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Working From Home Megathread

WhiteMemento9

I thought this might get some interesting discussion from the Corona thread. Companies are sending out guidance to staff that they will be required to work from home in the coming month, some in companies where this was never an option before.

faceman wrote: »

Tangential comment. The push to have companies work from home is going to create a new working landscape when this all blows over as many companies realize it’s perfectly viable to have a remote workforce.

Or flipping that over, many companies will find it hard to justify not permitting remote working in their organization in the future

Many people in my company have the option and don't take advantage of it at all. Working from home suits some people but others enjoy the social outlet of work and the structure it brings. Working from home regularly requires a certain type of person along with a large amount of self-discipline.

I certainly enjoy many aspects of it and I am not someone who needs the social outlet of work but on the flip side, I often find that I let the workday bleed on for too long at home due to some added anxiety that I have wasted time during the day that I need to add back when in reality I waste far more time in the office that never costs me a thought in the same regard.

I also wonder about the implications for society as a whole if we were to move further in this direction. It is more towards the direction of segregation and isolation of people with little thought towards how that effects us as social creatures.

What are other people's thoughts or experiences with working from home?

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Comments

DoozerT6

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119713513#Comment_119713513

Thanks @dinneenp , I feel once I get into the swing of it, I would be fine with the self-motivation to work alone once I had my tasks to do. I would just get up, make a cuppa, turn on the laptop and get on with it. I'm happiest with a regular routine tbh. My living situation is fine, I am living at home, no kids running around, and I have the space to WFH if needed. As regards human interaction, I think I would be ok with being alone for the most part as I enjoy my own company and would just ensure I get social interaction outside the house (I do genuinely feel this is important, for me at least).

Now to just land one of those pesky job things! Anyone hiring?? 😉

markodaly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119709272#Comment_119709272

Which is?

gameoverdude

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119713475#Comment_119713475

This is the thing. As a big depeche mode fan a song lyric a find appropriate is "I dissolve in trust".

I'm not saying you don't have to keep an eye on employees or you make mistakes in hiring, but if you have a good team, more so if more senior, then do the work well and I don't care. I won't count hours let alone minutes.

Let hr have cake and keep stumm.

Dodge

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119717179#Comment_119717179

Everyone has different ideas on what level warmth is needed. Some will wear more layers, some will put on warmer clothes, some will have heating on a little, some will have heating on full, some will eat hot porridge three times a day, some might be at their desk with a duvet around them

Its the same for when you’re home all day and not working. Everyone finds their own way…

[Deleted User]

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119709269#Comment_119709269

It's a fair question. It's also a fair question as to whether it is more efficient to heat the spare room in multiple households, many of which won't have zoned heating systems, for office hours every day, compared to heating a central office which is more likely to have modern, efficient control system and monitoring. Obviously, the commutes would have a significant impact too.

[Deleted User]

it's like everything else your mileage will vary depending on your circumstances. For the past two years (yes, two years) there was no requiremet for additional heating as th ehouse is so well insulated and the PC gives out sufficient heat for all but the coldest of days.

Young_gunner

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119722363#Comment_119722363

Fair point, but I think the research shows that the vast majority of carbon is emitted via the commutes versus very incremental increases for heating an additional room, which isn't even always necessary given our generally milder Winters.

Young_gunner

https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/2022/10/10/employers-will-have-fewer-reasons-to-refuse-requests-to-work-from-home/

The source said that the message from Government would be that “remote or hybrid working should be facilitated so long as it does not adversely affect the performance of the business or the services it provides to the public”.

I think it's going to be increasingly difficult to refuse a remote working request, if it is genuinely justified.

miamee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119711814#Comment_119711814

I'd recommend checking out Growremote.ie. They have a jobs board for fully remote jobs that can be done from Ireland and they also offer a free online course to prepare you for remote work if you have not done it before - no harm to take a look :)

Once you are happy to be alone at home or using a nearby remote working hub, you should be fine. If you are not used to a full-time desk job, that in itself might be an adjustment from working FOH somewhere. Make sure you get a decent office chair if you're going to be spending 8 hours per day in it and that you have a proper desk too, not perched at the kitchen table - no good for your back 8 hrs a day looking down at a laptop.

[Deleted User]

Again, while some people still believe employers are desparate to get people back into offices, the arrival of winter and the certainty of saving on heating bills if you don't have an office, is another benefit to business. Downsizing or eliminating office space entirely is a huge cost saving, don't believe anyone who says otherwise.

PokeHerKing

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119738482#Comment_119738482

That might be the case for small business but all the biggest MNCs in this country are keen to have employees in office.

