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Lauren Schaefer, Developer Advocate, MongoDB
Does remote work really work?
Lauren_Schaefer
Think about a time
you were fabulously
productive.
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
Open offices spaces can be
THE WORST.
Cubeland can be
THE WORST.
Working remotely can be
THE WORST.
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
Does remote work
really work?
My Story
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
Will you let me work from home?
Check yes or no.
Yes
No
✓
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
Cubeland can be
THE WORST.
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
Working remotely can be
THE WORST.
Working remotely can be
THE BEST.
Why do you want to
work remotely?
Why work remotely?
● Unable to relocate due to spouse’s job or kids’ school
● High cost of living at office location
● Lengthy commutes
● Availability for children or aging parents
● Distracting office environments
● Travel the world
Why do employers
offer remote work
options?
Why offer remote work options?
● Attract and retain top talent--no matter where they live
● Increase employee morale
● Save money!
● Increase employee productivity
What does the
research say?
Where do developers want to work?1
58%
33%
9%
Office Home Other place, such as a coworking space or café
How often do developers work remotely?1
Greatest challenge to productivity1
2014 scientific study2
13%
performance increase in work from home employees2
work satisfaction
in work from home employees2
50%
reduction in attrition rate
in work from home employees2
50%
reduction in promotion rate conditional on performance
for work from home employees2
22%
performance increase after allowing employees to
choose where to work2
2009 Cisco Teleworker Survey3
Black this time, a nice change by Gary Denham, Creative Commons
productivity, work-life flexibility, and job satisfaction3
$277 million
savings in productivity from teleworking3
47,320 metric tons
of greenhouse gas emissions not released in 1 year due to
teleworking3
Summary of 46
studies
spanning 20
years
“Telecommuting has a clear upside:
small but favorable effects on
perceived autonomy, work– family
conflict, job satisfaction,
performance, turnover intent, and
stress. Contrary to expectations in
both academic and practitioner
literatures, telecommuting also has
no straightforward, damaging effects
on the quality of workplace
relationships or perceived career
prospects.“4
Summary of 46
studies
spanning 20
years
“Telecommuting has a clear upside:
small but favorable effects on
perceived autonomy, work– family
conflict, job satisfaction,
performance, turnover intent, and
stress. Contrary to expectations in
both academic and practitioner
literatures, telecommuting also has no
straightforward, damaging effects on
the quality of workplace relationships
or perceived career prospects.“4
Summary of 46
studies
spanning 20
years
“Telecommuting has a clear upside:
small but favorable effects on
perceived autonomy, work– family
conflict, job satisfaction, performance,
turnover intent, and stress. Contrary
to expectations in both academic and
practitioner literatures,
telecommuting also has no
straightforward, damaging effects on
the quality of workplace relationships
or perceived career prospects.“4
Downsides to working remotely
● “Professional isolation negatively impacts job performance”5
● Having a remote manager may negatively impact you7
● Remote employees fear stalling careers, isolation, distractions,
and blurred lines between work and home life6
● Remote work encourages employees to “overwork and to allow
their work to infringe on their family role”8
Does remote work
really work?
Does remote work
really work?
YES!
Remote work works for…
The employee.
The employer.
The environment.
How to convince your
boss to let you work
remotely
Propose an
experiment9
IMG_9425-001 by Oleg., Creative Commons
But what about collaboration
and water-cooler conversations?
The Lunchroom by Sonny Abesamis, Creative Commons
When all else fails,
talk about the bottom line.
Money by Keith Cooper, Creative Commons
How to succeed at
working remotely
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
5. Join the right team
World Map by shaireproductions.com, Creative Commons
4. Be productive
3. Communicate with your team
all eyes on the docent by michael davis-burchat, Creative Commons
2. Travel
Airplane by Sean MacEntee, Creative Commons
1. Actively prevent burnout
40+234 Work! by bark, Creative Commons
Top 5 tips for making remote work
really work
5. Select the right team
4. Be productive
3. Communicate with your team
2. Travel
1. Actively prevent burnout
Does remote work
really work?
Working remotely can be
THE WORST.
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
Working remotely can be
THE BEST.
