in-office work > remote work

Note: this post is part of a series about growing your engineering career and targets junior developers.

After what happened during COVID, there is debate about Return To Office (RTO) policies and many engineers claim that remote work is more productive.

The idea that remote work is better than in-office work is a fallacy.

A great team bonds by being together, not by being more isolated from each other. A lot of communication is non-verbal and not-written. Many tools were created to bridge this gap. But nothing comes close to in-person collaboration.

In-office work allows for faster iterations. You get the person you need to talk to immediately, work together on a whiteboard, explain a problem, agree on a solution and implement it in minutes or hours. You review Figma files with your designers right away. You ask questions to other developers and do code reviews in person if necessary. Your iteration loops are smaller. You deliver faster.

In-office works also puts clear boundaries between the work space and your personal space. It defines what behavior is acceptable, about what to do or to say because you do not bring your whole self to work (another fallacy). It brings clarity on what to expect.

Remote work is totally fine if you are well-experienced or if your objective is to give priority to your private life over your professional life. There is absolutely nothing wrong about that.

If you are a junior developer who wants to put your career on steroids, nothing will replace in-office work.

A great orchestra does not do great music with each musician being remote. The same applies to software development teams.