It's a cultural dogma that they're not prepared to abandon. Costs don't come into it as the dogma is there's intangible benefits to bums on seats.

My place have such a hard on for office attendance, they've resorted to buying lunch for roughly 1k employees a day.

Young_gunner

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119739022#Comment_119739022

I think you're right but this can only last so long. Most offices are never over 50% full anymore and slowly but surely, firms will come to realise that maintaining the same office footprint just is not sensible.

[Deleted User]

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119739022#Comment_119739022

Crazy stuff, even buying the food at cost I presume that comes to €25k per week, well over €1m per year! That's really insane if it's just to motivate people to abandon remote work.

gameoverdude

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119739521#Comment_119739521

Never used the onsite everything. Didn't have time. Could had me working from home, two hours extra and and an extra 90 minutes sleep for me. Win-win!

Although one one place did a free 3 course lunch everyday and it was really good. About 2005.

[Deleted User]

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119739521#Comment_119739521

they might be trying but generally speaking they are failing. Hybrid is now very solidly established. Don’t get me wrong….very few people are fully remote. But there’s not many across tech and MNCs doing more than 2 days in the office, no-one I know doing more than 3 or being asked to do so. Flutter have amazing offices and I know teams there that are on 1 day permanently

Young_gunner

Whilst I agree that very few people are officially fully 'remote', I know a lot of people who go in once a fortnight / month just to make an appearance. You would have to wonder what the point of this tokenism is in the long run

[Deleted User]

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119709272#Comment_119709272

Ah here, if you can't see why this question is a little bit more pertinent this winter than the last two...

Cluedo Monopoly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119742512#Comment_119742512

I think even the tokenism will end over the winter months. All meetings must still be on Teams/WebEx etc anyway to account for the WFH people.

Young_gunner

yes agreed, and Webex meetings work far more efficiently anyway

PokeHerKing

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119742536#Comment_119742536

Tokenism maybe. But my place as an example is much more than tokenism unfortunately, outside of a once in a generation siberian type winter I don't envisage anything changing.

Actually a poll on this thread would be great, re days you're wfh etc. Be interesting to see what the spread is across companies.

I'm just an ideas man though, do hopefully somebody else can add it.

Cyrus

I was fully remote for 9 months or so until the start up i am working for got office space, we are now in 3 days a week (a mandated 3 days where everyone is in at the same time). The two days from home is handy and not having to commute every day is nice but how anyone can claim that having everyone working remote is as good as people being in an office together is beyond me, there is no comparison.

If you are working in a role at a certain level where you have specific tasks and maybe you dont care to progress beyond that maybe it works ok, but for anyone at a senior level working across different teams in person works so much better, and not one person in our company would argue any differently.

TaurenDruid

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119742656#Comment_119742656

Just ran one on the civil service blended working thread. It's only covering civil and public service, obviously, but every government department and a good few public service bodies were represented - 130 replies. https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058196705/civil-service-post-lockdown-blended-working/p68

Mrs OBumble

Why, exactly, do you think lots of companies which are strongly focussed on the bottom line want people back in the office? Do you think they WANT to spend money on free food etc?

Dodge

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119742534#Comment_119742534

It might cost more, but the answer is the same.

And as I’ve said, it’s the same for days when you’re at home and not working.

TaurenDruid

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119742894#Comment_119742894

Because their C-level executives tend to be older and are stuck in the mindset that if you're not in the office you'll be skiving off. Even as they sell you products and services to enable you to work remotely. See, e.g., Tim Cook.

ELM327

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119742742#Comment_119742742

My colleagues are split between here and india. my manager is in dublin but I just moved from a team where my manager was in london.

His manager is in the US. The direct reports of that manager are in london, india , and 3 different US states.

What benefit is there to me being in the dublin office vs saving 3 hours a day of commute?

PokeHerKing

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119742742#Comment_119742742

I'm senior and Im essentially paid for my opinion. I can give that opinion (do my job) from the moon.

Your opinion doesn't change that fact.

PokeHerKing

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119742894#Comment_119742894

Are you trying to say there's no waste in companies? I mean ALL companies are focused on bottom line, tis kind of the point of their existence.

But guess what, across all sectors across all of time. Humans have wasted money on human ideas.

Cyrus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119742942#Comment_119742942

That obviously depends on who you work most closely with and how many of them are in the same city, if you work with people most in the US and India i agree that being in the office wont confer any benefits.

Cyrus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119742945#Comment_119742945

I have no idea what you do, or how 'senior' you are so i can't comment on your circumstances. I can give my opinion though generally which i have done.