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Shalin Doshi

Work from home or Work from office?

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Someone told me a line, which I thought would be good for a discussion to have: Accept it - "If you can't trust your team to work from home; you don't trust them at all." Ps: I like to work from the office Please share your comments and views on the same.

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Enola VEDOVOTTO
Hybride, I go to the office for the big meeting that can take a lot of time. And for my personnal mission, remote work!
Shalin Doshi
@enola_vedovotto Hi, I wanted to understand from you when you are remote working, what is your duration on the calls/meetings and how much time is actually devoted to work apart from meetings? Also, what are the working hours, do you have to clock some hours and does it exceed the number of hours in most cases?
Shalin Doshi
@enola_vedovotto working from home comes with challenges and we have tried to solve one of the issue of networking with people by launching our product DashLynk https://www.producthunt.com/post..., so check it out and give us your feedback if possible.
Rachel Cossar
I am building a fully remote company currently and it's imperative to build in practices to foster trust with your employees. We had performance issues with one employee early on and it was hard to know exactly what this person was up to all day when those deadlines weren't met. However, we also romanticize the 'in office = trust' framework. If someone doesn't want to work, they will find creative ways to skirt responsibility whether they are at home or at the office. Finally, in-person meetings can happen with a remote first work culture, just like virtual meetings will continue at an in-office first work culture. As a leader, it's important to have systems in place to check in regularly, to have clear deadlines and to build up team members so they feel empowered and that they can have an impact. This isn't a factor of remote or in-person in my opinion.
Shalin Doshi
@rachelonpointe I always had a question in my mind, huge companies spend money on assets/offices and etc, wfh culture existed before pre-covid, so why didn’t the companies adopt to it? I’m sure they had great leaders during that time as well, that’s why they are where they are today.
Shalin Doshi
@rachelonpointe Hey Rachel, working from home comes with challenges and we have tried to solve one of the issue of networking with people by launching our product DashLynk https://www.producthunt.com/post..., so check it out and give us your feedback if possible.
Rachel Cossar
@shalin_doshi Oh nice! Thanks for sharing, I will take a look. I am also building a solution to help make video meetings feel more human and impactful with Virtual Sapiens (www.virtualsapiens.co) We have a convenient free trial if you want to give it a whirl!
Shalin Doshi
@rachelonpointe I’ll Check it out and give you a feedback on it, so is this your own company ?
Rachel Cossar
@shalin_doshi Awesome:) Yes, my company:) What is your website? For some reason I am having a hard time finding it
Luka Vasic
Currently, work from home and I'm enjoying it, as it's very flexible, but I think hybrid is the best form of work.
Shalin Doshi
@luka_vasic what’s your take on the line above? "If you can't trust your team to work from home; you don't trust them at all."
Luka Vasic
@shalin_doshi I agree with it mostly, a real team should have mutual trust. That includes trusting them that they will work even from home because they know the whole team counts on every person. But there are exceptions of people who just can't be productive while working at home and I understand that it is hard for them when they are forced to work from home, so that's a grey area.
Shreya R Nambiar
As a working parent, I really appreciate the flexibility of remote work. I used to think it would be distracting and hard to manage, but I prefer working from home over going into the office. But I think it would be nice to have to sit down with my team occasionally and have face-to-face conversations.
Shalin Doshi
@shreya_r_nambiar For working parents 100% I agree, since you want to definitely give the time to your child, more over see them grow as those things can never be replaced. But I'm a strong believer of working from office, A. you can network better and grow B. Physical interaction over virtual is always better C. The entire culture of office gives you a sense of motivation to work as things are always handy.
Shreya R Nambiar
@shalin_doshi I think it depends on the company. My company follows hybrid mode and we try to meet in person, whenever possible. It works great for us since there is no geographical barrier when it comes to hiring.
Shalin Doshi
@shreya_r_nambiar Fair enough, but I have seen the hiring cycle is quit frequent in that case, because employee start with being pumped over the months their interest levels go down, because it's only them and the screen then
Shalin Doshi
@shreya_r_nambiar Hey Shreya, working from home comes with challenges and we have tried to solve one of the issue of networking with people by launching our product DashLynk https://www.producthunt.com/post..., so check it out and give us your feedback if possible.
