Indefinite Loop

I was on a call with a couple of startup founders the other day.  They are just starting and looking for some feedback.  They had a polished pitch.  The idea of special private events seemed exciting, but something about it didn’t sit well with me.  I couldn’t pinpoint it right away, but eventually it came to me.  

"How often will people use your product?", I asked them.

The answer was clear to all of us, not very often.   

It brought back memories of when Gojee first started.  We built a website that helped people make better decisions whenever they grocery shopped.  Our idea made logical sense, give people a report card telling them how healthy their shopping trip was, and overtime our users will purchase healthier products and be happier.  

There was just one problem with that idea and the special events idea pitched by the founders — we all overlooked the frequency factor.  A truly engaging product, almost always has high frequency of use.  Only then can it take on an addictive element and become a habit for a user.

Facebook, twitter, foursquare, any media sites thrives on frequency.  It was one of the first product lessons we learned when we started Gojee and it is one we repeatedly ask ourselves.  

Are we building something that will make a user come back in a short period of time?

Yes, telecommuting does have its place in today's world.  Yes, it does make employees happier.  But what if those happy employees aren't the ones that are right for your company? It all comes down to culture and execution.  

1) How important is culture for the success of your company?  (It matters a lot for a tech company like Gojee or a company in transition like Yahoo, it matters less for a call center or a manufacturing job)

2) What constitutes successful execution for your company?  (At a tech company it's the ideas that TEAMS generate and their successful implementation.  At a call center, it's the service representative answering a call courteously and helpfully).

It's pretty clear which type of companies benefit from telecommuting.  For organizations where teamwork is paramount to success, face-to-face interaction is still better than Google Hangout, Skype, and emails.  

So sorry mr. strategy consultant, I don't buy that strategy and leadership will take care of everything.  That's only true if execution is guaranteed.  And we both know that execution of anything worth is anything but guaranteed.  Reacting to the surprises along the way is much easier done in person.

We'd kid ourselves to think, that operational deficiencies isn't costly and directly affect the ability of leaders to strategize and set direction for a team of any size.  A misunderstanding over email, a lack of transparency on progress, or a bad internet connection that interrupts a meeting can have huge impact on team chemistry and the success of a project.   

And sorry Mrs. Francke.  This isn't great for parents who want to spend all day with their kids.  But perhaps Yahoo or any company looking for guaranteed execution requires people with a different set of priorities.  What happens if you have an important meeting and your kids are crying in the background?  What takes priority?  Coming from a background where my parents made many sacrifices for me, it's a tough decision. Maybe by working from the office, that decision with no right answer doesn't have to be made.

And for every model worker there is one of these.  Maybe it's actually easier to build true trust in a physical environment, because it builds camaraderie and human interaction.  And maybe workers can actually be happier because they see proof every day that they are part of something bigger than themselves.

I'm not saying every job at every company requires perfect attendance.  I'm saying that there are significant benefits to the physical work place, especially for certain jobs and industries.

Just in time for the new Chinese year, a new place where I blogcast my new thoughts.