Office is Out?


Typewriter, Typebar, Typescript, Letter
Today Shopify announced that working from home has officially become their default work paradigm. Plans to expand offices have been shelved. Their Chief Talent Officer (a fancy name for head of HR) was interviewed on the move by a somewhat skeptical CBC reporter. The reporter brought up, among others, the fact that trials elsewhere have not been very successful, and the issue of mental health. The CTO replied that technologies and attitudes have recently shifted (COVID a factor) and they are confident the company is making a good move, allowing them to hire talent regardless of geography. And yes, it's going to be very competitive.

Two or three years ago, the big boss of another massive IT company in the US was bucking the work-from-home trend by famously invoking the belief (fact? fiction?) that people co-located and gathering around the office water cooler are an irreplaceable source of innovation. What would she say now?

IBM, where telecommuting was common place with many employees, at least here in Canada, was also coming up with initiatives to bring people back to the office, supposedly to foster innovation. While some employees were glad to forgo the commute and only show up in the office once a week, when the whole team had to be present, most were happiest with a mix of office presence and working-from-home.

A friend who works exclusively from her home in Toronto for a hot Silicon Valley company is confessing, after less than two years on this job she loves, that she's going nuts with long hours and lack of contact. While some managers may still fear abuse of the working-from-home arrangement, reality is that people tend to work longer hours - albeit at irregular times.

It remains to be seen how things will play out in the longer run with working-from-home. So far, the technology is here to enable it but it seems that managerial dictum is a big factor. Hopefully there are or will be pertinent studies to evaluate the trend  and better inform the moves and moods of the C-suite. I am curious to see how the market will reward (or punish) Shopify!

2020 May 22
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