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Google mandates workers back to Silicon Valley, other offices from April 4

reuters.com

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Re: Google mandates workers back to Silicon Valley, other offices from April 4

#391

Post by ceras »

edmcnulty101 wrote: post #285
tester756 wrote: post #183

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I personally prefer a company where everyone's on site. I want to be able to quickly resolve any issues in person, not over voice call or slack, and I think that an environment where someone can tap me on the shoulder when they need help leads to overall higher productivity, even if individual productivity suffers temporarily. wut? 2 years on remote and in majority of the cases I've been able to talk to somebody wit…

Same. I've never had a problem. I typically talk to my team numerous times per day via Zoom, Slack, Phone, etc. I think the poster has an issue with their company that they are projected onto the industry.

OP said they prefer to resolve in person rather than Slack/Zoom/etc. They weren't projecting, just expressing a different preference for what they find productive.

Re: Google mandates workers back to Silicon Valley, other offices from April 4

#392

Post by passivate »

edmcnulty101 wrote: post #285
tester756 wrote: post #183

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I personally prefer a company where everyone's on site. I want to be able to quickly resolve any issues in person, not over voice call or slack, and I think that an environment where someone can tap me on the shoulder when they need help leads to overall higher productivity, even if individual productivity suffers temporarily. wut? 2 years on remote and in majority of the cases I've been able to talk to somebody wit…

Same. I've never had a problem. I typically talk to my team numerous times per day via Zoom, Slack, Phone, etc. I think the poster has an issue with their company that they are projected onto the industry.

>I think the poster has an issue with their company that they are projected onto the industry.

Couldn't the same be said of you? I don't think anyone is asserting that one system is the best. If an entire team/company is able to be happy and productive in a remote-work situation, then more power to them. Its often the case that some people prefer remote, some don't. The ratio varies between companies. Personally, as a manager, I would prioritize overall team happiness and efficiency over placating a few individuals.

Re: Google mandates workers back to Silicon Valley, other offices from April 4

#393

Post by carom »

skybrian wrote: post #201

I've worked at a startup where everyone being there was essential in how we worked. (We were all pair programming.) It was great. It beats code reviews any day. I learned a lot. But when I was at Google, we would schedule VC meetings with people in a different part of campus just to avoid the walk. Also, I worked on teams that had people worked out in many offices, mostly not Mountain View. I was surrounded by Google…

Lonely is an incredibly accurate way to describe working at Google. Everyone says the office perks are there to trick you to stay, but our work area was quieter than a library and no one hung around. If people were talking they'd legit catch themselves and be like, we should grab a conference room. Incredibly polite but also an uncomfortably quiet environment.

I think a lot of people just wanted to put in their hours and get home to their families. I love pool but never played with anyone on the table one floor down because it just wasn't a make-friends environment. I think I shot the shit with someone when I got into work a handful of times in the more-than-a-year that I worked there. Huge reason I left.

This isn't even coming from a social person. I prefer WFH. I don't particularly like going out. However, if I'm gonna be forced to be around people I'd at least like it to be pleasant.

Re: Google mandates workers back to Silicon Valley, other offices from April 4

#394

Post by redisman »

cebert wrote: post #360
2spicy4me wrote: post #178

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Speaking for myself, I need the structure and am currently getting very little done. A lot of us aren’t trying to scam the remote work system, we’re just hanging on by our fingernails until the office opens back up.

How does going back to the office help with that?

You can’t smoke weed and play video games all day at the office.

Not that I did that.

Re: Google mandates workers back to Silicon Valley, other offices from April 4

#395

Post by DataJunkie »

cphoover wrote: post #383

Great now the rest of the tech industry will follow. The flexibility of remote work was nice while it lasted.

I think other companies will emerge as leaders with more progressive flexible policies. It just makes sense for that to happen.

Don't be so quick to assume others will follow Google. Google has not been a leader in anything during COVID.

I think the days of companies following Google ended long ago. Hell, Google mostly follows Meta's lead these days.

Re: Google mandates workers back to Silicon Valley, other offices from April 4

#397

Post by throwaway_g00g »

"Mandates" is too strong a word. All employees were given the choice to apply for remote work or transfer. It turned out to be only a small minority of employees who chose it, and almost all of them were approved. So there's been an effective option not to come back in person for folks who prefer it that way.

Re: Google mandates workers back to Silicon Valley, other offices from April 4

#398

Post by weq »

opportune wrote: post #246
ejb999 wrote: post #111

I have been fully remote my entire career (several decades), in fact in 30+ years have never been on site anywhere for more than 2 weeks total. Wouldn't have it any other way. But as a counter-point, seeing a whole bunch of people who were never remote before, how little work they are actually doing, it is no surprise to me that a lot of employers are going to start forcing - to the extent possible - employees back i…

I completely agree with you. Unfortunately I’ve seen a decent amount of adverse selection in the people I work with who’ve chosen to try to go fully remote (more in the try to hide from work than the people who would be just as/more successful being remote). I have feeling that in 5 years companies will mostly revert back to only hiring new employees on site but grandfather in previously remote employees who have pro…

Do you really think in 10 years it will be like it was 5 years ago? REALLY? We still aint past the GFC, 14yrs later. In my lifetime, i doubt i will see 7% again. Definately not the 30% that my parents payed.

As much as life is cyclic, in 10yrs time we AR/VR will be worked out and there will be even less reason to be in a physical space with someone.

Re: Google mandates workers back to Silicon Valley, other offices from April 4

#399

Post by johnnyo »

jefb wrote: post #5

Mandates? "Since last June, Google has approved nearly 14,000 employees globally to transfer to a new location or go fully remote, Casey said. About 15% of applications have been denied, he added." "Employees not prepared to return April 4 also can seek a remote-work extension, Google said."

That’s 10% of the employee base.

If half of those transferred locations, that means 95% are coming back to the office.

Re: Google mandates workers back to Silicon Valley, other offices from April 4

#400

Post by librish »

runako wrote: post #288
librish wrote: post #84

I think anyone who's claiming that remote work has been "proven" to be better or worse is wrong. There are some studies but they use estimations and proxies, carrying the same flaws as doing performance reviews based on lines of code. We've proven that the big tech companies can go fully remote and not completely crash and burn, that's about it. Some people love the lack of commute and less semi-forced hanging out, s…

I read these and wonder what folks think about all the distributed teams in companies. Is the view that they are just generally less effective? > I want to be able to quickly resolve any issues in person I think this was more true for me when I was earlier in my career and remote tech really sucked. But now I see it as generally negative to have to sync with someone else to resolve an issue they (or I) am working on.…

Yes, I _personally_ believe distributed teams are less effective.

As for your other point, that research is similar to the research on working from home. It measures a controlled thing, but certainly nothing I would use to extrapolate that software engineering teams work less efficiently when people can interrupt each other with questions easily.

If you have any studies that you think are good feel free to link them, I'm open to being wrong.

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