Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Google is accelerating reopening of offices and putting limits on remote work

cnbc.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

201–210 of 623 posts

Re: Google is accelerating reopening of offices and putting limits on remote work

#201

Post by disgruntledphd2 »

asdfasgasdgasdg wrote: post #23
d3ntb3ev1l wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Google HR told me “data showed remote doesn’t work” I asked for the data and never got it. I don’t work their anymore

I think you'll be looking for a while if your standards for an employer is that you have arbitrary access to the data they use to make decisions. There are a handful of radically transparent employers out there but it is the vanishing exception, not the rule.

Well the trouble is if you tell everyone that you are data-driven, and do so in most cases, then people are definitely going to ask about what data you used to make a decision.

If you're explicitly HiPPO based decision making, this tends not to happen.

Re: Google is accelerating reopening of offices and putting limits on remote work

#202

Post by dragonwriter »

hyko wrote: post #140

When will introverts realise that their working conditions are being dictated to them by extroverts? The pandemic-driven remote working is hell for some people, and unfortunately they call the shots. I don’t mind coming into your office now and again (there’s a special dimension to IRL connections), but the reason I don’t want to work there full time is that it’s crap for knowledge work. I outspend you by 10x per hea…

> When will introverts realise that their working conditions are being dictated to them by extroverts?

While extroverts are overrepresented in management, I think a bigger issue is that people who overvalue physical proximity as a tool for establishing/maintaining control (both of formal subordinates and otherwise) are overrepresented in management. You don’t have to be an extrovert to be cargo culting Management By Walking Around (if you aren’t cargo-culting, you can probably adapt it to a remote environment) or to have developed and lean heavily on communication techniques (non-verbal, especially) that work better for dominating meetings in=person.

Honestly, I think introverts who have spent time crafting a particular set of tools for surviving as managers are at least as dangerous here here as extroverts.

Re: Google is accelerating reopening of offices and putting limits on remote work

#203

Post by wu_187 »

doktorhladnjak wrote: post #169
dividefuel wrote: post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

(Googler, opinions are my own) I don't think Google has really justified why the return to the office is necessary for all employees, beyond saying that it's a key part of the culture. Obviously the office is a part of the culture, and most employees want to be in the office at least some of the time. But to me, that doesn't explain why you can't offer a remote option for the employees who want it. A charitable expla…

Google has some of the best offices in the world. They’ve built up these offices as a clear differentiator from their talent competitors. It’s lead to many companies offering free lunch and other perks tied to their physical space. Giving it up would mean changing the culture and the value prop of working there. I can’t say I’m surprised they don’t want to do that.

Sadly that culture changed long ago. Even prior to covid a lot of companies were downscaling their perks as they offshored jobs to Asia, thanks to our previous administration.

Re: Google is accelerating reopening of offices and putting limits on remote work

#204

Post by edem »

heterodoxxed wrote: post #168
tudorconstantin wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm totally not an introvert: I love being around nice people, I love playing table tennis and having lunch with my colleagues. But wasting 1h-2h daily on commuting to/from work is in absolutely no way worthy of this. It's our duty as human beings to resist going back to the office as much as possible. To gain back some of the life we otherwise would spend on commute. Work is for work, not for socializing, or having…

Yes, two non-introvert reasons for remote work: Commuting is hell and deep focus is near impossible in modern offices. For the latter, there are times when you need to think about working, and when you're doing that, being in the office with a group of people and a whiteboard is invaluable. But at some point, you know what you need to do, you just need to get into a flow and do it. And that is near impossible in mode…

I worked in an office many years ago where I noticed that the accountant always stayed late in the office. I once asked her and she said: "I stay late because when they leave I can finally start to work".

Re: Google is accelerating reopening of offices and putting limits on remote work

#205

Post by CodeGlitch »

person_of_color wrote: post #105
tyingq wrote: post #104

And, now that they don't have to be first, Amazon is in: Amazon updates remote work guidance, plans to ‘return to an office-centric culture as our baseline’ https://www.geekwire.com/2021/amazon-updates-remote-work-gui... oof.

Today is a big disaster for those who foresaw changes in the workplace. Now we have only tier 2 companies (Dropbox/Spotify) who have gone full remote.

Indeed. Large companies like FAANG have invested heavily in their offices, I can kind of see why they don't want to throw that investment away. Hence why they want people back in those plush offices.

Re: Google is accelerating reopening of offices and putting limits on remote work

#206

Post by thomasfromcdnjs »

ohthehugemanate wrote: post #199

Just in case you were operating under the illusion that tech giants are run by forward thinking executives who are immune to the usual politics and problems of corporate life. Nope, most of their exec layer is a bunch of people who cut their teeth the industry in the 90's, and are operating within a thick fog of local workplace politics. I guarantee that behind this move is an executive who believes that developers n…

Anecdotally, I've been a remote engineer on and off for ten years.

There have been plenty of companies where I thought we might have achieved more with an office.

Yes, I understand you can always improve your processes but there does feel like there are fundamental limitations with remote work.

Re: Google is accelerating reopening of offices and putting limits on remote work

#208

Post by mewse »

izacus wrote: post #181
Valkhyr wrote: post #129

After a year working remotely, I don't think I'd be willing to go back to working fully (or even primarily) in the office. I could do a day here or there for team-building activities or major meetings, but that's pretty much the extent I'd be willing to do. Granted, this is based on having a 40-minutes train commute (each way, so 80 minutes/day), but unless I could have a 10 minute walk or bike commute I don't think…

I wonder how many people's opinions will change after a longer time. I wrote the exact same type of posts five years ago when I started my first fully remote job. After two years or so I had to look for an office because the isolation is just murderous and it takes a long amount of time to actually start showing its teeth.

I can highly recommend renting a co-working space once that's a viable option wherever you are in the world. These can be surprisingly inexpensive and often come with internet, electricity, etc. included.

Gives both the "short commute" benefit of work-from-home, as well as the "maintaining a clear separation between home and work" benefit of on-location-work.

And for me personally (as an introvert), it was fantastic to have people around that I could talk to socially, but who weren't directly involved in my work and who weren't going to make demands of me. Totally removed the feelings of isolation, and formed a bunch of new friendships that didn't rest on obligations to my employer.

Re: Google is accelerating reopening of offices and putting limits on remote work

#209

Post by wu_187 »

dang wrote: post #113
justaguy88 wrote: post #28

"I spent all this money on offices, better force the minions to sit in them"

Please don't post unsubstantive and/or flamebait comments. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

it's true though. They are a publicly traded company with over 100B in office assets. If they can't get people back into the offices, they would not be able to justify they cost of keeping said property and would have to sell it to appease investors. Please use a brain cell next time.

Re: Google is accelerating reopening of offices and putting limits on remote work

#210

Post by izacus »

mewse wrote: post #208
izacus wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wonder how many people's opinions will change after a longer time. I wrote the exact same type of posts five years ago when I started my first fully remote job. After two years or so I had to look for an office because the isolation is just murderous and it takes a long amount of time to actually start showing its teeth.

I can highly recommend renting a co-working space once that's a viable option wherever you are in the world. These can be surprisingly inexpensive and often come with internet, electricity, etc. included. Gives both the "short commute" benefit of work-from-home, as well as the "maintaining a clear separation between home and work" benefit of on-location-work. And for me personally (as an introvert), it was fantastic…

Yep, this was my solution as well, it worked great (especially since I shared the space with people I mostly knew).

Although now that I'm working for a company with 15min commute, that became less of an issue.

Post reply on HN