Remote Work with Philip Thomas

Offices have historically been the place where most knowledge work takes place.

An office is a central meeting point for everyone in an organization. Offices allow for high bandwidth, in-person communication. Employees have access to shared resources, such as food, tables, and quiet working space. Offices provide a means of encouraging a common culture within a given workplace.

There are also significant downsides to offices–most notably the commute. Employees often spend between one and four hours per day driving to the office. Office work creates a huge restriction for parents with a young child to take care of. Many employees feel more productive when they are working at home, or working from a coffee shop.

Remote work is becoming an increasingly popular mode of work for knowledge workers. Remote work has been made possible by increased bandwidth, more powerful computers, and new communications software such as Slack and Zoom.

Remote work is a powerful trend that is reshaping how knowledge workers spend their time. It is also changing how companies are structured. A “remote first” culture impacts hiring, human resources, engineering, sales, work-life balance and every other aspect of operations. The downstream impacts of remote work will change the labor market even more thoroughly, and cause us to rethink contracting, equity structures, and the traditional five day workweek.

Philip Thomas is the co-founder and CEO of Moonlight Work, a marketplace for software engineers who work on contract projects full-time or part-time. Philip is also the co-author of the Remote Work Encyclopedia, which is a collection of strategies and tactics for knowledge workers and companies that are looking to adapt successfully to the changes that remote work is bringing to the world.

Philip joins the show to discuss remote work and his experience building Moonlight. Full disclosure: I am an investor in Moonlight Work.

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Transcript

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