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?
Does remote work
really work?
YES!
Remote work works for…
The employee.
The employer.
The environment.
Telle Whitney
Former CEO and President
The Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology
"If I could change
anything, it would be
that each and every
one of you would ask
for what she wants."
Remote work
really works!
Advocate for yourself and advocate
for others.
Remote work
really works! Get the slides on my Twitter
page: @Lauren_Schaefer
Advocate for yourself and advocate
for others.
Appendix
References
1. 2019 Stack Overflow Developer Survey
2. Does working from home work? Evidence from a Chinese experiment
3. Cisco Study Finds Telecommuting Significantly Increases Employee Productivity,
Work-Life Flexibility and Job Satisfaction
4. The Good, the Bad, and the Unknown About Telecommuting: Meta-Analysis of
Psychological Mediators and Individual Consequences
5. The impact of professional isolation on teleworker job performance and turnover
intentions: does time spent teleworking, interacting face-to-face, or having access to
communication-enhancing technology matter?
References
6. The Evolving Nature of Working at Home
7. Does it matter where your manager works? Comparing managerial work mode
(traditional, telework, virtual) across subordinate work experiences and outcomes
8. Toward Understanding Remote Workers’ Management of Work–Family Boundaries:
The Complexity of Workplace Embeddedness
9. REMOTE: Office Not Required
Other studies & articles
● Assessing the growth of remote working and its consequences for effort, well-being
and work-life balance
● Contagious Offsite Work and the Lonely Office: The Unintended Consequences of
Distributed Work
● Team dynamics in virtual, partially distributed teams: Optimal role fulfillment
● Comparing telework locations and traditional work arrangements. Differences in
work-life balance support, job satisfaction, and inclusion
● How To Succeed At Working From Home
● Implementing & Managing a Telework Program. A Complete Guide to Properly
Managing Telework Employees
● Putting the work-life interface into a temporal context: an empirical study of work-
life balance by life stage and the consequences of homeworking
Other videos
● Nora Denzel Keynote Speech - Grace Hopper Celebration 2012
MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?

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MongoDB World 2019: Does Remote Work Really Work?

  • 1. Lauren Schaefer, Developer Advocate, MongoDB Does remote work really work? Lauren_Schaefer
  • 2. Think about a time you were fabulously productive.
  • 7. Open offices spaces can be THE WORST.
  • 9. Working remotely can be THE WORST.
  • 17. Will you let me work from home? Check yes or no. Yes No ✓
  • 21. Working remotely can be THE WORST.
  • 22. Working remotely can be THE BEST.
  • 23. Why do you want to work remotely?
  • 24. Why work remotely? ● Unable to relocate due to spouse’s job or kids’ school ● High cost of living at office location ● Lengthy commutes ● Availability for children or aging parents ● Distracting office environments ● Travel the world
  • 25. Why do employers offer remote work options?
  • 26. Why offer remote work options? ● Attract and retain top talent--no matter where they live ● Increase employee morale ● Save money! ● Increase employee productivity
  • 28. Where do developers want to work?1 58% 33% 9% Office Home Other place, such as a coworking space or café
  • 29. How often do developers work remotely?1
  • 30. Greatest challenge to productivity1
  • 32. 13% performance increase in work from home employees2
  • 33. work satisfaction in work from home employees2
  • 34. 50% reduction in attrition rate in work from home employees2
  • 35. 50% reduction in promotion rate conditional on performance for work from home employees2
  • 36. 22% performance increase after allowing employees to choose where to work2
  • 37. 2009 Cisco Teleworker Survey3 Black this time, a nice change by Gary Denham, Creative Commons
  • 38. productivity, work-life flexibility, and job satisfaction3
  • 39. $277 million savings in productivity from teleworking3
  • 40. 47,320 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions not released in 1 year due to teleworking3
  • 41. Summary of 46 studies spanning 20 years “Telecommuting has a clear upside: small but favorable effects on perceived autonomy, work– family conflict, job satisfaction, performance, turnover intent, and stress. Contrary to expectations in both academic and practitioner literatures, telecommuting also has no straightforward, damaging effects on the quality of workplace relationships or perceived career prospects.“4
  • 42. Summary of 46 studies spanning 20 years “Telecommuting has a clear upside: small but favorable effects on perceived autonomy, work– family conflict, job satisfaction, performance, turnover intent, and stress. Contrary to expectations in both academic and practitioner literatures, telecommuting also has no straightforward, damaging effects on the quality of workplace relationships or perceived career prospects.“4
  • 43. Summary of 46 studies spanning 20 years “Telecommuting has a clear upside: small but favorable effects on perceived autonomy, work– family conflict, job satisfaction, performance, turnover intent, and stress. Contrary to expectations in both academic and practitioner literatures, telecommuting also has no straightforward, damaging effects on the quality of workplace relationships or perceived career prospects.“4
  • 44. Downsides to working remotely ● “Professional isolation negatively impacts job performance”5 ● Having a remote manager may negatively impact you7 ● Remote employees fear stalling careers, isolation, distractions, and blurred lines between work and home life6 ● Remote work encourages employees to “overwork and to allow their work to infringe on their family role”8
  • 47. Remote work works for… The employee. The employer. The environment.