Sofiko Papkhadze
I like to have an opportunity to do both. The most suitable model of work for me - 3 or 4 days at office and 2 or 1 days at home per week. At office it's easier to connect with a coworkers, have a small talk and etc. But sometimes I feel like I need to work remotely (because of mood for instance).
Shalin Doshi
@xsofikox haha, I believe everyone has started the WFH because there is a new trend started of it pre covid. I only can think of freelancers working from home before but, now everyone want’s to jump on the trend. Because homes existed before but never there was such a huge craze about working from home.
Shalin Doshi
@xsofikox working from home comes with challenges and we have tried to solve one of the issue of networking with people by launching our product DashLynk https://www.producthunt.com/post..., so check it out and give us your feedback if possible.
Noah Hofmann
Always find it a very interesting discussion as there is of course an extensive list of pro's and con's. I for myself, think that remote work and culture can be as daunting as building culture in the office. We do see a trend that big companies like Microsoft and Google return workers back to the office, however, I do not see this as a permanent development (https://www.protocol.com/bulleti...). I think progressive organisations should actually support remote/hybrid working positions to save costs and improve employee satisfaction. However, given a development towards remote working, I do see two types of workforces developing within the same organisation. I believe the actual struggle we should be addressing is how do you keep both workforces well connected to maintain a strong company culture!
Shalin Doshi
@noah_hofmann I always had a question in my mind, huge companies spend money on assets/offices and etc, wfh culture existed before pre-covid, so why didn’t the companies adopt to it? I’m sure they had great leaders during that time as well, that’s why they are where they are today. What do you suggest, how to keep companies employees engaged? As it’s difficult to keep the same culture up.
Noah Hofmann
@shalin_doshi That's a good point, I do think leadership, especially in times of crisis is important to direct and transform company culture. To answer your question, I do believe it is about reinventing your company culture and finding new ways to connect people and keep them engaged. Specifically, I find company offsite's, weekly checking, and bi-weekly/monthly social events an effective approach to keep employees engaged. Hope that helps!
Shalin Doshi
@noah_hofmann agreed, but still why is there such a heavy investment in office spaces? Things could be done from Home as well, this is what I daily to understand. Plus by giving a seat we work has turned into a unicorn just imagine. To change a culture, the company needs to spend sometime in the business to get to know how the company is adopting to situations, post which they can take a call to change the culture. Some yesterday told me Apple, fb, Google and etc are a cult. What’s your take?
Shalin Doshi
@kmelaika What’s your take on Apple, fb, Google and etc are a cult. What’s your take?
Shalin Doshi
@kmelaika What I mean’t was do you think this cult which all these major companies have created, will any company be able to surpass them?
Evgeniy Yakubovskiy
Due to recent events, working from home has become more acceptable and common. The ability to travel to other locations without a break from work. Complete freedom of movement, you become location independent and can even live/travel with other remote professionals.
Shalin Doshi
@evgeniyyakubovckiy as mentioned by you in your comment, you can live/travel with other remote professionals, my take on that would be 1v1 interaction is important with anyone, that can never be replaced by virtual meetings. I hope we agree on that
Shalin Doshi
@evgeniyyakubovckiy working from home comes with challenges and we have tried to solve one of the issue of networking with people by launching our product DashLynk https://www.producthunt.com/post..., so check it out and give us your feedback if possible.
Konstantin
Definitely both together. I feel like either options solely by itself is too limiting.
Shalin Doshi
@konstantin_sharespace if you had to pick one? Which one Would it be? What’s your take on it
Konstantin
@shalin_doshi I would pick work from home, because then you got options where your workplace is, it does not necessarily have to be at home, it can be a coffee shop for example :)
Shalin Doshi
@konstantin_sharespace Since you are a co-founder, what’s your target audience? And I assume you are currently not having an office space, since your are starting out? Correct me if I’m wrong
Konstantin
@shalin_doshi Our target audience includes English-speaking countries and young adults 18-30 who are interested in Mental Health and self improvement.
Shalin Doshi
@konstantin_sharespace Nice, for this kind of audience if you were in a we-work kind of an environment at minimal cost, Imagine how many people you should have made your app reached to. Just a thought I’m sharing. Working from office is not only about work, its about networking and improving your marketing skills as well.
