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What I'm seeing looking for remote work at tech companies right now: - startups: MANY (most?) are committed to "remote-first" and talk about this prominently o

What I'm seeing looking for remote work at tech companies right now: - startups: MANY (most?) are committed to "remote-first" and talk about this prominently on their careers page - larger companies (~1000+ employees): do seem to be making more noise about being in the office 2 days a week. - really big companies: still ignore my English Major ass so idk

contracertainty 3y ago
My company ('systemically important' bank, ~100k enployees) is trying furiously to get us into the office 2 days a week. For many people this is more than was required of them pre-COVID. What is actually happening is that people come in 1 day but there is nowhere to sit appropriate for development or any kind of 'engineering' work unless they are on site before 8am (no good for those of us with school runs to do). If there's no desk we're being asked to sit at benches or refectory style tables with our tiny laptop screens. The actual result of this is a day of no work, and, being europe, it means a bunch of people filling in the accident book saying they have a neck injury at the end of each day. This is going to get worse as they pressure people to come in without adequate desk numbers. The unions are swamped with complaints (yay for unions!). If people can find a desk they are surrounded by project manangers or non-technical staff from other teams who are on calls all day with people who are remote, and they themselves are on calls with people who are remote, at home or in another EU country, India/US/etc. No synergy, no quick chats by the water cooler/kettle. ##Remote, virtual global teams do not benefit from being in the office.## On a more personal note, I'm also finding it's a very noisy, distracting environment. For neurodivergent people (ADHD, Autism) the office is actually really challenging. I find I have to go and close myself in a meeting room to get some quiet at several points throught the day, and I leave early. It's exhausting. I'd estimate that 80-90% of my team are neurodivergent engineers, cryptographers, or architects, and are actively seeking remote positions. I wholly support their efforts. I am 100% sure this drive to get people in is because senior management are bored and lonely at home and don't want to come into empty offices. They've paid for these giant offices in London, NY and elsewhere, which cost a fortune, and need to see bums on seats. The way they stay up to speed on what's going on is chatting to people in the halls and corridors, so they don't even really need a computer! They live in a different world. Screw banks, anyway.
jimsimmons 3y ago
Entire SV VC sphere wants people in the office grinding
- tptacek 3y ago
  That's the opposite of what they just said (and, probably, of reality). My perception is that remote work is much more common in successful startups than it is in large companies.
  - jimsimmons 3y ago
    Sam Altman?
    - theonlybutlet 3y ago
      Ironically that's the opposite of what he said lol
chrisco255 3y ago
2 days a week in an office is useless. Either make it 5 days a week in the office with up to x weeks of remote or make it full time remote. When an office requires 2 days a week in an office, you get none of the alleged benefits of in person work as everyone chooses which days they want. In a part time remote situation, the office ends up being 60% empty all the time anyways, and it's almost always a waste of time to hold a meeting in an office if even one of the attendees is remote, which is extremely common in modern software teams.
- citrin_ru 3y ago
  My commute is 3 hours both ways. Bearable 1-2 days, but not 5. 1 day is enough to have most periodic meetings in person if everyone on the team comes the same day. To make office less empty different teams can come on different days so much smaller office can be used. The problem is many companies bound by long term contracts so a large office is a sunk cost.
- XorNot 3y ago
  The reality of meetings is that they're all a waste of time. I'm starting to think the same about Teams meetings. Video chat (for screensharing) with colleagues? Wonderfully effective. 64 people in the one Teams meeting? 100% seems to be "manager who can't bring himself to write a more then a 1 paragraph email and instead thinks too highly of his oratory skills". Which has led me to my grand hypothesis that if you're calling a meeting just to give a fixed speech, write it out first and then decide why it's not an email...or decide just not to send it at all. If you think you need a meeting, then prepare the topics for discussion ahead of time and solicit an initial round of feedback.
- tester756 3y ago
  Disagree. Just decide that you meet e.g on monday, so you can plan everything and spend rest of the week actually doing the work without disruptions
- senectus1 3y ago
  this is not my experience.. our team does 2-3 days in and 2-3 WFH and it works really well.

