Coders Say Yes To Telecommuting, No To Ping Pong 181
8127972 writes "News.com is has a story on a survey that describes the perks that coders and other IT types want. According to the survey, they want their companies to spring for membership to health clubs, a free car, wireless phone, and anything that aids telecommuting. Foosball, ping-pong, billiards and other rec-room staples ranked at the bottom of the list--even lower than free dance lessons. The full survey is at Techies.com. Maybe this should be sent to the PHB's?"
No Brainer (Score:1)
Out of curiosity, I was wondering how many companies actually got there employees cars. I've only heard of a couple.
Re:You pay for the perks (Score:1)
But on the plus side, it costs the company less to acquire these sort of things in bulk than it would for an individual employee. So both sides win. What's becoming increasingly common in the UK is for a portion of salary to be paid in vouchers for certain retailers (usually supermarkets) 3-way win: The company can get bulk discounts, the supermarkets get guaranteed trade, and the employees (supposedly) get a better remuneration deal.
The IT sector is very lucky in terms of the perks employees get, when compared to other industries (I would guess that this is due to the percieved "skills shortage" that HR mgrs often witter on about) although there does often seem to be agap of what employees need and want compared with what employers are prepared to give... Probably due to a deficiency of expertise in management of IT-skilled people, due to managers having been trained in other industries.
Of course, I'm still in favour of having dress-up Fridays, where people can come to work all tarted-up....
Biased? My experiences quiet the opposite.. (Score:2)
Many (like myself) even go so far as to indicate that they'd lack the self-discipline to get as much done working from home as they would in the office. The work atmosphere is great there.
On the development side of the house (numbering in the hundreds of developers building web content), only a miniscule portion of them telecommute, and this is mainly out of necessity (office space is at a premium!).
I mean don't get me wrong, I imagine some of us would like to telecommute if given the opportunity, but my own practical experiences in corporate IT differ from these results.
And again, it might just be the type of work, and the type of company I work for.. I just can't help but wonder where the bias in this poll is.
Re:The Evolution of a Programmer (Score:1)
For some reason it reminds me of the 99 bottle of beer [ionet.net] website. That's not funny, but it uses "print/display the entire lyrics to the 99 bottles of beer song" instead of "Hello World" in languages ranging from COBOL to Befunge to YACC. It's an interesting read, at least.
Ping-pong tables (Score:1)
Nothing wrong with having ping-pong tables, but something is messed up if that is considered worth mentioning in the PR or job ads.
Re:The Evolution of a Programmer (Score:1)
Re:Telecommuting sucked (Score:1)
Seriously, don't throw the baby out the the bathwater. I know someone who telecommutes and they love it. It really depends on how much of a control freak your boss is.
Bull. (Score:2)
I can go out in the middle of the day to do some mountain biking, or take a walk through the park.
If there's a farmer's market in the afternoon (and I always missed 'em when working onsite), I can go there. Won't necessarily buy anything, but it's cool to meet friends -- and, living in a small community, I always meet someone I know there.
I can live in the small town I love rather than the bay area, where my company is.
And I don't play games. No Quake, no Counterstrike. And I don't order pizza out.
As for the gossip, my officemates are all on IRC -- a poor excuse for real interaction, but I get plenty of that from local sources. I no longer am sleeping in my cube and missing out on social events. Telecommuting is what you make it. If you're the kind of loser who would live as you described above -- well, then, office life is for you. Don't presume it's for everyone else as well.
Re:All well and good (Score:1)
NERF (Score:1)
Hail good sense! (Score:1)
Re:Yes yes, concubines working in my jammies! (Score:1)
It's getting silly, don't you think? (Score:2)
I don't *want* a pool table or a foosball table at work.. but that's probably because I don't spend weeks on end at work without going home.
Telecommuting? -aka- 'working from home'. Yes. If this fits your job, that's fantastic. Yes, your employer should furnish a few things if it's his choice to have you work from home. If it's an option, he should leave more of that up to you.
Should he pay for your network connection? Perhaps. There should be some incentive for working from home, *IF* it costs the company less money to have you do so. (I know I could do it, but then I look at the number of people I ineract with on a daily basis.. and realize that I would not be giving the company as much).
From those I've seen, an amicable arrangement is:
The company should:
Pay for the computers & equipment involved.
Pay for the data communications lines.
Pay for the software in use.
Pay the employee for travel time if they must come in for meetings.
But that's about IT!
ok, i gotta take issue with this (Score:1)
they look at themselves as code
artists," Berg said. "When they get
inspired, they need to act on it, in
the middle of the night or on the
bus or metro and...in unusual
situations."
I think this is unnecessary romanticizing. Programmers are workers like anyone else, they're not some special artists that need to be coddled. Yes, perks are nice, but there's a hell of a lot of snotty coders out here that request outrageous salaries, want free cars, etc, because they think they're god's gift to the company. I don't hear marketing asking for work-sponsored masseuses because they're creative and sensitive people the company can't do without, despite the fact that, unfortunately, marketing and sales have more of an impact on the success of a company.
Fortunately, with the demise of lame internet companies with no business model and the correction of outlandish tech stock prices, this is on a decrease. People are realizing that programmers are not glamorous magicians that make or break a company. And they don't get free Z3's anymore, thank god.
-lx
Gulfstream V (Score:1)
-xt
Re:For 5 Grand a Week (Score:1)
And I am sure she is a really good "teacher" if you know what I mean.
Foosball (Score:1)
Mr. Brown Drinker and Portal-Potty Founder.
Re:Hours (Score:1)
Pick which 18hrs a day you wish to work.
