From bankruptcy to a workplace reset: WeWork CEO explains dress code, work-from-home rules helped rebuild work culture in company

WeWork CEO John Santora is seeking to rebuild the company after its bankruptcy by combining stricter workplace standards with greater flexibility for employees. His approach includes introducing a dress code while allowing staff to work from home one day a week, as the office-space company works to restore its business and reshape its workplace culture.

In an interview with Business Insider, Santora explained that the changes were intended to establish clearer expectations around professional conduct without disregarding employees' personal commitments. He said he wanted staff to have the flexibility to manage responsibilities outside work while ensuring that their performance and client relationships remained a priority.

Santora said his approach did not involve closely monitoring when employees arrived at or left the office. Instead, he focused on whether they completed their work and kept clients satisfied.


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He also acknowledged that professional commitments had previously prevented him from attending his son's afternoon baseball games. That experience had reinforced his view that employees should have room to accommodate important personal occasions.

The company's dress code policy also allows some flexibility. Santora said he occasionally opts for more casual clothing, including sneakers, on Fridays, depending on his schedule.

Why WeWork introduced a dress code

Santora described himself as a structured and disciplined leader with a traditional background in commercial real estate. He recalled visiting a WeWork office early in his tenure and noticing employees wearing jeans, pyjamas, slippers and shorts.

The sight prompted him to raise concerns with the company's human resources head and introduce clearer expectations around workplace attire. However, the policy was not intended to require formal business clothing at all times. Santora acknowledged that establishing the new standards involved some compromise.

His approach reflects an effort to create a more conventional professional environment while retaining some of the flexibility associated with modern workplaces.

Santora took charge as WeWork emerged from bankruptcy

Santora became WeWork's CEO in 2024, when the company was attempting to recover from years of financial difficulties and leadership turmoil. Before joining WeWork, he spent 47 years at commercial real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield, where he served as chief operating officer.

He had been considering retirement when the opportunity to lead WeWork emerged. However, his daughter Nancy encouraged him to take on another professional challenge, suggesting that retirement might not suit him as much as he expected.

Founded in 2010, WeWork leases office properties, refurbishes them and rents out workspace to businesses and individuals. Its founder and first CEO, Adam Neumann, had promoted an ambitious vision for the company, presenting it as a business that could transform how people worked and reshape the office experience.

The company reached a valuation of $47 billion in 2019, but its value subsequently plunged to approximately $8 billion before it received a bailout. A failed attempt to go public brought its financial and governance problems into sharper focus, and WeWork eventually filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

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Signs of financial recovery

WeWork has reported progress in stabilising its business since Santora took charge. The company recorded eight consecutive quarters of EBITDA profitability and expected to post its fourth consecutive quarter of cash-flow profitability. It reported approximately $2.3 billion in revenue in 2025.

Although it has not returned to its earlier valuation, the company has made progress following the financial crisis that threatened its future.

Santora's leadership has brought a more structured approach to the business, drawing on his decades of experience in commercial real estate. His focus on workplace standards, employee accountability and flexibility forms part of a broader effort to rebuild the company after bankruptcy.