Want to attract top tech talent? Offer telecommuting
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Want to attract top tech talent? Offer telecommuting
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Re: Want to attract top tech talent? Offer telecommuting
#2With an unemployment rate of just 4% among tech professionals, and shortages in specific fields, flexibility shouldn't be a last resort.
I would have guessed that tech unemployment would be lower than the national average, but 4% is really low.
Re: Want to attract top tech talent? Offer telecommuting
#3I agree. We need to see more of that. I would suggest to offer a few trips a year to the "office" though for morale.
Re: Want to attract top tech talent? Offer telecommuting
#4This is sort of a no-brainer. I'm pitched by recruiters about once a week, and they're all for far away positions - typically SF area, but other areas too. I can't sell my house any time soon - the market just isn't moving - so I'm somewhat held hostage by geography. This doesn't mean that I can't travel onsite and visit your office regularly, nor does it mean skype and phone don't work out here in the sticks :)
Telecommuting requires the entire team or ideally the entire company be set up to work like that - just having one guy out in a different state or country on his own doesn't work very well in most cases. I understand that. What I don't get is why more companies aren't structuring themselves to take advantage of remote workers.
If you have strong procedures in place to deal with remote/offsite workers (fulltime or not), you can more easily integrate short term labor when you need it - you'll have the shared workspaces, file transfers, documentation, version control, etc, already set up and ready to let new people in as needed.
This seems like this would be a competitive advantage that more companies should be looking at. Maybe they will be in the coming years as the impact of underwater mortgages and geography-locked workers starts to impact the broader tech labor market.
Re: Want to attract top tech talent? Offer telecommuting
#5With an unemployment rate of just 4% among tech professionals, and shortages in specific fields, flexibility shouldn't be a last resort. I would have guessed that tech unemployment would be lower than the national average, but 4% is really low.
Especially considering how "lazy" programmers are.
Re: Want to attract top tech talent? Offer telecommuting
#6I used to work in NYC but I've been working from home for a couple years now for an agency based in NYC (I live in CT now). I make good money but I've been offered a 20k+ raise and other bonuses to work in the city. Barely considered it.
Re: Want to attract top tech talent? Offer telecommuting
#7I wouldn't take a pay cut for it, but it might help me make a decision between two equally good offers.
Re: Want to attract top tech talent? Offer telecommuting
#8I used to work in NYC but I've been working from home for a couple years now for an agency based in NYC (I live in CT now). I make good money but I've been offered a 20k+ raise and other bonuses to work in the city. Barely considered it.
A 20k difference isn't enough to cover either the time on a commute to and from NYC or the price difference in living costs.
Re: Want to attract top tech talent? Offer telecommuting
#9Startups that demand relocation to NYC or SF are a total show stopper here. Many of us are held hostage by geography-- maybe you own a home, maybe you have kids in a school they're flourishing in, maybe your parents need help. If you're a family man you won't like spending your wife and children's time in Bay Area or Metro NYC traffic. But here's the thing: the technology most startups use means they can transcend geography to an extent.
I do not underestimate the value of having a team in the same location. It does affect morale and company culture. But with the right people and the right technology those issues are quickly going to wind up in the rearview mirror. When I look at a company, I want to see if they are set up to do remote work, or are they landlocked?
Re: Want to attract top tech talent? Offer telecommuting
#10With an unemployment rate of just 4% among tech professionals, and shortages in specific fields, flexibility shouldn't be a last resort. I would have guessed that tech unemployment would be lower than the national average, but 4% is really low.
The unemployment rate for college graduates as a whole is under 5%. White collar workers are not the ones feeling the brunt of the recession.