Re:The Evolution of a Programmer (Score:1)
--------------------------------------
Fooseball & Pool Tables (Score:1)
All well and good (Score:5)
Rise at 11AM, slump 5 yards to coffee machine and prss a button. Log in, then while drinking coffee catch up with email, slashdot and other important "cant miss" work things.
At 1PM, put something in the microwave and think about begining work. Assumung you are self disaplined you are finished by 7PM, just in time to flick on the news.
If you arent however you'll do 1/2 an hours work before drifting back to a game of quake - you'll put the time in at the end of day/week/month you say.
Your daily workload is finished by 10PM, and your pizza arrives (please tip the pizza guy - thanks). You watch a pr0n video and have a few hour of counterstrike before slipping back into bed.
You havent got dressed all day, you havent seen the sun, you've not spoken to another living soul, you've missed buying the paper from Bernie on the street outside, you've missed on the latest gossip.
Working from home seems idilic, but you dont see anyone, have hundereds of distractions, you think of your apt. as a cell, you might even start to resent your computer!
It's not all rosy.
Re:Suprise Suprise (Score:1)
Hold on a minute, there are some cuties in sales and marketing!
Personal vs. Shared (Score:3)
Hey, don't knock the foosball. Of course they were at the bottom of the list, a foosball table is something which your company lets you occasionally share with the other employees. Naturally a car, or a health club membership, or free computer stuff is going to rank higher since they are used exclusively by the person they're given to. What would you rather have: a porsche which you can use during the lunchbreak and share with six other people, or a Toyota Camry which is yours and yours alone?
a romp in the bed? How about.. (Score:1)
Re:Suprise Suprise (Score:1)
EH!!! (Score:2)
EHHH!!! [checkdate=1stApr2001=Negative]
Why in hell would an employee want such a benefit? Do techies have trouble doing this or something?
Seems to me that this might have been one of those on-line surveys that are easily broken.
Re:Work-aholics (Score:2)
Agreed... telecommunication == good. Workers asking for perks that could be used by the company to expect after hours work from home == bad. I just found it funny that people wanted these perks that could, potentially, lead to more off-the-clock work. Personally, if I couldn't have a bonus as a perk, I'd choose to get perks at the workplace (free soda, lounge rooms, etc.).
Re:How about rational management? (Score:1)
Dude, if you ever find a semi-rational company, that doesn't change policies randomly or have massive office politics or change requirements without changing deadlines, let me know. That's like, Utopia. On the flipside tho, there are TONS of companies out there that don't require insane workweeks and are very flexible with your schedule. I've worked for a few. You don't have to put up with that.
Re:You pay for the perks (Score:2)
I thought concubines would top the list (Score:4)
cz
Re:All well and good (Score:1)
Yeah, I can imagine that beeping every 0.6 seconds [spacefame.org] would get pretty irritating after a while.
Err... (Score:2)
Re:Work-aholics (Score:1)
NEWSFLASH
Many companies already do that, except instead of calling their paid-for cellphone they call... your home phone. Often late into the night.
At least if they get used to calling the cell phone you can occasionally turn it off. Then if the Pointy-Haired type wants to call your home phone, they have to dig it up - in other words at least you have the satisfaction of knowing you made them do a little work.
Frankly, a colleague of mine uses his Nextel phone to go wander off to "fun" places (ie offsite) knowing that he's reachable within seconds.
Re:All well and good (Score:1)
Well, except for the porn...
telecommuting == living at work (Score:1)
After the nth day where a client phone call woke me up, and I found myself working within 30 seconds of awakening, I remembered how a short commute can be a nice way to ramp up to the day. And I realized that having multiple clients means multiple bosses rather than none. Finally, I noticed that I was _always_ in a work mindset while at home, and that there was nowhere to go home to if I wanted to leave it behind.
My employment is much more conventional now (although the schedule is still mighty loose), and when I go home, I'm home. And I never can seem to remember how to dial in to work from home ...
--tim
Money! (Score:1)
Certain things, in my mind, don't even count as perks at all: anything involving caffeine, anything that makes it more efficient to get to/from work or easier to stay there (like a cafeteria that serves dinner until late..) - these aren't perks. They might be good or bad, but no-one should feel that these kind of services are some sort of gift. These services exist to make working really long hours seem normal.
The problem with a lot of the other perks is that they're often inflexible (what if I want to train at Igor's Horrid Iron Basement rather than YuppiePump Gym?) and essentially amount to subsidizing certain lifestyles (why should the company effective pay people with kids/gym habits/ interests in dance/etc. more?)
Hey! (Score:1)
How to get the IT workforce working at home (Score:1)
If you have somebody to manage your ITs and they cannot understand the first technical thing that is said to them, fire that useless bastard.
2.
If control and monitoring are such a vital issue, have mandatory company network logon times to start work, monitor changes in files, and all other activities that makes people in charge feel like they really are important.
3.
Provide the tools or access to them at home that they have at the workplace. (This does not include coffee)
4.
Chart and progress work to show accomplishments, send status reports, make the work you accomplish known.
5.
Push the environmental holocaust we are causing by needless drives, wasted paper, and any other angle you can use.
The money saved alone from firing micromanagement middlefools and most management in general would afford a company enough to either fatten their pockets or increase employee loyalty. If you find your work at home employee not performing up to par, fire them just as you would if they were in the office. I would also tend to agree with a statement I read from another reply, I would be more inclined to work if I were at home relaxed, comfortable, and not harrassed and pestered by sales,management,and an ever ringing phone. I would not be pressed to get out of the office to escape office politics and other BS, and thus would not want to walk away so fast from code I am working on. I consider myself an average guy, not too greedy, and I think M-F workweeks should be a standard, vacations should consist of more than 10 days out of 365, a decent salary, and a boss to answer to that understands what I am trying to explain regarding the code and the impact from it.
