So I need to go in to the office for three days. I can't find a desk to reserve except on Friday (as I see everyone wanting to WFH on Friday's and Monday's). Does management mandate which three days everyone is to be in the office versus WFH? If they leave it to first come first serve it will make a mixed martial art cage match look like a tea party.
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@1ldz. Gross!
@duu+1bV9X0dt I don’t share the anxiety about this that some others here do, but I think you make an excellent, logical point. I chuckled because it reminds me of reserved seats at movies. Patrons all have the ability to choose their seat before entering the theatre but at least one group always changes to “better” seats before the film even starts. (You just chose the seats 5 minutes ago and you already need an upgrade?)
Of course someone comes later and has to ask them to move. It’s awkward and disruptive, and of course the squatters are huffing and puffing about it even though they didn’t book the seats.
Lots of companies do it. And some WF buildings in SF have done it for years. So not sure why it elicits such an emotional response from done here. But I agree it can be a hassle.
22 replies and no answers.
OP, its just another poorly thought out surprise any good PM would have seen, and planned a FAQ for. We apparently agiled out all the people who can run projects well.
Its a frigging free for all and contractors wont care about your reservation, your desire to be in a clean space etc.
I can see entire conference room booked for 8 hours for two contractors who dont want to follow rules
I have been in a situation where cubes that I reserved just have someone sitting in them and because it's no longer kindergarten I just found another spot. But this is a legit issue if you are in somewhere like Charlotte where space was already at a premium and a ton of consolidation has happened.
Honestly unless CPG is going to have hall monitors what can you do? I'm not going to move someone's stuff. So I think this is a great in theory convo but I don't see it working unless they add way more space.
@nzb, My wife’s company is full VDI. In her office she has a VDI box that acts has her access point. No laptop or desktop there - screens, mouse, and keyboard are all attached to the box. At home she uses her own laptop and a chipped card that connects via usb to access the VDI. She’s been doing it for years and there is rarely any problem with it.
@tci+1bV9X0dt; your name must be Richard Head and when you shampoo your hair too vigorously you sp-t white. The OP has a legitimate question; there will be days where demand for desks exceeds supply. Also, nothing in the information, provided to date, prevents a manager from dictating which days they can require staff to work in office.
VDI is still a little ways off. When implemented you'd provide your own computer or phone when working remote. I don't think anything has been communicated yet regarding laptop vs desktop vs. phone yet. Top priority is to cut the cost of providing PCs and crank up the info sec.
When we do return to the office, what's the deal with laptops? Isn't there a movement underway to eliminate company-owned laptops? We would supply our own computers. Is the idea that I bring my laptop to the office and plug into some port in my new work area? What if my personal computer is a desktop and not a laptop - am I required to buy a laptop in order to keep my job?
Next challenge for companies with 3/2 model is convincing employees that’s it’s a 5 day work week not 3
This is going to be a fun exercise.
I work a non-standard shift, so I can see the scenario where, after an hour commute to the nearest hub, I show up at the start of my workday (a few hours after everyone else) to a floor full of occupied desks. I spend the next 30 minutes trying to find an open one, only to badge out and drive an hour back home to work. Multiple times per week.
I'll wind up wasting the bank's, and my, time for their short-sighted policy. Just pay me to find a new job already.
Trick question, there won't be enough employees left for a "big in person meeting"! This is why they aren't worried about the number if seats available. Tens of thousands won't be here anymore, and there will be more than enough cubes available. At least until they sell some buildings and stop renewing leases.
Suppose everyone needs to come in for a big in person meeting and it’s a Tuesday when the moon is full and the cafeteria is closed for extermination because a rat was spotted and the president is making an address to the nation in the middle of the day while the building air conditioning is stuck on 60 degrees and no one thought to bring a sweater? Hmmmm? Then what???
@rww+1bV9X0dt there are few constants in life but one of them is expecting adults to act like adults always ends in disappointment.
To the mother rooms!
So will we be hot desking or hoteling? There's a difference:
https://serraview.com/hot-desking-vs-hoteling-vs-flexible-working/
You can work from the bathroom. There are a few comfy seats in their and you don't have to wear pants
If you take PTO on Friday, do you still have to come in three days or just two? Didn’t see that in FAQs or missed it.
If you have to ask this question, then maybe corporate work isn't for you. Seriously. While there may be space challenges, they will get worked out, no one will get fired because of it, and we'll all go about being adults.
They forced a bunch of people to Flex Cubes before in the location I was in, and there weren't enough seats to meet demand despite them telling everyone there would be plenty of flex seats open. So people ended up saying sc--w it and worked from home because they couldn't find seats.
How insulting is it that you/we work for a company that makes $6 billion of profit a quarter and can't have enough seats for us, let alone a permanent seat?! Then, people are undoubtedly going to be forced to relocate to hubs at their expense this Fall and incur costs, only to go to an office where the company they work for doesn't have a permanent seat for them. Think about that one for a moment! This tells you everything you need to know about how the ELT views people here.
Post ID: @uzu+1bV9X0dt - what are you talking about?
"Does management mandate which three days everyone is to be in the office versus WFH?"
"50% percent of the time measured monthly. 20 days in a month then you need to be badged in for at least 10 from what we've been told."
Get there early and camp in a "huddle room". Problem solved.
None of these answer actually answer anything. Its a valid question.
Wow, very dramatic. Work with your boss and figure it out. Wells is not the first company to use hoteling. Deep breaths.
50% percent of the time measured monthly. 20 days in a month then you need to be badged in for at least 10 from what we've been told.
There probably will not be enough desks for everyone. Seen this happen before. But it will still be your fault if you aren't in office.