We still haven’t heard anything about the $6,000 motorcycle that was supposed to have arrived three months ago, but Harley-Davidson is taking a number of steps aimed at improving its current and future standing.
The most headline-grabbing of those actions is a decree by new CEO Artie Starrs that working from home is no longer a thing.
Brought about in part by necessity in and around the Covid pandemic, home-working had in recent years become the norm for many MoCo employees, including former CEO Jochen Zeitz – who often preferred to phone in from his ranch in New Mexico rather than suffer the snow and cold of Milwaukee.
This aspect of Harley’s culture was one of the things lambasted in an open letter by former board member Jared Dourdeville when he resigned in early 2025. That resignation, and the hullabaloo that surrounded it ultimately led to Zeitz’s resignation, and the installation of former Topgolf CEO Artie Starrs in October.
Going forward, all Harley-Davidson employees living within a 50-mile radius of the company’s Milwaukee headquarters will be required to work in the office at least three days a week, according to a report in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
I wouldn’t be surprised if similar expectations exist at other H-D offices. When I worked for a very short time in PR for Harley-Davidson UK and Ireland, the expectation for employees – even amid the pandemic weirdness – was that they would be physically present at its Oxfordshire HQ as much as possible.
The three-days-a-week rule will be implemented from March, and extended to four days a week from September. Starrs says the move is “part of a broader effort to reset and strengthen the company’s bond with its dealers and riders – enabling Harley-Davidson to chart a bold strategic path forward.”
It’s unknown exactly how many employees will be affected by this change of policy. The good news for them, though, is that the Central Standard Craft Distillery will be moving its main operations to a building on the Harley campus.
Central Standard produces bourbon, whiskey, vodka, brandy, and gin – as well as several cocktail-in-a-can drinks – and says its new 73,000-square-foot facility will house “full distillery production, a tasting room, distillery tours, [and] private events.” It is expected to be up and running this summer.
Employees will also be returning to a historic location – officially. Harley is eager to see parts of its campus listed on the National Register of Historic Places. I’m sure the reason behind that has nothing to do with the tax credits that would cover up to 40 percent of the cost of renovations that the MoCo is keen to undertake.
Meanwhile, as I say, the affordable, entry-level model that Zeitz promised last summer has yet to materialize. On an earnings call in July, Zeitz acknowledged that the company had dropped the ball when it comes to providing riders a gateway to the brand (which was another of Dourdeveille’s complaints) and said an affordable solution was on the way.
“Scheduled for release in 2026 and for presentation to our global dealer network in October, I’m pleased to share that we’re targeting an entry price below $6,000,” Zeitz told investors.
Here we are in January and I’ve heard nothing about said bike. Indeed, the impact and direction of Starrs still feels like an unknown. He has yet to deliver a Bold New Vision, as one might have expected.
Perhaps that will come in the next few weeks. Or perhaps Starrs doesn’t want to fall into the trap of predecessors like Zeitz and Matt Levatich, who announced big plans but were given the boot before those plans could be properly implemented. Whatever the case, this year should be an interesting one for the 123-year-old company.
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