Nuff said, rather than bitching about it I am going to make it happen. Always some job for an IT in some big city somewhere, consulting or other.
Re: (Score:1)
Re:You pay for the perks (Score:2)
Anything in the office is probably 100% tax free. Anything that goes to the individual is in the grey area.
I can't speak for US laws but here (sweden) where taxes are really high, "is it deductable" is a more important question then "what does it cost"
My cell phone is paid for by my employer. It is classified as a work tool, so it's only a problem if I use it too much for personal calls and my boss doesn't like me. (and, hey, this is sweden everyone has a cell phone, and usually it's not their first one)
A car would not be a good deal for me unless I drive a lot "in the line of duty"
A computer at home could be a work tool or for study. No problem.
Gym fees is deductable up to a certain amount, so most employers will sponsor it with the same amount (roughly 100-150$)
What coders really want!! (Score:2)
Re:excuse me? (Score:1)
All valid points, but they can be overcome. These guys [katipo.co.nz] in my home town seem to manage by not having an office (thereby ensuring office politics are harder) and working over IRC for water cooler chat, meetings, etc.
Free Cars? (Score:1)
Who needs a free car when you can get a free Airplane!
---There is no spoon....---
no kiddin' (Score:3)
The reason is simple. Employers like to be able to pop their heads in your office and demand status updates. They think that if there isn't the constant threat of them walking in, you won't work hard. They don't trust workers. I've thought about this alot. I can't come up with any other compelling reason why telecommuting isn't being more widely adopted.
Re:Work-aholics (Score:2)
Re:All well and good (Score:1)
Re:I thought concubines would top the list (Score:3)
Techies.Com (Score:1)
I've completely given up on them ever completely removing me.
---
seumas.com
billiards (Score:2)
Billiards is a game of planning and execution. It is a game that doesn't require you to be fit. (you know what I mean.) and it's a game that you don't need to develop muscles to play. I think it's EXACTLY a game for us.
So a encourage fellow geeks and geekesses to go to a GOOD pool hall and study the beauty of the game. play some. you can't be productive if you stare at the monitor 20 hours a day.
Re:All well and good (Score:1)
Re:Fooseball & Pool Tables (Score:2)
The dartboard! [capitalnet.com]
Re:All well and good (Score:2)
Comeon, at least you've spoken to the pizza delivery guy.
You pay for the perks (Score:5)
The only perks that make sense are those that can't be replaced by cash. Like things that improve the work environment (I'm sure you can find an alternative if you don't like foosball!).
(Yes, the company may get a better deal on the perks than you would, but I doubt the difference is worth the loss of choice. And yes, an employer has reason to subsidize items that make employees more productive, but I take perks to mean "above what the company should rationally give".)
Flexible Hours, Telecommuting, and More Vacation (Score:5)
Part of the reason companies won't give you flexible hours is because managers like to see what you are doing and know where you are and how to reach you. It's not enough that they make you carry a pager, but they want to be able to pull you into an emergency meeting at any time of the day. They thrive off of consistency in the schedule, not being consistent with your work as much. I think that the only way that we will get flexible hours is when these businesses wake up and become results based rather than time based. If I tell my manager it will take me two months to finish a project working 9 - 5, for 5 days a week, I should also be permitted to work 16 hour days for a month if I want so I can finish the project, then take the next month off. I would have done all the work in the time period that we had arranged, so my benefit would be that I could have the time left over to relax. The problem from a manager's point of view is that they are not trained very well to know if we would B.S. them or not. Sure, I could say it will take a month, but what if my project really only took a week to finish because I wanted to get extra time off to screw around? That isn't honest, and the manager really wouldn't have any way to know. I think we will start on the right path when businesses care more about the results of our work than how long we are sitting around in the office, but there are still those few issues to be resolved.
The same goes for telecommuting with one exception. I would think that technically, we would end up getting more work done if we telecommute rather than go into the office. Personally, I live alone, so there would be no distractions other than what I would create for myself. If I were to sit down and start coding, then I would probably end up working more hours at home sitting on the sofa with a laptop than I would if I were stuck in a cubicle being distracted by everyone surrounding me, and all the additional office politics. I think the only disadvantage to telecommuting is that my boss would not know what I am doing very much, so unless he arranged for me to send him status reports or something, he would be completely in the dark and appear stupid to his boss. Also, there is the cost, as a lot of companies that have employees that telecommute pay twice for equipment. Most people will telecommute only part of the time, but also need a desk to sit at for the days they do need to go in to work. I think we are getting closer though, and if the government gives more tax breaks and such for companies that have a lot of telecommuters, businesses will let more of us do it.
Also, about vacation time. We need more of it. I really don't like how most businesses in the U.S. expect us to work all but 2 weeks out of the year. I heard that in Germany you get 2 months minimum. Why is it that our culture has moved from living life for yourself and family (if you have one) to living to serve a company? I work hard for my employer, and expect them to work hard to make me happy in exchange for it. A lot of what they do is very superficial, and it is much cheaper to spend $200 on a ping pong table than it is to let all the employees have a month of vacation time. They only pay lip service to trying to satisfy the employees, and really just use it as an excuse to try to get us to work longer. We really need some reform in business in general so that the U.S. can rise up to the labor standards of civilized nations.
Other than that, I do think that there are some things that can be done to make us happier. I would think this applies to all industries, not just information technology. I think that since the I.T. field is supposed to be high tech, our jobs and business processes should be also. We have a lot of stuff on the web already for HR, Purchasing, Help Desks, etc in a lot of companies. Why can't the companies themselves live up to the potential of what we are giving them?
