Distributed work is an approach to work, not just ‘working from home.’
Origen: How we work
Here are some principles of distributed work:
✅ What is distributed work
- Hiring and working from all over the world instead of from one central location.
- Flexible working hours over set working hours.
- The results of work over the hours put in.
- Asynchronous communication over synchronous communication.
- Public sharing of information over need-to-know access.
❌ What distributed is not
- It does not mean alone. Teams should collaborate, communicate, and socialize together just as often as in co-located companies.
- It is not simply offshoring work. Rather, it is hiring around the world.
- It is not a cost-cutting exercise. It is a competitive advantage.
some core principles which guide our approach to async working.
1️⃣ Document everything
2️⃣ Share, share, share
3️⃣ Outputs over inputs
4️⃣ Think about the systems
5️⃣ Assume good intent
6️⃣ Everyone is a moderator
☀️ Follow the Sun
…a set of guidelines, split into four pillars, to empower us to work within our own time zones without losing any of the meaningful connections that we have with our fellow Oysters.
It’s a way of working together without leaving behind our daily life routines, making it easier for us to sign off for the day with trust that our work will continue and no fear that we will be missing out.
🏛️ The Four Pillars of “Follow the Sun”
1️⃣ Project Management
- Well-understood systems and conventions for managing projects and tasks.
- Keeping tasks (and conversations about them) updated with the latest information, so others can easily pick them up.
- Explicit task prioritization, with guidelines and checkpoints for re-prioritization.
- A culture of internal documentation and clear communication about the status of projects and tasks.
2️⃣ Handoff
Handoffs allow our work to Follow the Sun, without requiring individuals to work around the clock. What does this look like?
- Clear communication when handing off tasks or updating their status.
- Well understood habits and processes for handing work to others at the end of the day, week or before you take time off.
- Trust, openness, and assuming best intentions when you’re collaborating asynchronously.
3️⃣ Meetings
Nobody should need to get up at 6am or work until 10pm to attend routine meetings. What does this look like?
- Asynchronous “meetings” for status updates.
- Different types of meetings for different purposes
- Scheduling team meetings & 121s in a way that works for everyone on a team.