Marina Đurić
Currently working from home entirely remotely, but most preferred is hybrid work or some co-working spaces. For me, a culture that gives you the freedom to dress casually, have breaks when needed, and even work from home if you want is the most trustworthy relationship there is. Giving space and freedom for everyone to use the best of their productive window and organize their space the way they want if everything lines up of course with done tasks.
Shalin Doshi
@marina_djuric Hey, If you give some much of freedom to your team, they would eventually take advantage of you and then you will be left with no option. Sorry to be harsh on it. But, if they require/have so many demands they should better go on a vacation. Freedom and space both are dangerous words, you give anyone this more than required you’re no longer the boss then. Creativity can come anytime and it’s not like if you’re in an organisation they are working 100% of the time, they have their bit of space as well, but too much would lead to they becoming your boss.
Marina Đurić
@shalin_doshi I agree and disagree with you here. There needs to be a specific environment crafted by the boss for all of this to happen. If you yourself as a boss are proactive, well informed, have structure in your work, and communicate openly, there is a solid foundation. Everything revolves around self-discipline and accountability. If you don't trust your people to do the work, why did you hire them? Not everybody can work remotely thats' for sure, that's okay, but if you have this value system and the right people, I see no problem in giving such space and freedom. What's your take? I love harsh opinions as it enables us to have a debate that benefits us in exchanging different perspectives and experiences!
Shalin Doshi
@marina_djuric trust and space are two different things. I can trust them but not give them so much space that they in turn start to take advantage of the space and freedom, that’s why there’s a distinguish between a manager and employee when you need to pull the strings you need to or else things get out of control. Also as a boss it’s my job to make sure things happen, because end of the day things are at stake for me, if I start taking things causally and keep offering space to my team member to work at their time and do things when they want, god save my company. So trust them to do the job that’s why I have hired them, but trust them to do the job at their time and space then rather work for them and not for the company.
Marina Đurić
@shalin_doshi I definitely see your point of view, but as I probably lack the experience to understand you, our opinions differ. I agree there should be a distinct separation between the boss, manager, and employee. It depends on which industry and setting you are working in. Because if it's not a more modern/agile company, the hierarchy is strict and organized in such a matter. The relation I share with our boss is that we have our daily and weekly tasks, we can do them when we want and where we want it only matters in the daily meeting that you finished your tasks and that you report the result, everything else doesn't matter. Also, we are a smaller team for now, so if there are more employees, I don't know if this type of organization would work, so it's also something to consider.
Shalin Doshi
@marina_djuric distinction should be in every company, that helps you organise better and keep a track about your employees. That's what I have been addressing since a long time thing done at your own pace and time doesn't teach the employees, to work in a pressure situation, this needs to be solved and as mentioned by @zhitao_yan you need to work together when starting out, do read his comments below about when starting out.
Craig Morgan
I agree with the statement. And if the managers can't trust their employees then create deadlines and if those deadlines are getting met, then trust your employees. Remote working is of high value for the employer and employee, but does need discipline.
Shalin Doshi
@morg7801 True, but many a times people take remote working for granted and when countered they always have a reason backed to it. But I personally feel, 1v1 physical interaction is a must. It really helps to gain the best out of you rather than virtual meetings. There are few things which virtually can't be achieved
Craig Morgan
@shalin_doshi That's where the discipline comes in from the employer and employee. You both agree to realistic deadlines and if those deadlines are not met, then after the third time, the employee should be fired or rather not have the option to work remotely. I agree, 1v1 physical interaction is important, not important for work, more for relationships, camaraderie. I say not for work, because most in-person meetings are unproductive. What should take 3 minutes, ends up taking 30 minutes.
Shalin Doshi
@morg7801 isn’t networking related to work? I guess that’s how you grow! You won’t be able to network from Home as much as you would be able to when you’re in office or at work. Employee growth is more when they are around people I assume
Craig Morgan
@shalin_doshi It's depends on your job position. In most cases in order to be successful at your position it's not necessary to network. In some position it's very important. Collaborating is important (being around people), but it doesn't always create growth, in fact it can stunt growth. You are only as skilled as your superiors allow you to be. And it comes full circle... trust.
Shalin Doshi
@morg7801 I strongly believe networking at any position is important, which can in future lead to collaborations. Being around people has its pro and cons, surround yourself with positive people who actually help you grow in your life, because it's easy to find negativity rather than positivity. Hence, I believe someone or the other will surely see your skills in an organisation when working from office and give you the benefit of it.