Absolutely right. (Score:2)
I used to work for a company that had free beer on site. They (correctly) assumed that all 150 of us were adults and that we'd be responsible about it.
So what happens when your team puts in a really rough day of coding? The whole team can sit around and enjoy a mug of beer together. Gives everyone some time to relax and chat. And it's easier to get people together for this at work then to get people to go out to do this.
And when something good happens to the team? Same thing -- have a beer. Need to have a hard talk with someone? Do it over a brew. Seldom did anyone get stupid about it; it was usually just one shared mug before going home.
Heck, half the company would gather together Wednesday nights when they refilled the beer fridge to hang out. Camraderie? Heck yes. And brainstorming when you're relaxed and happy is WAY easier.
Re:Guess what. I have friends. (Score:2)
This is why we have Perl, Cron and bad IRC/ICQ/whatever-messaging-system-you-use-to-talk
Telecommuting sucked (Score:5)
This extended into travel where I was expected to work 24/7 (here, literally 24/7), because it was a "work trip" and (get this) "people in the real world don't get time off during a work trip". (Comp time was also an unknown concept.)
I'm much happier in my new job. I don't telecommute - ever. I get in before 8 and usually leave before 5 (so I know what evenings are like - and sunsets are so pretty!). I'll work extra hours and some weekends when there is *need* but manager apprehension based upon someone else's inability to set a workable schedule isn't a need - it's a failure in the system that should be held accountable before any cleanup is performed.
We'd be a LOT better off if we'd adopt this maxim and STICK TO IT: if your job requires more than 1/3rd of your time (i.e., 8 hours a day), then not enough resources are being placed on those tasks, and something needs to be fixed. Or, to put it another way, the company is placing an unfair burden on you (unless there is some kind of compensation to make up for it --- though I would also add unless the situation is clearly temporary).
If you break it down to 1/3rd sleep (which we need), 1/3rd work (which [most of us] need to get the $$$ for shelter, food, and entertainment) and 1/3rd time for us, it makes sense that our own time should equal or exceed the time we spend at work. I've found my live a LOT more fun and a LOT less stressed once I started guarding my own interests with the same loyalty that I guard my company's.
Anything less would be uncivilized. :-)
Re:All well and good (Score:2)
I would NOT telecommute more than 3 days/week EVER AGAIN
Telecommuting is Common Sense Option (Score:2)
It's time to bring some Common Sense to this discussion.
Firstly what is a Techie? It's vague and self serving to the lowest denominator. It implies computer hobbyist, not a High Technology Professional. There is a world of difference between the IT Literate and Software, Network or Systems Engineer; it's like comparing a first aider to a Trauma surgeon.
It must be remembered that old style hierarchical & authoritarian managers are trained as lawyers and accountants, these are boring, repetitive and non productive tasks, that require massive amounts of money to motivate somebody to do them. PHB are therefore constrained to think in only these terms.
They don't get IT; and because of this they fear IT; they don't understand that High Tech Professionals are highly trained, self motivated individuals. IT is performed by people with passion and skill for the subject.
As a High Tech Professionals, we are quite capable of deciding when Telecommuting / Home working is appropriate. There are times when it is, just as there are times when Office Working is more appropriate. The idea that High Tech Professionals would spend all day playing Quake is as absurd as the idea that we should spend all day cutting code, or all day in meetings.
Telecommuting is not a perk its Common Sense Option to a High Tech Professional.
l33t .com (Score:2)
-redial
SSSSHHH!!!! (Score:5)
SHHHH!!! Keep it down! We don't want the boss to realize that we are really going to go to Las Vegas for the week, where the concubines are!
Irrational Fears of Telecommuting (Score:2)
Re:Home sweet home (Score:2)
I've got a company supplied PC to my specs, cable modem (maybe adsl soon). They also supply the pager and cell phone. I don't need a health club membership, the places I go don't work that way. So out of the top 5 I'm only out the car but they even offered a loan at a very good rate.
As far as the bottom 5, I've got a pool table, my t-shirts don't like drycleaning, I can't dance, and I don't like the idea of the company paying for a haircut.
One thing to consider is what happens to your "free stuff" when you change jobs. It looks like these perks may just be a another way to lock people into a position.
And I'm working right now...and next week I start a two week vacation.
Well.. (Score:2)
I find that when I'm at home, relaxed, listening to whatever I feel like listening too, my creativity flows like a faucet -- I'm a productive dynamo!
Plus, by telecommuting, all of my computer stuff is tax-deductable
------------
CitizenC
Biggest barriers to telecommuting (Score:2)
2) If deals were worked out with coders that 1) here's your computer and T1 line and VPN 2) here's your workload, including deadlines and deliverables and specs 3) Complete said work by said date on your own time, and we're all happy... then managers might be held to the same standard.
3) If you work with sensitive information or with hardware that companies would get VERY nervous with people leaving them just in their homes (employee's house gets broken into, the prototype is stolen, etc) forget it..
But the BIGGEST reason is...
Dear God, managers would have to MANAGE. They'd have to sit down and spec stuff out, do their jobs etc. rather than get paid to walk around scowling to try and raise efficiency, while having endless "meetings" and wearing suits to look important.
Re:Broadband... (Score:2)
Guess what. I have friends. (Score:4)
My girlfriend works, so she'd get me up in the morning with a coffee (like she does anyway, bless her).
I'd (probably) have to log on to my companies network by a fixed time, so thats not a problem.
Telecommuting would be the best thing that could happen to my social life.
Infact, convincing my friends to leave me alone while I'm working would be the most difficult bit.
Finnally, SHUT THE F*CK UP. Its people like you that scare the PHBs off of telecommuting. They assume whe are all as undisiplined as you, and need watching to make sure we work. Well I don't, I can get my work done on time without micromanagement. Don't ruin it for the rest of us.
