Remote Working: Why You Should (Or Shouldn't) Embrace It

Good software engineers can be found anywhere, and embracing remote working enables you to tap into that global pool. But just because you can… does that mean you should? In this talk I’ll go through some dos and don’ts, talk about some pitfalls, and hopefully guide you towards doing remote the right way. I’ll include some stories that draw on my experience working in technical recruitment for clients who have been on both sides of the do/don’t scale, as well as Automattic’s decade-plus experience as a fully-distributed company.

Transcript

1. remote working why you should (or shouldn't) embrace it
2. you totally should.
3. it's awesome.
4. thank you @tcn33 | automattic.com/jobs
5. how to do remote properly and when not to bother
6. hello I'm Toby
7. remote working why you should (or shouldn't) embrace it
8. 851 / 68 / 84
9. remote vs distributed
10. remote: there's an office but some people work elsewhere
11. distributed: there's no office so everyone works elsewhere
12. 20 million professional developers per month 77% from outside the US stack overflow developer survey 2018 https://insights.stackoverflow.com/survey/2018/#developer-profile
13. Talent is equally distributed around the world, but opportunity is not. Leila Janah, founder of Samasource
14. remote is not about working from home
15. remote is about flexibility
16. remote is not easy
17. remote is worth it
18. do
19. do act as though everyone is remote
20. do default to asynchronous communication
21. do document all the things
22. do build a culture
23. do get together
24. don't
25. don't exclude people from work conversations
26. don't assume
27. don't hold people to 9-5
28. don't treat it as an experiment
29. when not to bother
30. some companies don't have the time or ability to commit
31. some people need the structure of an office
32. onboarding the stakes are high
33. juniors the stakes are higher still
34. remote working why you should (or shouldn't) embrace it
35. embrace remote working if you want expanded opportunity and flexibility
36. embrace remote working if you're willing to put in the work
37. embrace remote working if it's a good fit
38. thank you @tcn33 | automattic.com/jobs