Layoffs at ChangeMakers
You’re being let go, your department’s being downsized, you’re part of an outplacement, we’re going in a different direction, we’re not picking up your option… - Emperor Kuzco and …
Topic
Business
35 posts tagged with this topic.
Back in the Office
Back in May, the company decided to close our 12th Ave. location due to its prohibitive cost and lack of use. This was a decision I supported – the extreme short notice was not particularly welcome, however. I …
Right Place, Right Time, Right Answer
I was having lunch with my friend Jim the other day, reflecting on how many years we’ve known each other, trouble we’ve gotten into (him more than me, let’s be honest, I’ve never been that …
Why We Need DEI
Sometimes, you don’t take a single step back, you take a dozen. This week, a certain re-elected “leader” of the world announced not just an end to DEI efforts, but a vehement branding of them as …
The Trouble with Passion
I have a problem with being passionate: it gets me upset more often than not. I admit, it’s a problem with me, not the organization, not anyone else … even if the problem does exist there, I recognize that …
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The Problem with RTO
1,285 days ago, many of us were sent home to face an unknown future. Most of us had no idea that a couple of weeks would turn into over two years, that thousands of people in Alberta alone would die, and the long-term …
In the Believeco Tent
In the second week of August, I got a rather strange meeting request. It was lacking nearly all details. It was at the end of the day, a Friday. This was the sort of timing and specificity that usually suggested an …
An open letter to Nest Labs - please don't outsource your support
Dear Nest, Yesterday, you launched your new Protect smoke detector product. Pretty much my entire social feed is filled with people lusting over the device, especially those — like me — who already have enjoyed the …
Evans Hunt Sick Day 2013
They say that when you put enough people in close proximity for long periods of time, their biological rhythms come into synchronicity. People start thinking the same, they pick up each other’s habits and nervous ticks …
Alberta communications companies suck
It’s about as official as it gets, now. We leave Costa Rica on 8 December. Which means that on the morning of 9 December, we’re going to be needing a few things. We’re trying to establish as much of that as we can …
How to do offshore software development
North Americans are relentless at wanting things as cheap as possible. This drive is what has led many companies to look at using less expensive resources from other countries help bring down the costs of products and …
The importance of delegation
Delegation is the act of assigning work to other people, generally people who report to you. It’s supposed to be a way to ensure that the right people are doing the right jobs, and that large pieces of work will …
Topics
The Failure of Offshoring
A couple of years ago, I engaged in my first offshore experience, when we hooked up with a small company out of Argentina to develop and deliver some additions to a website, including the addition of a simple CMS. It had …
Yes, I'm still alive
You’re probably looking at the datestamp of my previous entry and wondering: Where the heck has that loser Geoff disappeared to? Well, much to your chagrin (or reassurance, depending on your point of view), I’m still …
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A Hangar Christmas
Although we’re still trying to figure out how to get the most basic things (like reliable phone service), we did manage to throw together a halfways-decent Christmas Party this year. I can take no credit for this …
I swear I'm going to kill my vendors
I don’t care what the excuse is, the reality is that I’m not getting service I expect from a vendor. I’ve been told that it’s just something I have to adapt to. That it’s the way things are done. That it’s a cultural …
Where I've been for the last few days
I’m in Panama. Been here since Tuesday afternoon. Been really, really busy. So far, the biggest problem I’ve had here (aside from the aforementioned busy-ness and subsequent inability to talk to my family), is that I’ve …
Setting up the office
Getting everything going here is a bit of a challenge. There’s a lot to do, and we’re starting from scratch. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. There’s currently four people down here working on all this, and only one of them is …
Starting life in Costa Rica
Think of when you went to university / college. You pack your things into a few bags, move to a new place you don’t know, into a place you think is far too expensive for what you’re getting, and then have to go out and …
Getting my Birth Certificate shouldn't be this hard
One part of moving to any other country is the act of applying for a work visa. It’s pretty much a requirement where treaties (e.g. the European Union) aren’t there to ease the situation. A necessary evil, if you will. …
Costa Rican Interviews, Day 1
A tropical depression in the north of the country has created our weather woes of the last few days, and a heck of a downpour this morning. Following our usual breakfast run, Joaquin arrived to pick the three of us up at …
Funny things in emails
I got into a fairly typical email exchange with Paul, one of our Release Engineers. Since I’m no longer on Rolex, I wanted to be taken off the email lists. This was how it went down: Me: Hey Paul, Now that Torin’s …
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It's the end of the world as we know it...
…and I feel, well, okay. Maybe not necessarily “fine”. Critical Mass has done a bit of a reorganisation. I emphasise “a bit”. Mostly because this is not the radical shifts we’ve seen in the …
No, I'm not going to be working on a beach
It’s funny the number of people who now ask me if they can come with us to Costa Rica. They congratulate me and make it sound like it’s going to be fun, sand, and cervesa all the time. News flash, folks — we ain’t …
I'm leaving Critical Mass
I’ve been at Critical Mass for 8 years, 1 month, and 5 days. That’s a long time to be a one place. I never thought I’d be here that long. Two years, max, and I’d move on. (Heck, I was originally supposed to go with Chris …
Thundercats are go!
The contract is signed. It’s as official as it gets until my feet stand on Costa Rican soil. Most everything was already 99% assured, but until my name appeared on a legal document, there were still a whack of questions. …
Tech Summit, Day 2
Day 2 got off to a lousy start. I was sick. Nastily so. At first, I thought it was a hangover (I might have had — perhaps — one beer too many last night). But I realised very quickly that this was not, in fact, a …
Tech Summit, Day 1
Tech Summits are dicey things. Sort of like trying to catch a greased pig. You can see it, you can describe it, but it’s a pain to pin down and hold still. It has a life of its own and just as soon as you get your head …
In Chicago
Well, I’m back in Chicago again. Currently in the “Missile Command” meeting room (all the meeting rooms here are named after video games). We’re staying at the Hard Rock Hotel (pretty much right across the …
Je quitte Paris!
The flight left Charles du Gaulle at 11:30. That meant, of course, that I had to be there in sufficient time to check in, get through security, find the flight, and so forth. Thankfully, I’d gone through the trouble last …
Je suis en Paris, Jour Cinq!
I ate at the hotel this morning. Not a bad little place, really. And it meant I could sleep in a wee bit. Four hours of sleep just isn’t enough. But I brought that on myself. I was a bit late arriving at Eurosites — …
Je suis en Paris, Jour Quatre!
It’s official, I am a shmuck. I’m a unilingual moron. But more on that later… I’ve been getting up at 7:30 to account for the lateness we’ve been having, but also to ensure I’ve got enough rest to not tire during …
Je suis en Paris, Jour Trois!
No crepes for me this morning. As I’m beginning to discover, the French don’t consider crepes a breakfast thing. At least at the shops near the hotel. But hunger knows no bounds and I was forced to hunt out an …
Je suis en Paris, Jour Deux!
Despite wating up at 4:30 thinking it was daylight (in reality, only the hotel’s light outside my window), I slept pretty well. That didn’t mean that I’d totally licked jet lag — I ended up needing a nap in the …
Je suis en Paris!
I’m beginning to understand why people hate business trips. You can’t pack what you want (you have to pack for meetings with clients) and you don’t travel necessarily when you want. But at least the locations can be …