  • 48. How to convince your boss to let you work remotely
  • 49. Propose an experiment9 IMG_9425-001 by Oleg., Creative Commons
  • 50. But what about collaboration and water-cooler conversations? The Lunchroom by Sonny Abesamis, Creative Commons
  • 51. When all else fails, talk about the bottom line. Money by Keith Cooper, Creative Commons
  • 52. How to succeed at working remotely
  • 55. 5. Join the right team World Map by shaireproductions.com, Creative Commons
  • 57. 3. Communicate with your team all eyes on the docent by michael davis-burchat, Creative Commons
  • 58. 2. Travel Airplane by Sean MacEntee, Creative Commons
  • 59. 1. Actively prevent burnout 40+234 Work! by bark, Creative Commons
  • 60. Top 5 tips for making remote work really work 5. Select the right team 4. Be productive 3. Communicate with your team 2. Travel 1. Actively prevent burnout
  • 62. Working remotely can be THE WORST.
  • 64. Working remotely can be THE BEST.
  • 67. Remote work works for… The employee. The employer. The environment.
  • 68. Telle Whitney Former CEO and President The Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology "If I could change anything, it would be that each and every one of you would ask for what she wants."
  • 69. Remote work really works! Advocate for yourself and advocate for others.
  • 70. Remote work really works! Get the slides on my Twitter page: @Lauren_Schaefer Advocate for yourself and advocate for others.
  • 72. References 1. 2019 Stack Overflow Developer Survey 2. Does working from home work? Evidence from a Chinese experiment 3. Cisco Study Finds Telecommuting Significantly Increases Employee Productivity, Work-Life Flexibility and Job Satisfaction 4. The Good, the Bad, and the Unknown About Telecommuting: Meta-Analysis of Psychological Mediators and Individual Consequences 5. The impact of professional isolation on teleworker job performance and turnover intentions: does time spent teleworking, interacting face-to-face, or having access to communication-enhancing technology matter?
  • 73. References 6. The Evolving Nature of Working at Home 7. Does it matter where your manager works? Comparing managerial work mode (traditional, telework, virtual) across subordinate work experiences and outcomes 8. Toward Understanding Remote Workers’ Management of Work–Family Boundaries: The Complexity of Workplace Embeddedness 9. REMOTE: Office Not Required
  • 74. Other studies & articles ● Assessing the growth of remote working and its consequences for effort, well-being and work-life balance ● Contagious Offsite Work and the Lonely Office: The Unintended Consequences of Distributed Work ● Team dynamics in virtual, partially distributed teams: Optimal role fulfillment ● Comparing telework locations and traditional work arrangements. Differences in work-life balance support, job satisfaction, and inclusion ● How To Succeed At Working From Home ● Implementing & Managing a Telework Program. A Complete Guide to Properly Managing Telework Employees ● Putting the work-life interface into a temporal context: an empirical study of work- life balance by life stage and the consequences of homeworking
  • 75. Other videos ● Nora Denzel Keynote Speech - Grace Hopper Celebration 2012