I've always worked remote for several companies as a senior dev but I've lost track on the cool-companies-to-work-being-remote. Any good recommendations? I want to do some fun stuff during 2015.
I can't tell you which companies are "cool", but I can tell you which ones will not entertain(or do not understand or are generally shitty to work at) remote.
Also, there is a flawed understanding by some US companies where they classify "remote" as anywhere near their offices/city/state/USA (apparently the world is too big).
Avoid:
- Startups: Especially ones in tech-zones like Silicon Valley, NY, London, etc.
- Massive companies: Especially ones that are only starting to understand what remote-working is. There are exceptions, but generally, the AmaMicroOracIBMs of the world invest in buildings/offices and measure the lifetimes of those assets over decades
- Hack shops: Small companies that are involved in the Joomla/WordPress sphere. Generally, it's best to avoid these shops under all circumstances, as they are focused on the commodity side of development
Anywhere, really. I think with the exception of Yahoo, most tech companies today will at least entertain the conversation. Of course it depends on what you're doing. It's an easier sell for a dev than a pm, for example. And much easier sell for a software person than a hardware person.
I'd say line up a job and then drop the telecommuting bomb during your salary negotiation. Always worth a shot.
Those companies are mainly looking for "language X developers". I understand how that is friendly to people who have recent experience directly with " language X," but like so many other companies it artificially restricts the candidate pool. That to me isn't generally friendly to workers, remote or otherwise.
I'm not Jewish myself, however among Jewish people, it is considered disrespectful to every destroy a document that has "G-d" spelled correctly. So they write "G-d" unless they intend to keep the document around forever, such as old copies of Torah.
Also, there is a flawed understanding by some US companies where they classify "remote" as anywhere near their offices/city/state/USA (apparently the world is too big).
Avoid:
- Startups: Especially ones in tech-zones like Silicon Valley, NY, London, etc.
- Massive companies: Especially ones that are only starting to understand what remote-working is. There are exceptions, but generally, the AmaMicroOracIBMs of the world invest in buildings/offices and measure the lifetimes of those assets over decades
- Hack shops: Small companies that are involved in the Joomla/WordPress sphere. Generally, it's best to avoid these shops under all circumstances, as they are focused on the commodity side of development
That leaves you with a decent-enough spectrum.