contracertainty 3y ago

My company ('systemically important' bank, ~100k enployees) is trying furiously to get us into the office 2 days a week. For many people this is more than was required of them pre-COVID. What is actually happening is that people come in 1 day but there is nowhere to sit appropriate for development or any kind of 'engineering' work unless they are on site before 8am (no good for those of us with school runs to do). If there's no desk we're being asked to sit at benches or refectory style tables with our tiny laptop screens. The actual result of this is a day of no work, and, being europe, it means a bunch of people filling in the accident book saying they have a neck injury at the end of each day. This is going to get worse as they pressure people to come in without adequate desk numbers. The unions are swamped with complaints (yay for unions!). If people can find a desk they are surrounded by project manangers or non-technical staff from other teams who are on calls all day with people who are remote, and they themselves are on calls with people who are remote, at home or in another EU country, India/US/etc. No synergy, no quick chats by the water cooler/kettle. ##Remote, virtual global teams do not benefit from being in the office.## On a more personal note, I'm also finding it's a very noisy, distracting environment. For neurodivergent people (ADHD, Autism) the office is actually really challenging. I find I have to go and close myself in a meeting room to get some quiet at several points throught the day, and I leave early. It's exhausting. I'd estimate that 80-90% of my team are neurodivergent engineers, cryptographers, or architects, and are actively seeking remote positions. I wholly support their efforts. I am 100% sure this drive to get people in is because senior management are bored and lonely at home and don't want to come into empty offices. They've paid for these giant offices in London, NY and elsewhere, which cost a fortune, and need to see bums on seats. The way they stay up to speed on what's going on is chatting to people in the halls and corridors, so they don't even really need a computer! They live in a different world. Screw banks, anyway.

jimsimmons 3y ago

Entire SV VC sphere wants people in the office grinding

tptacek 3y ago
That's the opposite of what they just said (and, probably, of reality). My perception is that remote work is much more common in successful startups than it is in large companies.
- jimsimmons 3y ago
  Sam Altman?
  - theonlybutlet 3y ago
    Ironically that's the opposite of what he said lol

chrisco255 3y ago

2 days a week in an office is useless. Either make it 5 days a week in the office with up to x weeks of remote or make it full time remote. When an office requires 2 days a week in an office, you get none of the alleged benefits of in person work as everyone chooses which days they want. In a part time remote situation, the office ends up being 60% empty all the time anyways, and it's almost always a waste of time to hold a meeting in an office if even one of the attendees is remote, which is extremely common in modern software teams.

citrin_ru 3y ago
My commute is 3 hours both ways. Bearable 1-2 days, but not 5. 1 day is enough to have most periodic meetings in person if everyone on the team comes the same day. To make office less empty different teams can come on different days so much smaller office can be used. The problem is many companies bound by long term contracts so a large office is a sunk cost.
XorNot 3y ago
The reality of meetings is that they're all a waste of time. I'm starting to think the same about Teams meetings. Video chat (for screensharing) with colleagues? Wonderfully effective. 64 people in the one Teams meeting? 100% seems to be "manager who can't bring himself to write a more then a 1 paragraph email and instead thinks too highly of his oratory skills". Which has led me to my grand hypothesis that if you're calling a meeting just to give a fixed speech, write it out first and then decide why it's not an email...or decide just not to send it at all. If you think you need a meeting, then prepare the topics for discussion ahead of time and solicit an initial round of feedback.
tester756 3y ago
Disagree. Just decide that you meet e.g on monday, so you can plan everything and spend rest of the week actually doing the work without disruptions
senectus1 3y ago
this is not my experience.. our team does 2-3 days in and 2-3 WFH and it works really well.