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I don't think this is a one-size fits all. I've been WFM for 7 years now. I don't think RTO is a bad thing, but its all situational. How silo'd are projects an

by redm 3y ago

I don't think this is a one-size fits all. I've been WFM for 7 years now. I don't think RTO is a bad thing, but its all situational. How silo'd are projects and how much inter-team coordination do you need? How long is your commute? What kind of person are you (some people just work better in office environments)? Do you need physical access to equipment? The list goes on. Being fully remote has allowed flexibility for team members to relocate without being forced to leave and thats been the biggest advantage. Going from a FTO to WFO or RTO is a big transition that requires re-defining workflows and communication mechanisms. Products like Zoom and Slack have made that far easier, but the bigger the organization, the harder the transition. Personally, I miss having an office. I've lost human connection by being isolated at home that isn't replaced with normal social interactions. Maybe thats just older men not making time, but office space traditionally filled that role for me.

calvinmorrison 3y ago
I just don't see how people can be more productive at home, maybe if they work in isolation. But my experience is that a culture of very interactive programming with team members solves problems fast and you can make light year jumps. Taking a project from a week into a day with two hands on it. That kind of thing works great in person. And it doesn't just benefit junior devs, but also srs who collaborate better. I think people are afraid of pair programming and it's very weird, as I love it. I do it a lot on zoom but it's not as good as in person.
- markus_zhang 3y ago
  You can do pair programming on zoom too. Also maybe not everyone enjoys dealing with other people, especially nerds? For me WFH is definitely more productive. For a start, I don't have to commune for 90 mins into office. If I RTO I'll politely remove all meetings from other time zones out of 9-5 because I need to catch a train or drive a car. Also, by WFH I don't have people who happens to enjoy a lot of chatting and "collaboration in person" to suddenly appear in front of me and request a talk! God finally I can work.
- reassembled 3y ago
  My manager and I have been doing some pair programming in VSCode’s “multiplayer” mode (can’t remember what it’s called). The implementation is pretty well done.
- yukinon 3y ago
  I've done pair programming on specific projects throughout the years and I find it to be utterly exhausting. I would resign if my job required it. I find myself more productive at home because there's often way too much office chit-chat between meetings that does nothing but serve to distract. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, but there's an understanding among my hybrid team that if we need to get something done, we'll be WFH those days. Not to mention, I'm senior enough to always be in meetings and never program anymore, and for that I can do anywhere especially when the people I meet are in different parts of the world.
Corrado 3y ago
I've been WFO for the last 3 years and I love it. However, one of my favorite work times was being in the office when I was younger. I think the difference might be that we had lots of stuff to do in the office. They had a great cafeteria and a pond to take walks around at lunch. There was free food (sometimes) and free soda (all the time) and they even had a parade every couple of weeks. Some of my best memories, and most productive times, were when me and a couple of co-workers would walk down 5 flights of stairs to get some Dr. Pepper at 3:00 in the afternoon. It helped break up the day and get your brain juices flowing again. And the caffeine didn't hurt. It's kinda hard to get that when you WFH.

by redm 3y ago

calvinmorrison 3y ago

I just don't see how people can be more productive at home, maybe if they work in isolation. But my experience is that a culture of very interactive programming with team members solves problems fast and you can make light year jumps. Taking a project from a week into a day with two hands on it. That kind of thing works great in person. And it doesn't just benefit junior devs, but also srs who collaborate better. I think people are afraid of pair programming and it's very weird, as I love it. I do it a lot on zoom but it's not as good as in person.

markus_zhang 3y ago
You can do pair programming on zoom too. Also maybe not everyone enjoys dealing with other people, especially nerds? For me WFH is definitely more productive. For a start, I don't have to commune for 90 mins into office. If I RTO I'll politely remove all meetings from other time zones out of 9-5 because I need to catch a train or drive a car. Also, by WFH I don't have people who happens to enjoy a lot of chatting and "collaboration in person" to suddenly appear in front of me and request a talk! God finally I can work.
reassembled 3y ago
My manager and I have been doing some pair programming in VSCode’s “multiplayer” mode (can’t remember what it’s called). The implementation is pretty well done.
yukinon 3y ago
I've done pair programming on specific projects throughout the years and I find it to be utterly exhausting. I would resign if my job required it. I find myself more productive at home because there's often way too much office chit-chat between meetings that does nothing but serve to distract. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, but there's an understanding among my hybrid team that if we need to get something done, we'll be WFH those days. Not to mention, I'm senior enough to always be in meetings and never program anymore, and for that I can do anywhere especially when the people I meet are in different parts of the world.

Corrado 3y ago

I've been WFO for the last 3 years and I love it. However, one of my favorite work times was being in the office when I was younger. I think the difference might be that we had lots of stuff to do in the office. They had a great cafeteria and a pond to take walks around at lunch. There was free food (sometimes) and free soda (all the time) and they even had a parade every couple of weeks. Some of my best memories, and most productive times, were when me and a couple of co-workers would walk down 5 flights of stairs to get some Dr. Pepper at 3:00 in the afternoon. It helped break up the day and get your brain juices flowing again. And the caffeine didn't hurt. It's kinda hard to get that when you WFH.