Thad
Market Yourself - Tips for High-Tech Consultants (Score:2)
No, this is not spam telling you how to get rich quick stuffing envelopes.
There's more to it, but one of the essential things you need to know is how to find clients. It's easy to do, using the web. Please read:
Market Yourself - Tips for High-Tech Consultants [goingware.com]
A business tips from GoingWare's Bag of Programming Tricks [goingware.com]. You'll find other helpful articles there on the business and technique of computer programming.
The way a PHB sees it... (Score:2)
Re:excuse me? (Score:4)
- Out of sight, out of mind: I'm not just talking about being able to goof off all day . A lot of places work on the basis of office politics; like every other social situation, it's inevitable. You're not going to be thought of in as good a light if you're never around, and though you may not care right now, you will when the person who doesn't get as much done get the promotion you wanted because they were at the office every day, and stayed in the head of their boss. I'm not saying this is good, or bad, merely that it is.
- Knowledge sharing: I've found (as someone who is the first to admit that I don't even know a lil' bit of everything) that a good deal of what I've picked up has been odd random geeky junk from being able to wander into the other programmers' cubes and gossipping. Ditto for weird conversations at lunch. And it's a lot easier to help someone out (and, in turn, be helped) when you have a physical presence.
- Gripability: This is more important than it may seem. If I'm having a tough time with something outside of work, it's a lot easier to get a little sympathy if I'm there to whine in person. Ditto with saying, "well, I've gotta skip out tomorrow afternoon, but I'll make it up during the rest of the week."
I'm not against the idea of telecommuting, just that it's not a good all-the-time solution. I find that most of the really kick-ass programmers around me show up two days a week; it's enough time to ask and be asked questions, let people know you're alive, transfer all that weird stuff which never gets documented but is vital to getting your product to compile correctly, etc.
Some of this may not matter to everyone who is expected to work 70+ hours a week anyhow. In this case, the best thing I can say is that you need to show up to work, quit, and find a better job. Never discount the fact that your job/company/chosen locale just sucks, and all the telecommuting in the world isn't going to change what the real problems are.
Re:Flexible Hours, Telecommuting, and More Vacatio (Score:2)
But there is a fundamental problem in project oriented telecomuting, like in your example with a two months porject. If it takes you two working month to complete it, sure no employer would care to much how you get there.
The problem is when that project (as so many others), turns out to be more complicated than planned.
What if it takes four month of work to complete due to an unforceable complication?
Now the trouble begins!
How can the employer tell the difference between the worker being layzy and creating/presenting complications to save him from the fact that he quaked away the first two months and a real complication?
This is where the cubicles enter the scene!
If they know you been working hard on this, it's easier for you to get the extra time or assistance to complete the job
Otherwise you easally end up in an unplesent negotioation situation, I've been ther in both roles, it isn't funny for either part...
Perks the company wants (Score:4)
Getting folks to work together smoothly & efficiently is more then sticking them in a series of nearby workspaces and forcing them to attend the same meetings. Rather it involves a series of techniques that include lubricating the social processes that lead to effective group brainstorming, problem-resolution, pride-in-product & esprit de corps. With these in place management can expect greater creativity, less conflict, higher productivity, improved quality and less staff turnover. Without these social underpinnings the opposite occurs.
Table-Tennis (forbid we ever call it "Ping-Pong"!) , Nerf shoot-outs & the occasionial game of pick-up basketball offer the staff opportunities to interact together in fun ways that both reward them with pleasurable/refreshing breaks from their work & opportunities to improve their interpersonal relationships. Research has consistantly shown that folks who play well together work well together & are happier about it.
That these are seen as "perks" is interesting but ultimately irrelevant. They're not supplied in order to reward individual employeees but rather to constructively improve the overall work environment. If it wasn't games & toys supplied it would be other team-building activities like shared challenges, unusual situations or other joint social activities (preferably involving groups eating together - shared meals are a powerful bonding activity.)
If all of this sounds rather calculating and artificial remember it's no more then so then the company evaluating your worth, loyalty, other opportunities, etc. & determining how much of a bonus to give you. It also the same calculation staff use when deciding to jump ship or not.
Indeed it many cases this engineering should be appreciated. Most folks can recount unpleasent experiences with workplaces where folks didn't function well together & stress became excessive, relationships were unpleasent & the general tenor was not one they enjoyed. If some effort is taken to promote a positive workplace then all benefit from it; employer & employees alike.
By the way, this isn't all squishy HR-drivel. I'm a Tech Manager who long ago learned that keeping staff happy & productive is more then giving them clear direction & hot toys but also making sure their jobs are rewarding & the environment convivial. If it comes down to my buying a half-dozen folks the latest cellphone-du-jure or a office pinball machine they can all bang on, singly & together then I'm going for the most good (for the company) for the greatest number. The phones would make a few happy for a short while when they're off-site. The pinball gets more of them involved with eachother & out of their cubes for some cobweb-clearing sessions that just might become brainstorming sessions.
Re:You pay for the perks (Score:2)
So if they pay for a car, you can drive a $40k car instead of a $20k car for the same cost to your take home pay.
I'd love to move even my monthly cell-phone and internet access bill to pre-tax money. That would save me close to $500 a year.
For non-Americans, YMMV.
Work-aholics (Score:3)
Re:The Evolution of a Programmer (Score:3)
10 PRINT "HELLO WORLD"
20 END
First year in College
program Hello(input, output)
begin
writeln('Hello World');
end.
