Confessions of a Remote Worker

Why bother?

a typical business could save up to $11,000 per employee per year
(electricity, real estate, office furniture)
Also save on absenteeism!!
Not just the company, workers save on travel, child and elder care, and free time.
The estimated economic damage to the US economy due to weather in 2012 was $46 billion

Consider all of the cars off the road
discount HVAC since companies would do it anyway

Both the company and the employee gain from increased productivity
Yes, distrctions exist at home, but can be controlled better

Confession

I don't want to save the company money, and any money I personally save I convince myself is "extra" and I spend on hats instead of a proper office chair.

Who's doing it?

5-20+% of total US workforce, 8-30 million
Expected to jump to 43% in US by 2016
50% could work from home
79% say they would like to
Typically college educated, salaried, in management or professional role
Average age of 49

http://www.globalworkplaceanalytics.com/telecommuting-statistics
http://web.esna.com/blog/remote-worker-collaboration-infographic-2014

Maybe mention average age: 49

Okay, but it's only small companies, right?

Github: 100%
Cisco: 89%
Aetna: 47%
StrongLoop: 100%
Yahoo: 0%

Mention the "typical" remote worker is in a company of over 100 total staff.
Some of these are only part-time remote
Myers: Speed and quality are often sacrificed when we work from home. We need to be one Yahoo!, and that starts with physically being together.
Yahoo only had a few hundred remote when they changed policies.

Confession

Best part of working from home: using your own bathroom. There. I said it.

What should I expect?

For many reasons: a sense of self-worth, video conferences (what if you have to stand up?), answering the door, etc. Also, talk about independence and informality.

There are lots of distractions at home, these can range from human, to animal, to simple household chores.

Note that at most companies your setup at home will be entirely on you in terms of cost. While this might seem obvious and easy, consider that even a simple, but decent office chair at a big company will be several hundred dollars.

This freedom comes in many forms, but requires the worker to have initiative, focus, and to some degree ambition.

Combat isolation by simply getting out of the house. This doesn't have to be during work hours - look into various user groups, happy hours, physical activities, etc.

Confession

My biggest distraction: squirrels.

How do I manage these people?

A lack of physical interaction requires more touchpoints, not fewer. Not just chatting, but consider code reviews, (virtual) pair programming, and reports from other team members.

Engage on a personal level and realize that without an office environment, everyone is that much more unique in their needs and desires.

Don't treat remote workers as outcasts!

Okay, maybe not WHENEVER you feel like it
but yes, working from home *can* mean you work when it makes sense for you.

Confession

I play a LOT of minesweeper.

What's in your toolbox?

It's not just older folks though, young people need to be open to other technologies: unfamiliar platforms, diverse environments, etc.

Everybody watch out...
Everybody back up, he uses linux
he uses Linux!

With everyone in their own environment, it's important to choose open tools, things everyone can use... that or give everyone a new machine when hired.

You may want a tool that will allow you to save history, which can be done with all of these, although only with plugins/bots on gtalk or irc.

Don't feel constrained, we use multiple tools depending on the situation.

Kerry Woo Photography

Don't be afraid to meet in person! Go to conferences, have a retreat, have planning meetings. It doesn't have to be the entire team, either.

Confession

One one unfortunate occasion, I did actually attend a meeting mostly naked
Was just getting out of a shower, didn't realize the time.
But the meeting was audio only!

Confessions of a Remote Worker

Express

What do you do exactly?

Confession

Why bother?

Confession

Who's doing it?

Okay, but it's only small companies, right?

Confession

What should I expect?

Confession

How do I manage these people?

Confession

What's in your toolbox?

Confession

Thank You!

Confessions of a Remote Worker