Who doesn't know him, the office hero, who sat in the office late into the evening and repaired production? The fact that perhaps another colleague sat on the sofa at home and had an equal share in this success is unfortunately not so appreciated in most company cultures. But why is that? Because we are not used to working at home? Because we think that you are not so productive at home? Because you have family, garden or other activities at home? Michael has been working for distributed companies for a long time, but has also worked in offices for a long time. He will take you on his journey through different working environments and tell you what worked well for him.
10. ● funny name (Neo <= the Matrix)
● most popular open source graph db
● commercial business
● founded in Malmö, Sweden
● now US, UK, SE & all over the world
● 2010: 10 -> now: 350 people
● sustainable growth
● mostly flat org
● allows remoting ?!
Neo4j
15. Why ?
● Culture
● Open Source Company
● Colleagues are my extended Family
● Neo4j is my baby
● Sweden!
● Love Graph Stuff (MUD)
● Remote Work
● Work in Developer Relations
- I ❤️ my team
16. Connector / Communicator
● Talk to many folks in the company
● Across groups
● See and encourage synergies / exchange
● Keep informed
● Involved in decisions
● Nudging
● Sounding board
19. How do we work?
● guided by OKRs (Objectives Key Results) per quarter
○ but freely chosen
● everyone can choose what they work on when
● Remote calls
○ team meetings
○ 1:1 (catch-up)
○ work sessions
● Code/Content on GitHub
● Documents shared in Google Docs (Team Drive)
74. Tips & Tricks
● Say No
● Block off time
● Use a calendar
● Limit e-mail / Twitter / Social Media
● Remote Pairing rocks!
● Work free afternoon
● Work hours (yours and theirs)
● Treat everyone like a remoter
- Wer arbeitet gar nicht zuhause?
- ab und zu mal?
- häufig?
- immer?
- Disclaimer:
- 'There is no silver bullet.' Normalerweise steck ich da so nen Tweet hin, aber ob wir das hier auch machen wollen? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
- Nur weil Sachen bei uns funktioniert haben in den Firmen in denen wir arbeiten, heißt das noch lange nicht, dass das auch bei euch funktioniert.
lots of video calls
sometimes seeing other people is scary
set working hours in calendar, slack
put in when you are away
cancel meetings
kids are out / timeframe (school, kindergarden)
neighbours too
need some discipline
also not to work too much
distractions also in the office
household chores as distraction/procrastination <- participate
adhere to agreements, be accountable
cook your own (healthy) food
enjoy on the balcony
eat with family
no need to go out for eating
your own eating times
lots of water/tea to stay hydrated
have to pee
good coffee machine
Morning after late night?
Noon
get up regularly, grab tea/coffee
get out, take a walk
from wherever
that's why portable laptop + mobile internet is important
choose your own office
what, how, where, how loud (music)
no one else is there during the day
standing desk
good chair
standing desk
good chair
switch places
relaxing green
switch places
relaxing green
need external batter
exit row seats / economy plus
you are
from wherever
that's why portable laptop + mobile internet is important
Timezones are the horror, esp. if half of your team is on the other side of the world
respect work hours
TZ overlap
meeting rooms suck!
good headset
quick calls
if you only listen in, you can also take a walk or run in the park
I have several hundred slack channels, and I read most of them
I have several hundred slack channels, and I read most of them
pay attention to folk's work-time
don't expect immediate answers
no micromanagement
experienced
discipline
hire where they live
less churn
pay premium (what you'd pay in main locations)
enable office hopping
Pay for workspace / equipment
Pay for co-working space
Standing Desk etc.
It should not be the exceptioon but the rule.
just a slack message away
let others know when you are there and away
document decisions
be available