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As a former NYer, I'm hearing stories from friends who got out when offices closed. Many relocated back to their parent's homes (mostly to suburbs in Indianapol

As a former NYer, I'm hearing stories from friends who got out when offices closed. Many relocated back to their parent's homes (mostly to suburbs in Indianapolis, Cleveland, or NJ) or to family vacation homes (in Maine, Poconos, or Florida). Selfishly, I hope these friends thrive in these new locales, whether that's through remote work or finding new opportunities. I hope they get out of their inflated NYC rents and bring new energy and ideas outside of the city. SF and NYC have had a chokehold on tech and other prosperous industries for way too long and this had ramifications nationally and in the cities themselves.

fullshark 6y ago
> Selfishly Not to pick on you cause I agree, but I feel like this is a problem with a lot of analysis of this phenomenon. A lot of people really really really hope this happens and the growth of megacities reverses. WFH/Remote job growth is the mechanism they are counting on because outside the cities there is so little economic dynamism, outside of a few firms in a few locations that are almost the only game in town. At the end of the day, when this is all over, companies are going to want to have their employees in the office, especially as tech jobs become more and more commoditized. My guess is in five years you're gonna have superstars that built insane resumes the past 15 years living wherever they want but the vast majority of tech jobs will remain in tech hubs.
- geodel 6y ago
  Maybe it plays out like this. However I think it would be other way round. People who do routine work which are basically human version of API calls may go remote. As their input / output is predictable and measurable they do not need to show up and hog 30-60 sq ft of real estate. In my experience of IT work for last 15 years if I exclude first few years where I needed some hand holding from senior folks, most work related discussions happen via conf calls and conclusions are shared via e-mail/chat. Conf calls are common because teams/clients are distributed across geographies. I also noticed a trend where folks in same campus but different building or even in same building but different floor demand a conf call be setup because they can't be bothered to show up for a face-to-face meeting in conf room.
- schnevets 6y ago
  It's funny you bring up remote work. Despite working from home myself, I believe remote working as a trend can contribute to displacement and inequality. Any job can be enhanced with additional tech literacy, but I don't believe we will achieve a world where the majority of work is telecommutable. Spending my salary enriches the local economy a little bit, but I am taking advantage of a lower cost of living without making much of a major investment. In my current arrangement, I'm not going to rent office space, hire an intern, work with local businesses, or do other actions expected of a small business. In my "selfish" prediction, some of those employees are caught in a dilemma when lockdown orders are lifted. Spoiled by the potential of life outside of the megacities, they start businesses in their new locales. And yes, maybe these small businesses will lease offices, warehouses, or plants locally. Maybe then we'll see nimble companies competing against the SF/NYC incumbents. Optimistically speaking, we may even greater diversity in tech, as locals join the workforce and industries that were suffocated by SF/NYC costs find space to grow. In particular, I'm always perplexed that agritech, manufacturing, design, and entertainment feel the need to stay SF or NYC-based.

fullshark 6y ago

> Selfishly Not to pick on you cause I agree, but I feel like this is a problem with a lot of analysis of this phenomenon. A lot of people really really really hope this happens and the growth of megacities reverses. WFH/Remote job growth is the mechanism they are counting on because outside the cities there is so little economic dynamism, outside of a few firms in a few locations that are almost the only game in town. At the end of the day, when this is all over, companies are going to want to have their employees in the office, especially as tech jobs become more and more commoditized. My guess is in five years you're gonna have superstars that built insane resumes the past 15 years living wherever they want but the vast majority of tech jobs will remain in tech hubs.

geodel 6y ago
Maybe it plays out like this. However I think it would be other way round. People who do routine work which are basically human version of API calls may go remote. As their input / output is predictable and measurable they do not need to show up and hog 30-60 sq ft of real estate. In my experience of IT work for last 15 years if I exclude first few years where I needed some hand holding from senior folks, most work related discussions happen via conf calls and conclusions are shared via e-mail/chat. Conf calls are common because teams/clients are distributed across geographies. I also noticed a trend where folks in same campus but different building or even in same building but different floor demand a conf call be setup because they can't be bothered to show up for a face-to-face meeting in conf room.
schnevets 6y ago
It's funny you bring up remote work. Despite working from home myself, I believe remote working as a trend can contribute to displacement and inequality. Any job can be enhanced with additional tech literacy, but I don't believe we will achieve a world where the majority of work is telecommutable. Spending my salary enriches the local economy a little bit, but I am taking advantage of a lower cost of living without making much of a major investment. In my current arrangement, I'm not going to rent office space, hire an intern, work with local businesses, or do other actions expected of a small business. In my "selfish" prediction, some of those employees are caught in a dilemma when lockdown orders are lifted. Spoiled by the potential of life outside of the megacities, they start businesses in their new locales. And yes, maybe these small businesses will lease offices, warehouses, or plants locally. Maybe then we'll see nimble companies competing against the SF/NYC incumbents. Optimistically speaking, we may even greater diversity in tech, as locals join the workforce and industries that were suffocated by SF/NYC costs find space to grow. In particular, I'm always perplexed that agritech, manufacturing, design, and entertainment feel the need to stay SF or NYC-based.