Senior year in College
(defun hello
(print
(cons 'Hello (list 'World))))
New professional
#include
void main(void)
{
char *message[] = {"Hello ", "World"};
int i;
for(i = 0; i < 2; ++i)
printf("%s", message[i]);
printf("\n");
}
Seasoned professional
#include
#include
class string
{
private:
int size;
char *ptr;
public:
string() : size(0), ptr(new char('\0')) {}
string(const string &s) : size(s.size)
{
ptr = new char[size + 1];
strcpy(ptr, s.ptr);
}
~string()
{
delete [] ptr;
}
friend ostream &operator << (ostream & const string &
string &operator=(const char *);
};
ostream &operator << (ostream &stream, const string &s)
{
return(stream << s.ptr);
}
string &string::operator=(const char *chrs)
{
if (this != &chrs)
{
delete [] ptr;
size = strlen(chrs);
ptr = new char[size + 1];
strcpy(ptr, chrs);
}
return(*this);
}
int main()
{
string str;
str = "Hello World";
cout << str << endl;
return(0);
}
Master Programmer
[
uuid(2573F8F4-CFEE-101A-9A9F-00AA00342820)
]
library LHello
{
importlib("actimp.tlb");
importlib("actexp.tlb");
#include "pshlo.idl"
[
uuid(2573F8F5-CFEE-101A-9A9F-00AA00342820)
]
cotype THello
{
interface IHello;
interface IPersistFile;
};
};
[
exe,
uuid(2573F890-CFEE-101A-9A9F-00AA00342820)
]
module CHelloLib
{
importheader();
importheader();
importheader();
importheader("pshlo.h");
importheader("shlo.hxx");
importheader("mycls.hxx");
importlib("actimp.tlb");
importlib("actex.tlb");
importlib("thlo.tl");
[
uuid(2573F891-CFEE-101A-9A9F-00AA00342820),
aggregatable
]
coclass CHello
{
cotype THello;
};
};
#include "ipfix.hxx"
extern HANDLE hEvent;
class CHello : public CHelloBase
{
public:
IPFIX(CLSID_CHello);
CHello(IUnknown *pUnk);
~CHello();
HRESULT __stdcall PrintSz(LPWSTR pwszString);
private:
static int cObjRef;
};
#include
#include
#include
#include
#include "thlo.h"
#include "pshlo.h"
#include "shlo.hxx"
#include "mycls.hxx"
int CHello:cObjRef = 0;
CHello::CHello(IUnknown *pUnk) : CHelloBase(pUnk)
{
cObjRef++;
return;
}
HRESULT __stdcall CHello::PrintSz(LPWSTR pwszString)
{
printf("%ws\n", pwszString);
return(ResultFromScode(S_OK));
}
CHello::~CHello(void)
{
cObjRef--;
if( cObjRef == 0 )
PulseEvent(hEvent);
return;
}
#include
#include
#include "pshlo.h"
#include "shlo.hxx"
#include "mycls.hxx"
HANDLE hEvent;
int _cdecl main(
int argc,
char * argv[]
) {
ULONG ulRef;
DWORD dwRegistration;
CHelloCF *pCF = new CHelloCF();
hEvent = CreateEvent(NULL, FALSE, FALSE, NULL);
CoInitiali, NULL);
CoInitializeEx(NULL, COINIT_MULTITHREADED);
CoRegisterClassObject(CLSID_CHello, pCF, CLSCTX_LOCAL_SERVER,
REGCLS_MULTIPLEUSE, &dwRegistration);
WaitForSingleObject(hEvent, INFINITE);
CoRevokeClassObject(dwRegistration);
ulRef = pCF->Release();
CoUninitialize();
return(0); }
extern CLSID CLSID_CHello;
extern UUID LIBID_CHelloLib;
CLSID CLSID_CHello = {
> */
0x2573F891,
0xCFEE,
0x101A,
{ 0x9A, 0x9F, 0x00, 0xAA, 0x00, 0x34, 0x28, 0x20 }
};
UUID LIBID_CHelloLib = {
> */
0x2573F890,
0xCFEE,
0x101A,
{ 0x9A, 0x9F, 0x00, 0xAA, 0x00, 0x34, 0x28, 0x20 }
};
#include
#include
#include
#include
#include
#include "pshlo.h"
#include "shlo.hxx"
#include "clsid.h"
int _cdecl main(
int argc,
char * argv[]
) {
HRESULT hRslt;
IHello *pHello;
ULONG ulCnt;
IMoniker * pmk;
WCHAR wcsT[_MAX_PATH];
WCHAR wcsPath[2 * _MAX_PATH];
wcsPath[0] = '\0';
wcsT[0] = '\0';
if( argc > 1) {
mbstowcs(wcsPath, argv[1], strlen(argv[1]) + 1);
wcsupr(wcsPath);
}
else {
fprintf(stderr, "Object path must be specified\n");
return(1);
}
if(argc > 2)
mbstowcs(wcsT, argv[2], strlen(argv[2]) + 1);
else
wcscpy(wcsT, L"Hello World");
printf("Linking to object %ws\n", wcsPath);
printf("Text String %ws\n", wcsT);
hRslt = CoInitializeEx(NULL, COINIT_MULTITHREADED);
if(SUCCEEDED(hRslt)) {
hRslt = CreateFileMoniker(wcsPath, &pmk);
if(SUCCEEDED(hRslt))
hRslt = BindMoniker(pmk, 0, IID_IHello, (void **)&pHello);
if(SUCCEEDED(hRslt)) {
pHello->PrintSz(wcsT);
Sleep(2000);
ulCnt = pHello->Release();
}
else
printf("Failure to connect, status: %lx", hRslt);
CoUninitialize();
}
return(0);
}
Apprentice Hacker
#!/usr/local/bin/perl
$msg="Hello, world.\n";
if ($#ARGV >= 0) {
while(defined($arg=shift(@ARGV))) {
$outfilename = $arg;
open(FILE, "$gt;" . $outfilename) || die "Can't write $arg:
> $!\n";
print (FILE $msg);
close(FILE) || die "Can't close $arg: $!\n";
}
} else {
print ($msg);
}
1;
Experienced Hacker
#include
#define S "Hello, World\n"
main(){exit(printf(S) == strlen(S) ? 0 : 1);}
Seasoned Hacker
% cc -o a.out ~/src/misc/hw/hw.c
% a.out
Guru Hacker
% cat
Hello, world.
