Author Topic: Office relocation with fewer public transport options - suggestions?  (Read 8193 times)

Ben T

Re: Office relocation with fewer public transport options - suggestions?
« Reply #50 on: 28 January, 2020, 12:42:51 pm »
It's no surprise that the vast majority of distributed teams are significantly less effective and/or productive than in office teams. It's much easier for people to hide when most people are WFH.

What you say is only the case if people want to hide. If they actually want to get a job done and are 'engaged' with the business then they can be more productive WFH.

I appreciate that it's harder for some businesses to get people engaged, though, because the bigger they are, the more processes they have to have and the more reasons there are for people not to be engaged. Shouldn't be impossible though.

It really boils down to does the business trust its staff.
The last company I worked at sort of allowed working from home, but begrudged it: if you asked 'can I work from home tomorrow', the response would be 'well, I'd rather you didn't'... but if you just took the liberty anyway, they wouldn't complain, as long as you showed having done some work.
They didn't really trust the staff, and they definitely saw it as a "treat", as in, they used offering it as a carrot to dangle, or withdrawing it as a stick to beat with, as appropriate. I think from this perspective the business needs a very fair policy as well, i.e., either everybody's allowed to work from home whenever they want, or no-one is. If some are allowed and some aren't, then there's bound to be resentment.
They were the sort of company that has to employ managers to make sure people are doing their job, because they don't provide them with sufficient reason to want to do it of their own accord. Like I say - this is harder the bigger the business imho, but by no means impossible.

In contrast my current company is fully bought into working from home, it trusts its staff, and essentially relies on us being engaged, but is small enough to know that they are. It measures productivity by what we deliver and communicate, rather than how many hours they can physically see us in front of a computer... (I specifically went for it for that reason).

Personally, I resent presenteeism and am (was) willing to go to a lot of effort to avoid having to spend upwards of an hour or two hours travelling back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, forth and back.... same old route, same old traffic, day after day.


(In terms of laptops the one work got me turned out to be exactly the same model as my existing home one, just slightly higher spec... so conveniently fits into the existing docking station :) )

Re: Office relocation with fewer public transport options - suggestions?
« Reply #51 on: 28 January, 2020, 01:36:23 pm »
I hate the driving back and forth bit. But my daughter goes to secondary school in September, so I'm gonna have the opportunity to ride. :) Hence why I started this thread (self interest > benevolence ;) ).

We have an office at home, but my wife uses it to run her charity, so it's not helpful for me to work in even if she's not there.

Re: Office relocation with fewer public transport options - suggestions?
« Reply #52 on: 28 January, 2020, 01:50:19 pm »
Highlighting the disparity between money spent on motorists (cost of car parking space for a year) to the relatively minor requirements for cyclists (secure parking, showers, lockers) is one route.

There's also the classic alternative:-
* Monday morning drive to work with bike in the boot of the car
* Monday evening, cycle home leaving car at work
* Tuesday-Thursday: cycle in in the morning, lock bike in car during day, move car to different parking spot to make it less obvious, cycle home in the evening
* Friday, cycle in, lock bike in car, drive home at end of day

(Works if you've got a big enough car that you don't have to disassemble the bike each time, and a car that you don't mind leaving at work all week, and that you can leave it at work all week).

A friend did something similar by leaving work by car every evening but parking up in residential areas near the office so he didn't leave the car in the office car park all week.

Suggest that it would be much cheaper for the company to provide secure parking for a bunch of bikes so that you didn't have to use a parking spot to do the above all week.
"Yes please" said Squirrel "biscuits are our favourite things."

quixoticgeek

  • Mostly Harmless
Re: Office relocation with fewer public transport options - suggestions?
« Reply #53 on: 28 January, 2020, 01:57:18 pm »
Highlighting the disparity between money spent on motorists (cost of car parking space for a year) to the relatively minor requirements for cyclists (secure parking, showers, lockers) is one route.

There's also the classic alternative:-
* Monday morning drive to work with bike in the boot of the car
* Monday evening, cycle home leaving car at work
* Tuesday-Thursday: cycle in in the morning, lock bike in car during day, move car to different parking spot to make it less obvious, cycle home in the evening
* Friday, cycle in, lock bike in car, drive home at end of day

(Works if you've got a big enough car that you don't have to disassemble the bike each time, and a car that you don't mind leaving at work all week, and that you can leave it at work all week).

A friend did something similar by leaving work by car every evening but parking up in residential areas near the office so he didn't leave the car in the office car park all week.

Suggest that it would be much cheaper for the company to provide secure parking for a bunch of bikes so that you didn't have to use a parking spot to do the above all week.

Reminds me of my plan for velomobile storage at home by buying a van and parking it outside my flat...

We really are fucked up when car parking is provided, but cycle parking isn't...

J
--
Beer, bikes, and backpacking
http://b.42q.eu/

Re: Office relocation with fewer public transport options - suggestions?
« Reply #54 on: 24 February, 2020, 02:52:48 pm »
Success of sorts.  :thumbsup:
We're now moving to a different building (in the same business park), with a reasonable bike shelter (proper Sheffield stands, steel roof, back, sides), nice showers in the building, and they will be including a drying area into the office floorplan design. Is there anything else I should push for before the facts on the ground mitigate against it?

I may attempt to create a BUG in the office when I actually start riding. The current business park offers free breakfasts to cyclists once a month, so that will be my first aim. :)

Re: Office relocation with fewer public transport options - suggestions?
« Reply #55 on: 24 February, 2020, 05:47:56 pm »
Sounds like a win to me. :thumbsup:

Push for a free breakfast for cyclists every day, that should get the numbers up  ;D

Re: Office relocation with fewer public transport options - suggestions?
« Reply #56 on: 24 February, 2020, 07:26:00 pm »
Push for a free breakfast for cyclists every day, that should get the numbers up  ;D

Depends on the breakfast.

A few of us at our placed joked that giving out free full-english style breakfasts every day (and no healthy alternative) would be a much cheaper way of sorting out any looming pension crisis[1].

1. We don't have a looming pension crisis as all but the really old-timers were moved off to DC style pensions years ago. There can't be many defined-benefit/final-salary type pensions left.
"Yes please" said Squirrel "biscuits are our favourite things."

quixoticgeek

  • Mostly Harmless
Re: Office relocation with fewer public transport options - suggestions?
« Reply #57 on: 27 February, 2020, 02:24:03 am »
Success of sorts.  :thumbsup:
We're now moving to a different building (in the same business park), with a reasonable bike shelter (proper Sheffield stands, steel roof, back, sides), nice showers in the building, and they will be including a drying area into the office floorplan design. Is there anything else I should push for before the facts on the ground mitigate against it?

I may attempt to create a BUG in the office when I actually start riding. The current business park offers free breakfasts to cyclists once a month, so that will be my first aim. :)

Security cameras covering the bike shed.

It's not perfect, but it's closer to ideal than you previously described. I wouldn't lock my bike up there, but I'm sure most people would.

Well done on your success!

J
--
Beer, bikes, and backpacking
http://b.42q.eu/