Graham Beck
Honestly think this is a gray area. Not everyone has a great at-home environment and some people don't want to commute. This article covers a ton of pros, cons, etc: https://drop-desk.com/hybrid-work
Shalin Doshi
@grahambeck what’s your take on it?
Graham Beck
@shalin_doshi My take is that it should be down to the individual to choose whether to work from home, the office or a local space. As long as productivity does not suffer, why wouldn't companies want employees to have a better quality of life?
Shalin Doshi
@grahambeck if I may ask, you want a better quality for employees or better output?
Shalin Doshi
@grahambeck working from home comes with challenges and we have tried to solve one of the issue of networking with people by launching our product DashLynk https://www.producthunt.com/post..., so check it out and give us your feedback if possible.
Kiefer Kazimir
Neither? I don't like working at home, because I need a separate space to feel productive. But I also think the benefits of remote work are amazing and far outweigh in-person offices. My solution: rent a small private office about 5-10 minutes from where I live. It allows me to get out of the house and have a separate work space while still eliminating the negatives of the office.
Shalin Doshi
@exemplar That's true, office space surely increase productivity and gives you a change, sitting at home would surely become boring after a point of time.
Shalin Doshi
@exemplar Hey Kiefer, working from home comes with challenges and we have tried to solve one of the issue of networking with people by launching our product DashLynk https://www.producthunt.com/post..., so check it out and give us your feedback if possible.
Kim Lawson
If you think the major issue is trust (which I personally don't think it is), it all comes down to people in the end. Good managers will be comfortable with WFH and bad won't. Good employees will work productively and less committed won't. My observation on that is that people who aren't productive at home, probably aren't productive in the office. So, net gain either way.
Shalin Doshi
@kim_lawson Hence we don't recruit them, but I believe the conversation here was which one is better for you WFH or WFO? Which one do you prefer? Also trust is important at all cost, you need to trust your team to take at-least small decisions, if you don't trust them the company would always remain a start-up and never become an organisation. Because it's practically not possible you to reach at all places.
Kim Lawson
@shalin_doshi Yes, which I answered as WFH mostly, but you countered that with the trust aspect. I still say that that is not the issue. But I do hear what you say. I did quite a bit of WFH (in an engineering situation, so pretty unusual) prior to COVID. I've experienced the good and bad from a personal perspective. I agree with all who bring up the collaborative aspect. For me, that's the main reason for going to the office. However, I suspect that as technology becomes more clever we will be able to approximate the sort of F2F creativity that we need. I was not a fan of working from home initially and that has definitely changed (mainly due to technology advances). Also, from a sustainability viewpoint it's a no-brainier to stick to office work as the rule. But I think we kinda agree at heart.
Shalin Doshi
@kim_lawson how much ever technology advances it’s never going to replace human interaction 1v1 so I believe that can’t be a reason to replace that interaction. If technology can resolve the creativity of collaborations I believe the airline industry is going to go for a toss. Also WFH is a costly affair especially in countries where unit rate of electricity i high.
Kim Lawson
@shalin_doshi I think you might have just hit on a real casualty of WFH. Airlines should be very worried. And transport services in general. But don't you think this is being driven by climate issues as much as anything else? Also, think of the premium businesses get charged for their custom. Rental values, telecoms charges etc. It has to be more efficient to cut office space. I would like to see a 4/1 ratio of people specifically going into the office one day a week for the F2F collaborations. Is that realistic? Viable commuter-wise? I think it could be made to work. Or would that indeed end up being a "jolly"? Interesting times huh?
Shalin Doshi
@kim_lawson no I meant people commuting to different counties for business and travel, if technology is going to replace human interaction why would anyone travel? 1. During WFH there is 90% of the times calls going on, half of which are irrelevant but people have to be a part of it. 2. How do you work when you have to sit on calls for hours? Working time increases tremendously 9-5 job becomes 9-9 job what’s the point? 3. How to track any employee log? 4. 4 days work can’t be discussed in 1 day plus when you meet you team after 4-5 days there a lot of catching up to do instead of work as well being practical. So it’s real difficult to focus right.
Inam from Outgrow
Wfh is something which we all started enjoying recently and it helps in balancing professional and personal life.
