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'Executives' tend to have their own office and better accommodations as well as (hopefully) believing in the company or at a minimum have some power to implemen

'Executives' tend to have their own office and better accommodations as well as (hopefully) believing in the company or at a minimum have some power to implement their own vision. Employees are treated more like cattle so it is not surprising they would rather stay at home where they have more control.

emerged 5y ago
I’ve literally never met the CEO of my small company. I once engaged with him on social media and had no response. Literally doesn’t recognize my name. Yet I built the majority of the product his success complete depends upon. He will get massive rewards if it succeeds and I have no stock. I’d call that a disconnect.
devoutsalsa 5y ago
Are you saying you don't like working below decks in the steerage section?! In my last (and final?) office job, I worked in an open office environment. One team would have their daily meetings 3 feet behind my head, so I'd have to wear headphones. My coworkers all wore headphones, so I'd have to ping them via Slack or do a dance to get their attention. To have any privacy for meeting, I'd have to book a conference room, sometimes many floors or buildings away from my actual desk. I can't think of anything my desk actually provided for me, other than a place to park my laptop-hauling backpack.
- jrumbut 5y ago
  The first 5-6 years of my career were in that kind of environment (though not quite as comically bad). I went 100% remote but eventually found an opportunity where I had my own office, and after several months there I realized I had never had so much energy at the end of the workday. I was getting more done without working extra hours and feeling better than ever. Companies pay hundreds of thousands for developers and are usually generous with equipment but pinch pennies with office space. I would be surprised if productivity gains and savings in sick and personal time wouldn't more than cover the cost of the additional space, plus it would be a hell of a recruiting tool since such a high percentage of companies are only offering a desk in a noisy, crowded environment.
pm90 5y ago
I can’t agree enough. Not just offices but Executive Assistants, nice meeting rooms where they can indulge in their favorite habit of public speaking. Taking out their reports/coworkers for lunch on the company’s dime etc. Working from home lets folks customize their workplace anyway they want. Personally I sunk a lot of my own money into getting a great chair, standing desk and an external monitor setup that I like instead of having to try and get procurement/IT to get something that’s “ok”.
quickthrower2 5y ago
Employees in tech might win this tug of war due to shortages. Demand for tech things has never been higher - both genuine demand e.g. remote learning and speculative demand e.g. bond yields are negative take my money for your sashimi delivery startup!
- Jensson 5y ago
  There is no "winning" in this tug of war, the more one side wins the less they will pull and ultimately it will settle down where some companies do WFH and some do WFO. So just like before but probably more of them doing WFH.
  - quickthrower2 5y ago
    I’m not sure. Once it becomes normal to WFH, coming into the office in the future might be seen like like asking for a sharp 9am start or to wear a suit and tie today.
- ThrowawayR2 5y ago
  > "Employees in tech might win this tug of war due to shortages." If that's the case, employees should have won the argument against open plan offices too. But that didn't happen?

emerged 5y ago

I’ve literally never met the CEO of my small company. I once engaged with him on social media and had no response. Literally doesn’t recognize my name. Yet I built the majority of the product his success complete depends upon. He will get massive rewards if it succeeds and I have no stock. I’d call that a disconnect.

devoutsalsa 5y ago

Are you saying you don't like working below decks in the steerage section?! In my last (and final?) office job, I worked in an open office environment. One team would have their daily meetings 3 feet behind my head, so I'd have to wear headphones. My coworkers all wore headphones, so I'd have to ping them via Slack or do a dance to get their attention. To have any privacy for meeting, I'd have to book a conference room, sometimes many floors or buildings away from my actual desk. I can't think of anything my desk actually provided for me, other than a place to park my laptop-hauling backpack.

jrumbut 5y ago
The first 5-6 years of my career were in that kind of environment (though not quite as comically bad). I went 100% remote but eventually found an opportunity where I had my own office, and after several months there I realized I had never had so much energy at the end of the workday. I was getting more done without working extra hours and feeling better than ever. Companies pay hundreds of thousands for developers and are usually generous with equipment but pinch pennies with office space. I would be surprised if productivity gains and savings in sick and personal time wouldn't more than cover the cost of the additional space, plus it would be a hell of a recruiting tool since such a high percentage of companies are only offering a desk in a noisy, crowded environment.

pm90 5y ago

I can’t agree enough. Not just offices but Executive Assistants, nice meeting rooms where they can indulge in their favorite habit of public speaking. Taking out their reports/coworkers for lunch on the company’s dime etc. Working from home lets folks customize their workplace anyway they want. Personally I sunk a lot of my own money into getting a great chair, standing desk and an external monitor setup that I like instead of having to try and get procurement/IT to get something that’s “ok”.

quickthrower2 5y ago

Employees in tech might win this tug of war due to shortages. Demand for tech things has never been higher - both genuine demand e.g. remote learning and speculative demand e.g. bond yields are negative take my money for your sashimi delivery startup!

Jensson 5y ago
There is no "winning" in this tug of war, the more one side wins the less they will pull and ultimately it will settle down where some companies do WFH and some do WFO. So just like before but probably more of them doing WFH.
- quickthrower2 5y ago
  I’m not sure. Once it becomes normal to WFH, coming into the office in the future might be seen like like asking for a sharp 9am start or to wear a suit and tie today.
ThrowawayR2 5y ago
> "Employees in tech might win this tug of war due to shortages." If that's the case, employees should have won the argument against open plan offices too. But that didn't happen?