^^D
AXE System programmer
LL0:
_main:
!#PROLOGUE# 0
sethi %hi(LF26),%g1
add %g1,%lo(LF26),%g1
save %sp,%g1,%sp
!#PROLOGUE# 1
L30:
L32:
set L32,%o0
call _strlen,1 > nop
mov %o0,%i5 > set L30,%o0
call _printf,1
nop > cmp %o0,%i5
bne L2000000
nop
mov 0,%o0
b L2000001
nop
L2000000:
mov 0x1,%o0
L2000001:
call _exit,1
nop
LE26:
ret
restore
LF26 = -96
LP26 = 96
LST26 = 96
LT26 = 96
0000000 0103 0107 0000 0060 0000 0020 0000 0000
0000020 0000 0030 0000 0000 0000 0054 0000 0000
0000040 033f ffff 8200 63a0 9de3 8001 1100 0000
0000060 9012 2000 4000 0000 0100 0000 ba10 0008
0000100 1100 0000 9012 2000 4000 0000 0100 00 ba10 0008
0000100 1100 0000 9012 2000 4000 0000 0100 0000
0000120 80a2 001d 1280 0005 0100 0000 9010 2000
0000140 1080 0003 0100 0000 9010 2001 4000 0000
0100 0000 81c7 e008 81e8 0000 0000 0000
0000200 4865 6c6c 6f2c 2057 6f72 6c64 0a00 4865
0000220 6c6c 6f2c 2057 6f72 6c64 0a00 0000 0000
0000240 0000 000c 0000 0608 0000 006e 0000 0010
0000260 0000 060b 0000 006e 0000 0014 0000 0286
0000300 ffff ffec 0000 0020 0000 0608 0000 0060
0000320 0000 0024 0000 060b 0000 0060 0000 0028
0000340 0000 0186 ffff ffd8 0000 004c 0000 0386
0000360 ffff ffb4 0000 0004 0500 0000 0000 0000
0000400 0000 000a 0100 0000 0000 0000 0000 0012
0000420 0100 0000 0000 0000 0000 001a 0100 0000
0000440 0000 0000 0000 0020 5f6d 6169 6e00 5f70
0000460 7269 6e74 6600 5f73 7472 6c65 6e00 5f65
0000500 7869 7400
0000504
% axe_generate -f system.uhdl
Application 'Exchange' generated
2324042350000000 source code lines
No Errors detected.
Hardware retrieval...done OK
Certification Test...done OK
Packing..............done OK
Delivery.............done OK
Application 'Exchange' delivered to customer
3456000 bytes/sec.
End processing, 2345 seconds.
Ultra high level programmer
system.uhdl :
SYSTEM
CREATE ScreenWin
SIZE 20000000/Unit=One
DESTINATION Order.dest[One]
OUTPUT CHARACTER['Hello world']
END
END
New Manager
10 PRINT "HELLO WORLD"
20 END
Middle Manager
mail -s "Hello, world." bob@b12
Bob, could you please write me a program that prints
"Hello, world."? I need it by tomorrow.
^^D
Senior Manager
% zmail all
I need a "Hello, world." program by this afternoon.
Chief Executive
% message
message: Command not found
% pm
pm: Command not found
% letter
letter: Command not found.
% mail
To: ^^X ^^F ^^C
> help mail
help: Command not found.
what
what: Command not found
need help
need: Command not found
damn!
!: Event unrecognized
exit
exit: Unknown
quit
%
% logout
Re:Err... (Score:2)
Suprise Suprise (Score:5)
And THe BIGGEST reason of all
Re:Guess what. I have friends. (Score:2)
Comments pertaining to cron jobs are nieve, and irresponsable.
Thad
Thad
Re:Work-aholics (Score:2)
Boss dials 555-1212.
"I'm sorry, but the customer you have just dialed is either out of ranger or has deactivated their cell phone. Please try your call again."
Boss bitches at employee for not keeping company phone on.
If you leave the phone on and turn down the ringer, the boss still knows you aren't answering it when it rings 20 times. Then he bitches at you again.
Either way you look at it, a cell phone makes life hard if you don't want to be contacted.
How about rational management? (Score:5)
- Requirements gathering is important and must be done first, not in the middle
- Meeting with end-users and domain experts is vital
- A user interface is not something tacked on at the end
- Changing requirements means changing deadlines
And not to pick only on management, but for those of us who are employees, why do we put up with:- Changing requirements without change in deadlines
- 70, 80, 90+ hour weeks
- Inflexible work hours
- Stupid rules and politics
Why don't we just leave for a better job? Yes, not everyone can get up and leave, but as a former consultant I've seen far too many people who could easily find another job with a better environment but don't.I'll gladly work at even a semi-rational company and buy my own coffee and soda.
Re:Work-aholics (Score:2)
I don't want tools that let me take work home with me after hours, I want tools that will let me keep my work here and make my own hours.
Re:excuse me? (Score:2)
In a sensible world, software developers would all telecommute - better for us, better for the companies, better for the environment, even better for those for whom the nature of their job prohibits telecommuting since we won't be clogging the roads.
