Stardragon

As I write this, I'm on my way to my company's Portland office. Even though we're living in the age of corporate frugality, my manager doesn't simply permit me to travel regularly between the San Francisco corporate headquarters and the Portland office, where most of the research and development occurs. In fact, it is encouraged.

There are several good reasons for this. The first, and most obvious reason, is that regularly interacting face-to-face with my remote associates builds a team culture and puts a personal face on the other end of the email, phone call, or chat session. But even more importantly, it fosters more spontaneous dialogue on technology and programming.

All the modern conveniences of free multimedia communication over the internet have failed to eliminate the inertia of communication. Having to pick up the phone, open a new email message, or even type in the chat window requires me to pause my train of thought. I have no idea what's happening on the other end of the line. What is the general mood of the office? Is my colleague busy and focused in a task? Will I even get an immediate response, or do I have to send a message and wait? And does my seemingly insignificant thought even worth the interruption?

Being in the same room with my coworkers eliminates many of those considerations and reduces the risk of interruption. If my teammate is busy, it's usually obvious. If they wish not to be interrupted, they'll have the headphones on, and I can gauge how important my communication is. But even more than that, the ability to have casual and spontaneous conversation sometimes reveals significant insights that make an impact on our collective task and sometimes even the overall mission.

The most successful companies have managers understand the fine balance between fiscal prudence and maximizing team productivity. That occasional trip to the field office may seem expensive on paper, but it can yield intangible benefits far more valuable.