jssailem
SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
- Oct 22, 2014
- 22,871
Lotus notes. A project out of an Atlanta office. Became friends with an engineer on the development team. Way ahead of their time.
When the boat is your office
- Thread starter T-Schwan
- Start date
That's a very different aspect of managing. How do you keep remote employees from being "invisible"? How do you keep them motivated? How do you build "culture"? There are lots of ways to monitor, not so many ways, at least that I'm aware of, to handle the "soft skills"...
dj
jssailem
SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
- Oct 22, 2014
- 22,871
That is part of what I alluded to about new ways of thinking by leaders. Meeting at the water cooler or going to lunch are no longer viable. Managers really need to extend themselves. Study their team. The advent of cell phones. Put the link in everyone’s hand. It trained the work force to look at the screen for interaction. The last 10-15 years has been the engine to isolate individual bodies yet link them like a Borg collective.
Watch the folks on the street. So glued to the phone in their hand that they will walk into traffic not recognizing that the light is red or green.
This couple produces YouTube videos and has a web site targeting internet connectivity for RV and marine use: Mobile Internet for RV & Boats - Unbiased News, Guidance & Education They seem very well informed and present the concepts in a (semi-)understandable way, considering the complexity. I think they are brand-neutral, so a good research start for comparing plans, equipment, etc.
@Will Gilmore I'm not seeing how any of this promotes the "soft skills" I mentioned.
But I'd wager.... it was not intended to..... hahahahaahhaa
dj
@Will Gilmore - I listed several above. How do you promote employee engagement? How do you make sure employees do not become "invisible" such that they are equally seen for promotions, team work. etc. How do you develop a culture of community making sure employees feel part of the greater organization?If you tell me what exactly soft skills are, I can probably create the relationships that support them for you.
-Will
dj
Ah yes, those. I was actually speaking to those very subjects when I made my flippant quip. This upcoming generation, and even my own, have learned to feel visible in an invisible community. SBO is an excellent example.
We home schooled my daughter for a couple of years. The big concern everyone expressed, when they heard we were doing this, was around socialization. Well, I have to say, my daughter is extraordinarily outgoing and courageous, in part, because the public school culture, primarily directed by other children influenced by media, hadn't been able to beat it out of her.
But more to my point, she accomplished in three hours, four days a week, what school takes seven to eight hours, five days a week to provide. The rest of the time can be spent, in the case of a social media savvy generation of workers, building those team building bonds with much less of a sense of inter-office rivalry or competition.
I certainly wouldn't suggest it was a better way, only that it didn't always have the weaknesses we might expect.
-Will
Those soft skills are exactly what remote work can not foster unless there's a morning meeting every day, with two-way interaction (not top-down), goals to reach by the next meeting, and discussion of who needs to collaborate on what. With the cameras on.
Those skills are what changes a bunch of individuals into a cohesive mission-based unit.
It is not the same to be "visible" in an online community as being "visible" in a corporate work environment working remotely. Certainly there are similarities but the work environment has a number of repercussions - job promotions, pay increases, career development. None of those things apply in an online community...
This, in my opinion, is substantially different - learning, teaching, schooling and our current educational systems are totally different from working remotely. In home schooling, the socialization aspect has different levels that depend greatly upon the home schooling environment. One cannot generalize. A "good" home schooling environment can produce excellent results - as you are saying. A "bad" home schooling environment can have the opposite effect....
Definitely agree with the above statement. Working from home, or remotely - doesn't always have to be from home - poses advantages and disadvantages. We are still learning what the true weaknesses are...
dj
It is very hard to foster the soft skills working remotely...I've not done the mandatory morning meeting, but we do have meetings hroughout the week and I make it a point to randomly call folks to just chat - not about work.
The big question for me is how to make that cohesive mission-based unit...
dj
jssailem
SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
- Oct 22, 2014
- 22,871
When I posted about the challenge to management, those are some of the ideas to which I alluded.
The issue of being in the background is not only about remote workers it is also happens in the office or the field. Some employees naturally are outgoing and stand out. Others not so much. How do managers identify performance worthy of advancement, they need to be cognizant of the team players and identify the metrics that are being met from those that are not. In my working world it was distinguish the bull sitter from the accomplishments. Some managers are never capable filtering these issues. The loud and boastful advance. That is when the idea of team gets destroyed and members quietly revolt saying the manager has favorites or he/she is a kiss a$$ watch out if you get paired on the project.
Do you use the RV service? Stationary or mobile hardware? Any lessons to share?
jssailem
SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
- Oct 22, 2014
- 22,871
Mike, the Starlink RV service is still a work in progress as I understand. Steve Mitchell at SeaBits has a review of his use. Starlink flat high performance in-motion dish initial impressions
It is a method I am considering as soon as I wrap up my current projects (pay all the bills).
It is a method I am considering as soon as I wrap up my current projects (pay all the bills).
I'm wondering whether I need to spring for the in-motion hardware at $2500 or whether the $599 standard hardware would work. I know from brief internet browsing that the standard hardware closes the connection above 10 MPH. But on a sailboat, if I'm going faster that 10 MPH, I have other things to focus on.
I should start a separate thread.
Much of the debate about the merits of remote vs. in-office work is generational. Younger folks can exist more readily in an online work community, and, frankly, can be more productive. The biggest opponents in many organizations are the middle managers because remote work is harder to micromanage.
Case in point, my daughter's tech firm went remote for Covid. Last September they asked everyone to come back in three days a week and 10 percent quit because they had moved. When my daughter asked why she should waste time commuting into NYC, she was told by HR that it was so her manager could work with her more closely. She then reminded HR that her manager was in Texas.
All that being said, there is no question that junior people can rise more quickly in a company when they are physically present and seen--although that's not to say those are the best people to promote, just the ones that bad managers recognize.
Case in point, my daughter's tech firm went remote for Covid. Last September they asked everyone to come back in three days a week and 10 percent quit because they had moved. When my daughter asked why she should waste time commuting into NYC, she was told by HR that it was so her manager could work with her more closely. She then reminded HR that her manager was in Texas.
All that being said, there is no question that junior people can rise more quickly in a company when they are physically present and seen--although that's not to say those are the best people to promote, just the ones that bad managers recognize.
jssailem
SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
- Oct 22, 2014
- 22,871
I must have been an anomaly. I spent a career from 1986 till retirement in 2021 working and managing a multi million dollar company that remotely served clients across several states. Age is not the critical factor it is personality and professional responsibility/discipline.
I can agree that management of teams is different. How managers are developed is critical to their ability to manage remotely. Your successful remote personnel are likely to be self starters and complete task oriented projects. The metrics used need to be objective not subjective feel good based. This means managers need to work harder at defining the outcomes and roadmap the progression of steps to on time completion.
Certainly the Covid experience created a paradigm shift for managers. We are beginning to realize these changes and challenges.
I have been using SL RV all winter and it is great. Most sailors I have talked to indicate that they stay connected when sailing without problems. I will be using it for home, boat and motorhome.
Yes, yes, yes, and yes on the boat but not in the motorhone.
It is amazingly unaffected by movement. Many users disconnect the motors and mount them flat.