> But as a manager, I see that it's just so far less effective
As a manager I can't disagree more.
Remote really is a horses for courses situation.
Practical example: my younger brother worked as a designer for a company that manufactured light steel frames. Their USP was that their design office was attached to their factory, so they were able to provide better designs with a faster turnaround on manufacturing. Despite living a 20 minute drive from his office, he felt that his ability to have these conversations ad-hoc helped him do his job better. Slack would never work because the lads on the floor were never going to pop that up. Also, it physically can't replace him going onto the factory floor to see what a problem was and being able to adapt his designs. He'd occasionally go on-site for construction issues but this, naturally, is a case where the site has to be away from the office; it might be on the other side of the UK.
In contrast, I'm a manager at a fully remote software company (a very successful software company, I might add). The simple truth is that most of our work can be handled remotely. The biggest challenge is getting the right people together. This isn't a remote/office issue, though. I saw this in my office-based role previously, as well as hearing it from all my (office-based) friends.
If you have something in software engineering that you feel requires people to be fully in-office, please raise it and I'll try to outline how we manage that.
This, we have been working remotely for almost 10 years. You can be as effective as in the office and even better, but it also depends on the type of work you do.
As a manager I can't disagree more.
Remote really is a horses for courses situation.
Practical example: my younger brother worked as a designer for a company that manufactured light steel frames. Their USP was that their design office was attached to their factory, so they were able to provide better designs with a faster turnaround on manufacturing. Despite living a 20 minute drive from his office, he felt that his ability to have these conversations ad-hoc helped him do his job better. Slack would never work because the lads on the floor were never going to pop that up. Also, it physically can't replace him going onto the factory floor to see what a problem was and being able to adapt his designs. He'd occasionally go on-site for construction issues but this, naturally, is a case where the site has to be away from the office; it might be on the other side of the UK.
In contrast, I'm a manager at a fully remote software company (a very successful software company, I might add). The simple truth is that most of our work can be handled remotely. The biggest challenge is getting the right people together. This isn't a remote/office issue, though. I saw this in my office-based role previously, as well as hearing it from all my (office-based) friends.
If you have something in software engineering that you feel requires people to be fully in-office, please raise it and I'll try to outline how we manage that.