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> the culture feels very transactional Work should be transactional. It is a transaction. Labor is exchanged for money. Full remote frees us from all the bull

> the culture feels very transactional Work should be transactional. It is a transaction. Labor is exchanged for money. Full remote frees us from all the bullshit and let's us focus on just doing the work we're getting paid for. "Deep culture" = bad work/life balance.

Closi 4y ago
Hard disagree. There is a difference between there being a transaction (labour in exchange for money) and it being purely transactional. Take a haircut for instance, it is transactional (you exchange money for a haircut) but often people stick with the same hairdresser for years - e.g. because they have a relationship, have built trust, and often have built a friendship e.t.c. and similarly hairdressers seem to enjoy having these bonds both with their repeat customers and their coworkers. Hairdressers could always work in silence in single-customer booths on their own, but they always seem to be together and chat to each other and customers in the open. This isn't purely transactional - there is a formed culture here "i.e. 'the way we do things is that we chat and have fun while we cut hair'" In a work context: The best performing companies and teams typically have a deep sense of culture and shared-purpose. There is a reason why corporate vision/mission/values are created - because they are effective tools to drive large organizations together in a cohesive way. I personally find that there is a huge personal difference working on a team that has great bonds and a great culture vs a team that doesn't. Working on a team without a sense of belonging and without great relationships with my coworkers sucks for me personally. Now someone might say "well you can still form relationships with coworkers remotely" - in which case that IS culture and something more than transactional, the argument is just that this is much more difficult to form with everyone being remote.
- jen20 4y ago
  > Hairdressers could always work in silence I would absolutely give repeat business to any barber shop whose selling point was “we won’t try to talk to you about last night’s game (you didn’t see) of a sport you don’t care about”. The would be a substantial improvement on the status quo.
RestlessMind 4y ago
Nope. I spend one third of my life at work and I’d rather spend it with people I trust and I have a friendly relationship with (doesn’t mean they have to be my friends), rather than a robotic transactional environment. Based on my almost two decades of experience, the former environment is far more productive than later and I’d bet on companies fostering that one to win in the end.

Closi 4y ago

Hard disagree. There is a difference between there being a transaction (labour in exchange for money) and it being purely transactional. Take a haircut for instance, it is transactional (you exchange money for a haircut) but often people stick with the same hairdresser for years - e.g. because they have a relationship, have built trust, and often have built a friendship e.t.c. and similarly hairdressers seem to enjoy having these bonds both with their repeat customers and their coworkers. Hairdressers could always work in silence in single-customer booths on their own, but they always seem to be together and chat to each other and customers in the open. This isn't purely transactional - there is a formed culture here "i.e. 'the way we do things is that we chat and have fun while we cut hair'" In a work context: The best performing companies and teams typically have a deep sense of culture and shared-purpose. There is a reason why corporate vision/mission/values are created - because they are effective tools to drive large organizations together in a cohesive way. I personally find that there is a huge personal difference working on a team that has great bonds and a great culture vs a team that doesn't. Working on a team without a sense of belonging and without great relationships with my coworkers sucks for me personally. Now someone might say "well you can still form relationships with coworkers remotely" - in which case that IS culture and something more than transactional, the argument is just that this is much more difficult to form with everyone being remote.

jen20 4y ago
> Hairdressers could always work in silence I would absolutely give repeat business to any barber shop whose selling point was “we won’t try to talk to you about last night’s game (you didn’t see) of a sport you don’t care about”. The would be a substantial improvement on the status quo.

RestlessMind 4y ago

Nope. I spend one third of my life at work and I’d rather spend it with people I trust and I have a friendly relationship with (doesn’t mean they have to be my friends), rather than a robotic transactional environment. Based on my almost two decades of experience, the former environment is far more productive than later and I’d bet on companies fostering that one to win in the end.