TCS bans appraisal of WFH employees, 5 days office attendance mandatory under new rules
TCS has withheld final anniversary appraisal for some employees who did not meet its strict five-day work-office requirement, linking attendance compliance directly to performance outcomes.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has tightened its work-from-office policy, with some employees now barred from their final anniversary appraisal for non-compliance with attendance norms in previous quarters. The move signals an intensified effort by India’s largest IT services company to implement full-time office presence, even as much of the industry continues with a hybrid model.
According to information reviewed by The Times of India, the decision affects employees who do not meet TCS’ work-to-office (WFO) requirements during specific quarters of the current financial year. For these employees, the appraisal process may have been completed at the operational level, but not approved by corporate, placing their performance results on hold for the time being. TCS did not respond to queries on the matter at the time of publication.
At TCS, final anniversary appraisal follows a structured annual cycle linked to an employee’s work anniversary. Eligible freshers typically receive a formal anniversary email upon completion of one year, with the status also updated on the company’s internal portal, Ultimatics. It is worth noting that TCS had already closed the final anniversary assessment for lateral hires in 2022, making the current action particularly relevant for freshers.
In at least one internal email cited in the report, employees were informed that while their anniversary appraisal exercise has been completed, it will not be processed further due to non-compliance with the WFO until the second quarter of FY26, covering the period from July to September 2025. The communication also carried a strong warning: If the anniversary appraisal is not conducted within the specified timelines due to continued non-compliance in subsequent quarters, the employee may be completely excluded from the FY26 banding cycle, meaning no performance band will be issued for that year.
Under normal circumstances, the anniversary appraisal process begins with a formal initiation from the organization. The reporting manager then creates a goal sheet, which the employee reviews and submits after aligning expectations with the appraiser. The performance is evaluated on the basis of targets and parameters tracked throughout the year, after which banding results are declared. With the latest enforcement, attendance compliance has effectively become a gatekeeper for this entire cycle.
TCS has been clear about its expectations on office attendance. Employees have to work from the office five days a week, making the company one of the top IT companies in India to adopt such a strict stance. While many co-workers continue to mandate two or three days of work in the office, TCS has gone a step further by linking both performance outcomes and variable pay to physical presence.
To support the policy, the company updated its WFO exceptions framework last year. Employees can cite personal emergencies for up to six days per quarter, with unused days not carried forward, according to an internal note reported earlier. The system also takes care of operational challenges like space constraints, allowing employees to submit up to 30 exception requests in a single entry. Network related issues can be logged through up to five entries at a time. However, TCS has drawn a hard line against bulk uploads or backend adjustments for appearance exceptions, closing down potential loopholes.