’s business operations in California, Nationwide’s New York City office, and the company’s annuity distribution facility in Louisville, Ky. Exceptions may also include smaller locations that are required by state plans or Nationwide’s business needs to have an office location to service members.

The company will finalize details of the transition over the next several months.

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