Shalin Doshi
@inam_from_outgrow for me WFH is only balancing personal life, with the number of distractions at home, it becomes hard to work. Plus you need a change after some time. It's like food can be cooked at home as well, why go to a restaurant? For change. Anyways what's your take on it?
Shalin Doshi
@inam_from_outgrow Hey Iman, working from home comes with challenges and we have tried to solve one of the issue of networking with people by launching our product DashLynk https://www.producthunt.com/post..., so check it out and give us your feedback if possible.
Inam from Outgrow
Dina Mostafa
I prefer working from office. Working from home makes me feel more lazy. I can't control when to wake up. and I feel like everything is mixed up, doing home stuff while doing my work tasks.
Shalin Doshi
@dina_mostafa working from home comes with challenges and we have tried to solve one of the issue of networking with people by launching our product DashLynk https://www.producthunt.com/post..., so check it out and give us your feedback if possible.
Reece Jones
I think it's not necessarily the location itself. I'd imagine I'd have the same adverse reaction to "Work ONLY from this coffee shop" as I do to "Work from office." The flexibility is what I appreciate.
Shalin Doshi
@reecekjones flexibility in terms of location or does it even include timings?
Reece Jones
@shalin_doshi I think everything, all kinds of flexibility haha.
Shalin Doshi
@reecekjones can you let us know what business are you into?
Reece Jones
@shalin_doshi I am a founder! Just launched my health education company. Actually you can check out our page here! https://www.producthunt.com/post...
Shalin Doshi
@reecekjones imagine if you were at a wework, how many people you could have reached? Potentially to try your product out
Ghost Kitty
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Shalin Doshi
@sewell_stephens what’s the product you are working on?
Ghost Kitty
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Shalin Doshi
@sewell_stephens who is your target audience for the product?
Ghost Kitty
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Shalin Doshi
@sewell_stephens business owners right? Imagine if you are at a we work space working from there not home, how many people you could have Interacted with as business owners? Before even you launched your project you would have a set of customers ready, because you are already interacting with them and they know you. It’s all about hustling and working in an environment with people, homes give you leisure’s not networking which you need.
Armenui Eganyan
As a marketer, I need to connect with people, hear their ideas, brainstorm, and "talk-it-through". Couple of days working from home — okay, to focus and execute your plans, but no more.
Shalin Doshi
@armenuhi_yeganyan are you in the zone when WFH compared to office culture?
Shalin Doshi
@armenuhi_yeganyan working from home comes with challenges and we have tried to solve one of the issue of networking with people by launching our product DashLynk https://www.producthunt.com/post..., so check it out and give us your feedback if possible.
John
Trusting your team, even in the office setup, existed pre-covid. There should be no difference in trusting your team to perform as good, outside the office. Given that some team members might be more efficient working in the office for whatever reasons, a hybrid setup is good. Others, who perform better in WFH, can stay WFH.
Shalin Doshi
@reyalteedotcom that’s difficult to judge, I believe you can test the employee under pressure in an office environment better, compared to home setup. Also, a lot of task can be explained well 1v1 compared to virtual
Shalin Doshi
@reyalteedotcom working from home comes with challenges and we have tried to solve one of the issue of networking with people by launching our product DashLynk https://www.producthunt.com/post..., so check it out and give us your feedback if possible.
Kinanti Desyanandini
I love the social aspect of working from the office, but commuting + distractions are so tricky for me. We have a hybrid team across timezones and recommended WFO days, but are flexible which is nice! I've found connecting with team members that are remote by DMing them with less-work related stuff has been really helpful to connect while remote, which means that when I am in the office for a social event / team strategy meeting, I'm a lot more present and energised! ⚡️
Shalin Doshi
@kina so hybrid is the future, but would it have an effect on your output if you worked 100% from office?
Kinanti Desyanandini
@shalin_doshi absolutely! I find being in the office constantly quite tiring and distracting, and prefer to have time to WFH 😊
Shalin Doshi
@kina I feel WFH is more distracting compared to working from office, as we can focus on more in work environment compared to home. I would like to state for schools in examples, studies can happen from home as well, why have school? Because the students get distracted at home.
Shalin Doshi
@kina working from home comes with challenges and we have tried to solve one of the issue of networking with people by launching our product DashLynk https://www.producthunt.com/post..., so check it out and give us your feedback if possible.