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Do you think remote first companies will be at an advantage because physical biases like height, age, and weight have less signal to form against?
by djohnston 4y ago
Do you think remote first companies will be at an advantage because physical biases like height, age, and weight have less signal to form against?
- jghjjhjkh 4y agoNo, the opposite. This is driven by apps and screen mediated interaction. In real life every person has thousands of facets that give a holistic impression. And people more easily have genuine connections with each other. Online there is instead a huge focus on the big few. And they take on the role of dealbreakers.
- elihu 4y agoA random anecdote: there's a guy with a YouTube channel called LookMumNoComputer that features unusual electronic musical instruments and modular synthesizers. Most modular synthesizers use the Eurorack format popularized by Doepfer, but LookMumNoComputer uses his own format with taller panels and 1/4" jacks instead of the Eurorack-standard 1/8" jacks. He mentions in one of his videos that when people meet him in real life they're often surprised that he's actually fairly tall. In his videos he looks smaller than he really is, in part because the things he's being filmed next to are larger than standard size.
- __derek__ 4y agoMaybe, but many remote-first companies eventually hold in-person events. I recently met the folks on my all-remote team for the first time, and it was a little jarring to see the differences between expectation and reality.
- etempleton 4y agoI would also argue height advantages do not really factor in until one reaches leadership positions. At that point the job probably dictates being in person at least part time.
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- __derek__ 4y agoAs I understand it, height bias factors into who gets leadership positions in the first place. Maybe that phenomenon decreases as a result of remote work, though.
- xunn0026 4y agoCurious: jarring how? I saw an excellent educational video recently from a guy that was, how to put it, dressed almost like a hobo.
- __derek__ 4y agoJarring in that some people were taller or shorter than I assumed based on their home office set-up or personality.
- drpgq 4y agoI started a new job during Covid I got through my boss. I've never met anyone else at the company in person. We are both shorter than average. Makes you kind of wonder.
- bsder 4y agoHardly. Eventually people are going to figure out that being "prettier" matters on online and start the arms race there. "Dress For Success" still matters and too many people still ignore it. Ironically, online video has made things quite good for me as a greybeard. I invested in a good camera and good lighting early in Covid. I always look better than anybody else in the meeting and it gives me gravitas that I really haven't earned. The downside is that I can't look like shit on calls or it shows. I generally make a point of exercising and then taking a shower directly before starting meetings for the day.