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Is Facebook’s Massive Open Office Scaring Away Developers?

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Re: Is Facebook’s Massive Open Office Scaring Away Developers?

#6

Post by mmuro »

bicx wrote: post #3

Correct me if I'm wrong, but this blog post doesn't actually seem to answer the question. I'm curious if Facebook really is having difficulty recruiting developers due to this specific issue and if the 40-50% pay offering really has anything to do with that.

Betteridge's law of headlines: "Any headline that ends in a question mark can be answered by the word no."

Re: Is Facebook’s Massive Open Office Scaring Away Developers?

#7

Post by fatlasp »

DougN7 wrote: post #4

Open offices were developed by people who don't have to really concentrate for their job. They're awful for developers.

I always thought open offices became popular because it was literally the cheapest set up for facilities. For startups it worked because all you had to buy was desks. Somehow that got spun in to 'open offices are so sexy!'

Open offices are horrible for productivity imo. Moved to a job with an office and it is so. much. better.

Re: Is Facebook’s Massive Open Office Scaring Away Developers?

#8

Post by byebyetech »

fatlasp wrote: post #7
DougN7 wrote: post #4

Open offices were developed by people who don't have to really concentrate for their job. They're awful for developers.

I always thought open offices became popular because it was literally the cheapest set up for facilities. For startups it worked because all you had to buy was desks. Somehow that got spun in to 'open offices are so sexy!' Open offices are horrible for productivity imo. Moved to a job with an office and it is so. much. better.

We need a job site that lists companies that provide your own office. I would only apply there.

Re: Is Facebook’s Massive Open Office Scaring Away Developers?

#9

Post by fsloth »

Is there anyone here who likes open offices more than a floorplan divised into smaller rooms? I ask because I've worked in an open office setting as a developer for years (the place is otherwise nice) and thoroughly despise it as a workspace. Yet some people don't seem to mind it. I don't mind serendipity. The problem is I serendiptously overhear everyones discussion which is incredibly disruptive for deep work.

Factories have huge machines, whih create added value. They have a good reason for loud noises and need for ear protection.

Offices, on the other hand, are places where people come to create added value by mostly by thinking (if they are programmers).

Are there people who enjoy the bustle of open office while trying to untangle a decade old piece of C++ spaghetti? Whose work output it actually improves?

I'm trying to figure out if the open offices are bad mostly for everyone or just for someone like me.

Re: Is Facebook’s Massive Open Office Scaring Away Developers?

#10

Post by fecak »

As the moderator of a Reddit sub focused on comp sci careers, I don't think the open office is an issue for junior level developers. The worship of what we in that sub call the big 4 (some combo of Google, Facebook, Apple (or Microsoft), Amazon) is pretty much what you hear from every college senior, and I've never heard anyone even mention this as a negative.

Of course these are mostly people who haven't had much experience working in office environments except possibly an internship or part-time work. Facebook might face some challenges recruiting experienced devs who know what kind of environment suits them, but anecdotally I don't see it at the junior level.

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