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he gets home at 5:30 because he gets back online after 8:00 "Goldberg leaves work at 5:30 PM every day to spend time with his family. While he does get back on

by tks2103 14y ago

he gets home at 5:30 because he gets back online after 8:00 "Goldberg leaves work at 5:30 PM every day to spend time with his family. While he does get back online after he puts his children to bed after 8:00 PM, he sets an example that makes it easier for the company to build and maintain its workforce."

hkmurakami 14y ago
Even if he gets back online after 8:00, his leaving the office premises at 5:30 makes it much much easier for others in the company to leave around the 5:30 time frame as well. If he didn't do this, many employees would implicitly feel compelled (even if the CEO "says" that everyone should leave at 5:30) to stay much later than 8:00pm. His behavior is definitely something we can learn from.
- tks2103 14y ago
  the link title implies one can generate a company with a billion dollar valuation while working an 8-9 hour day. the content of the linked article contradicts that implication directly. it's a misleading link. that is a bad thing.
  - hkmurakami 14y ago
    That's a good point. Fully agreed that the misdirection is in bad taste. But I do contend that being able to work 4/12 hours at home versus all 12 hours at work is a substantial improvement for both yourself and for your family (especially if you have young children).
    - tks2103 14y ago
      surveymonkey's revenue is the only validation for mr. Goldberg's work schedule given in this article. (correct me if i missed something) an opinion either way on the work schedule has so little evidence given this article that it would qualify as a value judgement. this article is a successful individual expressing mostly value judgements about his work philosophy. my first conjecture is that folks clicked on the link because of it's sensational headline. my second conjecture is that folks upvoted it because the value judgements in the article aligned with the value judgements of the community at large. i would love to discuss work from home policy with you. i don't believe this article contributes meaningfully to that discussion.
    - bmj 14y ago
      But I do contend that being able to work 4/12 hours at home versus all 12 hours at work is a substantial improvement for both yourself and for your family (especially if you have young children). I agree. Completely. My employer gives me similar freedoms (assuming something isn't actively melting down at 5:00 PM), and I can say that it has contributed to the strength of my family and marriage. Many nights I don't get back online at 9:00 PM, but knowing that I can be productive and be present for my family is an enormous perk.
rayiner 14y ago
Which is perfectly fine. As a parent, 6-9pm is the most valuable time of my day, because it's when my wife is home and my baby is sleepy and cute and getting ready for bed. The battle that a lot of people have to fight is that they have to stay till 8-9 for the sake of appearances, then they got home when the kids are asleep and they have nothing to do but veg out on the internet until bed time. If the boss keeps strict 8-9 to 5:30 "face time" hours, that can greatly free up everyone else to allocate their evenings in a more suitable way.
- avenger123 14y ago
  How common is it really to work past 5:30 or 6:00 PM on a daily basis? I mean unless you are working in Investment Banking or Management Consulting at one of the big firms, for the typical software developer (outside of the Silicon Valley /startup crowd) is this even an issue?
  - rdouble 14y ago
    In every software company there is a contingent of people who work late simply because there are too many distractions occurring during the day.
    - avenger123 14y ago
      If I was consistently working late due to this reason, my employer would have a problem as working late is not in the company culture. I can understand someone doing this out of personal preference, but is working late considered the norm and is expected by the employer?
      - rayiner 14y ago
        It obviously depends on your employer, but it's very common for managers to write off people who go home on time as not the right kind of material for promotions, etc.
      - rdouble 14y ago

by tks2103 14y ago

hkmurakami 14y ago

Even if he gets back online after 8:00, his leaving the office premises at 5:30 makes it much much easier for others in the company to leave around the 5:30 time frame as well. If he didn't do this, many employees would implicitly feel compelled (even if the CEO "says" that everyone should leave at 5:30) to stay much later than 8:00pm. His behavior is definitely something we can learn from.

tks2103 14y ago
the link title implies one can generate a company with a billion dollar valuation while working an 8-9 hour day. the content of the linked article contradicts that implication directly. it's a misleading link. that is a bad thing.
- hkmurakami 14y ago
  That's a good point. Fully agreed that the misdirection is in bad taste. But I do contend that being able to work 4/12 hours at home versus all 12 hours at work is a substantial improvement for both yourself and for your family (especially if you have young children).
  - tks2103 14y ago
    surveymonkey's revenue is the only validation for mr. Goldberg's work schedule given in this article. (correct me if i missed something) an opinion either way on the work schedule has so little evidence given this article that it would qualify as a value judgement. this article is a successful individual expressing mostly value judgements about his work philosophy. my first conjecture is that folks clicked on the link because of it's sensational headline. my second conjecture is that folks upvoted it because the value judgements in the article aligned with the value judgements of the community at large. i would love to discuss work from home policy with you. i don't believe this article contributes meaningfully to that discussion.
  - bmj 14y ago
    But I do contend that being able to work 4/12 hours at home versus all 12 hours at work is a substantial improvement for both yourself and for your family (especially if you have young children). I agree. Completely. My employer gives me similar freedoms (assuming something isn't actively melting down at 5:00 PM), and I can say that it has contributed to the strength of my family and marriage. Many nights I don't get back online at 9:00 PM, but knowing that I can be productive and be present for my family is an enormous perk.

rayiner 14y ago

Which is perfectly fine. As a parent, 6-9pm is the most valuable time of my day, because it's when my wife is home and my baby is sleepy and cute and getting ready for bed. The battle that a lot of people have to fight is that they have to stay till 8-9 for the sake of appearances, then they got home when the kids are asleep and they have nothing to do but veg out on the internet until bed time. If the boss keeps strict 8-9 to 5:30 "face time" hours, that can greatly free up everyone else to allocate their evenings in a more suitable way.

avenger123 14y ago
How common is it really to work past 5:30 or 6:00 PM on a daily basis? I mean unless you are working in Investment Banking or Management Consulting at one of the big firms, for the typical software developer (outside of the Silicon Valley /startup crowd) is this even an issue?
- rdouble 14y ago
  In every software company there is a contingent of people who work late simply because there are too many distractions occurring during the day.
  - avenger123 14y ago
    If I was consistently working late due to this reason, my employer would have a problem as working late is not in the company culture. I can understand someone doing this out of personal preference, but is working late considered the norm and is expected by the employer?
    - rayiner 14y ago
      It obviously depends on your employer, but it's very common for managers to write off people who go home on time as not the right kind of material for promotions, etc.
    - rdouble 14y ago