Dan Tanner

Corporate Communication Guide on Remote Software Resources

To: Corporate Communications
From: Board of Directors
Date: January 20, 2025
Subject: Communication Guide on Remote Software Resources

Welcome! If you're reading this, you're a corporate leader looking to maximize shareholder value.

The recent pandemic has resulted in an unfortunate incident regarding human resource management. What was intended to be a temporary location adjustment to preserve resource vitality and productivity has been misinterpreted by some as a permanent situation.

We want you to know that we care deeply about this problem, and are here to help you guide your proverbial "domestic sheep" back to the "flock" ;-)

It is also critical to project a positive image regarding our global software human resource market, given their favorable terms of resource management. But how does a leader convince one group of resources that they need to "come home", while managing another group of autonomous resources across the world?

With that in mind, we've prepared a communication guide for you to share with your software-producing human resources. Be sure to read it carefully and communicate the appropriate message with the right resource. You don't want to get your wires crossed on this one, as the same topic results in different guidance based on your audience!

Topic Local Human Resources Non-local Human Resources
Collaboration We can only foster innovation through spontaneous in-person collaboration We foster innovation through access to global talent pools
Productivity We need to be in-person to maximize productivity and operational efficiency We need to globalize to maximize around-the-clock productivity and parallel development
Culture A cohesive workplace community forms when everyone is "close to home" We value diverse perspectives, drawing from todo: grab something from 2021 DEI template
Professional Development We can only foster long-term growth and learning through in-person communication and mentoring We can rapidly enable strategic initiatives by quickly ramping up and down with global partners as needed
Security We need to protect our intellectual property and data within our facilities We use encrypted connections, access controls, and secure policies to protect our valuable assets regardless of location

I hope that was recognized as sarcasm #

The idea for this rant started with these queries:

At least for the offshore development, the first list item was money. Money wasn't even mentioned in the return to office list.

To be clear, I'm not against offshore development. I see it as a different style of remote work with a different set of advantages and constraints.

Practical reasons for (domestic) remote work #

Some people want to be able to work remotely, and most of those reasons are beneficial to the company as well, or at least don't negatively impact the company. The following table illustrates some practical perks for remote work and how they impact the company:

Perk Company Impact Reason
Flexibility in their day about when they work Neutral They get the work done and attend necessary meetings
Not wasting 8 hours a week commuting Positive Fresher worker means better work
Not wasting time in between meetings finding the next space to meet Positive Time savings
Reducing disease vectors Positive Healthier workers means more work
Shitty setups in office for getting heads-down work done vs their sweet setup at home Positive A better setup means better output
Better lunches than terrible cafeteria food Positive Happier workers means better work
Increasing the number of companies that they're a viable employee at Negative More competition for workers is bad for owners
Getting to work with more diverse folks, not just those that happen to live in the same geographic area Positive More diverse viewpoints create better results
Money saved on commuting Positive A lower financial burden means less salary pressure

I hope we can make significant correlations based on the policy down the road #

Many difficult and important problems can't be solved by people with mediocre skill regardless of headcount. There's an enormous gap in ability between developers, and the supply of exceptional programmers is still rare.

Supporting remote work can be critical recruiting opportunity for the best talent, especially if that company can't compete financially. Some companies understand this; I hope they succeed and that others can see their remote-friendly policy played a significant part in the success. Working remotely is what I hope to do for the rest of my career.