164. Remote Spaces with Esther Derby

As developers, we have likely had experiences with remote work before the pandemic, but now, the context of remote working has completely changed. The blurred lines between work and home life have brought an array of stressors that people have to face. Joining us today to talk about how to make this new kind of remote work the best it can be is a friend of the show, Esther Derby! As a programmer who was promoted to manager, Esther realized that management required an entirely different set of skills that are often taken for granted, and she now dedicates herself to making work more humane. In this episode, we talk about how not sharing physical space can affect collaboration. So many opportunistic conversations and interactions are possible when you are around your teammates. While this can happen remotely, it requires more intention and effort to get to know your team members outside of work. Esther and Dave share experiences of how they have done this on projects they have worked on. We also get into how managers should deal with this type of remote work. Esther believes that there needs to be a move away from micromanagement and a shift towards more flexible, trust-filled work experiences. She shares some of the ways managers can foster trust and collaboration, while still allowing great freedom. Along with this, we also touch on facilitation and ensuring everyone feels they have opportunities to contribute, why managers need to have one-on-one time with the individuals on their teams, and why remote work can be more productive than in-office work. Tune in today!