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Junior engineers are missing out on lots of knowledge transfer that will put them behind an entire career. It's the difference between early working alongside e

Junior engineers are missing out on lots of knowledge transfer that will put them behind an entire career. It's the difference between early working alongside excellent engineers vs working alongside almost no one.

angoragoats 3y ago
> Junior engineers are missing out on lots of knowledge transfer I have worked as an engineer for > 20 years, and I currently work at a company of several hundred people that has been remote-only since its founding before the pandemic. I have personally helped to onboard a junior engineer on my team, and it's gone just as well as the junior engineers I've helped onboard at previous (in-office) companies. You can't make blanket statements like this; it's all about the processes that have been set up to facilitate knowledge sharing, camaraderie, etc.
- somewhat_drunk 3y ago
  Agreed 100%. Fully remote can be just as (or more) productive as onsite, but the processes need to be created specifically around fully remote work. Very few companies are doing that. They're giving remote work the old college try, throwing up their hands, and finding excuses to bring everyone back in.
  - KerrAvon 3y ago
    This, right fucking here. Bingo. Add activist investors pressuring them for no particularly good reason other than social domineering to push people back into the office.
  - stevage 3y ago
    I'm even more surprised about this one experience I had where I was the only remote member of a team. There weren't really any special processes, but everyone seemed to have a strong desire to make me feel included, and it worked out really well.
flapjaxy 3y ago
This also assumes a level of collaboration and mentoring I've yet to see as routine for Jr engineers. Even in person jr's reach out trusted contacts via chat as opposed to in person. If you've see this signal it might be culturally specific, or during a particular era. From my experience, the divestment in training and mentoring, stringent job requirements, and lack of job security through arbitrary performance metrics have done more to make folks feel isolated than proximity to bodies.
faeriechangling 3y ago
Honestly I learn mostly from documentation and code and writing and so on, and when I do communicate it’s mostly emails and text even in the office even when people are sitting near me.
KerrAvon 3y ago
This is a myth on the order of “vocal fry permanently damages young female vocal cords”.
CameronNemo 3y ago
They asked for evidence, which you did not procure.
stevage 3y ago
I'm trying to think what I have learnt in the world of engineering from in-person contact with colleagues. Honestly, not very much. Most of the useful stuff I learnt online, when trying to solve problems I Had. By far the most positive experience I had from learning from colleagues was actually when I was a remote member of a team who were otherwise in an office together. They were just very good people who also shared a preference for written communication. We did meet up in person every few months, and that seemed to be enough.

angoragoats 3y ago

> Junior engineers are missing out on lots of knowledge transfer I have worked as an engineer for > 20 years, and I currently work at a company of several hundred people that has been remote-only since its founding before the pandemic. I have personally helped to onboard a junior engineer on my team, and it's gone just as well as the junior engineers I've helped onboard at previous (in-office) companies. You can't make blanket statements like this; it's all about the processes that have been set up to facilitate knowledge sharing, camaraderie, etc.

somewhat_drunk 3y ago
Agreed 100%. Fully remote can be just as (or more) productive as onsite, but the processes need to be created specifically around fully remote work. Very few companies are doing that. They're giving remote work the old college try, throwing up their hands, and finding excuses to bring everyone back in.
- KerrAvon 3y ago
  This, right fucking here. Bingo. Add activist investors pressuring them for no particularly good reason other than social domineering to push people back into the office.
- stevage 3y ago
  I'm even more surprised about this one experience I had where I was the only remote member of a team. There weren't really any special processes, but everyone seemed to have a strong desire to make me feel included, and it worked out really well.

flapjaxy 3y ago

This also assumes a level of collaboration and mentoring I've yet to see as routine for Jr engineers. Even in person jr's reach out trusted contacts via chat as opposed to in person. If you've see this signal it might be culturally specific, or during a particular era. From my experience, the divestment in training and mentoring, stringent job requirements, and lack of job security through arbitrary performance metrics have done more to make folks feel isolated than proximity to bodies.

faeriechangling 3y ago

Honestly I learn mostly from documentation and code and writing and so on, and when I do communicate it’s mostly emails and text even in the office even when people are sitting near me.

KerrAvon 3y ago

This is a myth on the order of “vocal fry permanently damages young female vocal cords”.

CameronNemo 3y ago

They asked for evidence, which you did not procure.

stevage 3y ago

I'm trying to think what I have learnt in the world of engineering from in-person contact with colleagues. Honestly, not very much. Most of the useful stuff I learnt online, when trying to solve problems I Had. By far the most positive experience I had from learning from colleagues was actually when I was a remote member of a team who were otherwise in an office together. They were just very good people who also shared a preference for written communication. We did meet up in person every few months, and that seemed to be enough.