Working from home (Score:2)
In fact, we have a distributed company where most employees do not work from the office. We either work from home or are on the road. Files are centrally located so they can be accessed from anywhere.
However, it is NOT for everyone. You must be self-motivated, driven, resourceful, focused, and trustworthy.
PRO's
Flexibility -- Take the kids to the doctors if needed and make up the hours later in the evening. Get up later and work late if that is more productive.
Efficiency -- Work when the the ideas flow. Don't bang your head against a wall for hours just because you are at the office.
Atmosphere -- Fewer interuptions. Close to the fridge. Don't have to listen to 5 other people's choice in music.
CON's
Consuming -- Easier to put in WAY more time because the office is right here.
Solitude -- Sometimes it is nice to discuss problems with peers, face to face.
All in all, it is the best arrangement for me. And the company gets more out of me without it hurting too much.
Re:You pay for the perks (Score:3)
Re:Err... (Score:4)
Re:All well and good (Score:4)
If I want to be social, I'll get together with a friend in the evening, or head down to my favorite bar for a beer or three.
Hmmm... I don't think so. (Score:3)
The place I work at now is terrific - great people, good policies, and we get to have a lot more fun than most companies allow. But imagine if someone said "You're going back to the 9-5, shirt-and-tie, cubicle-dwelling lifestyle. And we're going to double your pay." Would I take it? You betcha.
steve
Re:Suprise Suprise (Score:3)
I used to think that way. Then we hired a gorgeous chick for sales. And since she's new, she always has to ask me how to do things. Hmmm.... life isn't so bad any more. ; )
steve
Re:I thought concubines would top the list (Score:2)
Hell, I haven't worn clothes in six months.
(Actually, I often code at home in my underwear... people wonder why it takes so long for me to answer the door. I can just roll out of bed with an idea, and start coding... take a shower about noon, do a late lunch. One day a week at the office to syncronize planning face to face, and one large group conference call at the other end of the week to review progress. Additionally, I do laundry less often).
--
Evan
Re:I thought concubines would top the list (Score:2)
-C
Hours (Score:4)
As long as you make your meetings and you are fairly consistent and you do your work well and prove to be doing what your being paid to do I really like the idea of real flexible hours.
Being able to come in at 10 or 11 and work into the wee hours of the night, especially when you are already putting a 70 hour work week how can anyone complain about you wanting to come in a lil late or early?
That is how it is at our company granted there are only a few of us we get our jobs done weve all worked some crazy hours, and we never get in trouble for being in at 9:30, or 10 some days especially around deadline time when you are working so many hours, its quite dificult to keep up being up that early and staying mentally focused working so many hours without decent amounts of sleep
For some things and huge companies where timing is everything its important to be in on time, but with software rarely does your day to day presence unless dealing with a *lot* of clients make much of a difference. I think if a company wants to hire someone that should be something to look at... ?
Well I enjoy it and I know it makes me a lot more at ease about working insane hours
Jeremy
Home sweet home (Score:3)
I don't need any other perk. I need to get an assignment, e-mail it in, and have money appear at regular intervals in my bank account.
Make it the right amount of money and I'll buy my own car, my own pool table, in my own house, which could be anywhere I fancy living.
Under those conditions I'll be happy as the proverbial pig in shit and do damn fine work to boot.
The company would save the money on my parking space, cubicle, electric use etc.
Sounds like a deal to me.
Re:You pay for the perks (Score:2)
How about leave (paid or unpaid)?? (Score:2)
I'll happily pay for most "perks" out of my own pocket, thankuveddymuch, if I am pulling a decent wage. What I want is my desired work schedule. I am flatly uninterested in working "full time" (as defined in the US). I don't want to work 40/50 (40hrs/week X 50wks/yr). I want ideally to work 35/40.
For all that companies like to think of themselves as being competitive at hiring, I have yet to find one un-rigid enough to think that minimal distance outside the box.
Wait a second (Score:2)
Re:What coders really want!! (Score:2)
And now, from a real telecommuter (Score:2)
The trend reports are all well and good, but predicting X million telecommuters by 200X makes people think that everyone is going to working out of their homes in the future. This is NOT the case.
Telecommuting is not for everyone. If you're an extrovert or other social creature, stay at the office. (And don't you dare draw a corollary, that telecommuters are social outcasts.) If you don't like telecommuting, don't do it, but don't shoot down the option for people who it is good for.
Now for my experience: I recently moved 200 miles out of the metro. I work for a company that values people and their work/life balance. My boss is incrediblely supportive of the arrangements.
My drive to work is 3.5 hours each way, but I only have to do that once every 3-4 weeks. Even if I had to come in every other week, it's the same amount of time in the car as living in the city. Plus, since my official place of work is home, I get to submit mileage.
As for being out of touch for knowledge sharing and networking, I'm in better contact with people than I was at the office. Instant Messaging is a crucial tool to combat this.
I keep regular work hours. By the time 5pm rolls around, I've been coding all day, and I'm ready to QUIT. When you're so productive without the distractions, you don't need the long hours to get the same quantity of work done.
At the office, lunch was a productive time - I'd eat hunched at my desk glad that the phone and email deluge tapered off. Then I'd keep working all afternoon and wonder why I feel burnt out. At home, I get a good meal, and a wonderful mental break that prepares me for the afternoon efforts. If it's nice weather, I can take the dogs for a walk in the woods.
If you want telecommuting, pursue it. If you don't, stay out of the way of the people that do. It's paradise for some, but not the end of the world for others.
Ping pong, good! (Score:3)
No surprise there (Score:2)
Re:The Evolution of a Programmer (Score:2)