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Dropbox Converts to Permanent WFH

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Re: Dropbox Converts to Permanent WFH

#261
post #170

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sounds like you are in dire need of a break!

You're telling me!!

Go take one-two weeks off if you can, seriously. Even if just to stay in your area, maybe do some park/nature walks. The reset truly helps. The need for vacation didn't go away because of quarantine.

Re: Dropbox Converts to Permanent WFH

#262
post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I somehow don't feel sorry if overpaid tech workers, like me, have to buy a desk and chair. It's not like you need new office furniture very often.

I suppose I don't feel overpaid, given that I'm living in a 1BR apartment. And now with my office closed, I'm somehow supposed to find a dedicated space in my tiny-ass apartment where I can: a) Setup the same configuration of laptop, multiple monitors, a desk phone, and an Ethernet jack into my router. b) Sufficiently insulate the background noise on the hours of Zoom meetings I'm expected to join every day from my g…

I expect at most companies, people will have a choice to come back into the office they were in previously once it's safe to do so. That said, it won't necessarily be like it was before. For example, there may not be assigned seating and people you work with may choose to and be allowed to come in occasionally or rarely.

But I'm not sure what you want done in the current situation?

Re: Dropbox Converts to Permanent WFH

#263
post #172
post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> collaborative work in "studios", basically reimagining the offices into collaborative/convening spaces that you go into from ~once/week to once a quarter depending on team/role. I’m forgetting their name for them, but IBM has been doing this for decades now. They buy up office space in every major city, and then, rather than permanently stationing any teams there, essentially make all such spaces into private-acces…

>They buy up office space in every major city, and then, rather than permanently stationing any teams there, essentially make all such spaces into private-access coworking spaces. Well, this makes sense, since IBM is effectively a consulting firm now. This is how all consulting firms operate -- there are tons of these all over the place in DC.

Yes, sounds exactly like what McKinsey or Bain are doing.

Re: Dropbox Converts to Permanent WFH

#264

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Remote-only cuts out the in-person experience entirely, which is problematic for building teams and culture" This is stated as fact everywhere but I've not seen supporting evidence anywhere. I spend about as much time in my day speaking to other people as I would have done productively and by choice before. The only difference now is that I'm more able to avoid extraneous meetings and other drags on my time that don…

What evidence do you seek? It is obvious to me that the way you interact with people face-to-face is different from the way you would do with online chat.

While I agree with this, I also think this is to a large extent because videoconferencing is currently pretty bad. It used not to be a critical necessity, so companies treated it as such. There's a lot of improvement that could be made to alleviate the disconnect somewhat, but of course not eliminate it.

Re: Dropbox Converts to Permanent WFH

#265
post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I somehow don't feel sorry if overpaid tech workers, like me, have to buy a desk and chair. It's not like you need new office furniture very often.

Good luck if your a junior living in a studio apartment with no space to put a desk let alone have a spare room for office. Exactly why do you seem to be on the employers side here

Certainly some people are in a worse situation than others in many different ways. However, I'm not sure what employers are supposed to do right now other than to be sensitive to the challenges many people are facing. It's not like a $1K stipend for equipment (or whatever) is going to solve small apartments, kids learning at home, partners on Zoom calls all day, etc.

In general, I think employers should provide some sort of outside-home working space once practical, at least for employees who didn't sign up to work remotely.

Re: Dropbox Converts to Permanent WFH

#267

As someone who has worked from home for a decade, I predict a mental health apocalypse in the near future. Working from home permanently requires support infrastructure not everyone has access to. It also requires a different approach to work altogether which, again, not everyone is capable of adopting. If you have family, work from home is great. But if you're single, staying cooped up alone at home can be a disaste…

The better solution is to not have empty lives outside of work. I realize that's a hard problem to solve, but it's worth solving, and maybe WFH will help spark that change.

Re: Dropbox Converts to Permanent WFH

#268
post #234

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Isn't that exactly what WeWork's business model was?

Sorta, but WeWork would be like a middle man parasite compared to leasing directly from the landlord. So not nearly as efficient.

There's probably some management company handling the space in any case.

Re: Dropbox Converts to Permanent WFH

#269

As someone who has worked from home for a decade, I predict a mental health apocalypse in the near future. Working from home permanently requires support infrastructure not everyone has access to. It also requires a different approach to work altogether which, again, not everyone is capable of adopting. If you have family, work from home is great. But if you're single, staying cooped up alone at home can be a disaste…

If you have family, work from home is great...sometimes. It depends on the people. Sometimes small children, or even adults, are better able to cope with you being occasionally gone, than with you being there, but don't bother them. You could end up either being continually interrupted, or else having to say some variant of "stay away from me" to a loved family member. Neither is a good situation.

Not to mention that some people, for financial reasons, must live in places far too small to spend their waking lives in along with their sleeping lives.

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