Working Remote; from Arendal to Aberdeen — part 1
Dogleg Golf is part of a new movement; working remotely. This means we work together without too much face to face time. In our case we are separated by the North Sea, from northern Scotland to southern Norway!
WHY REMOTE?
CUT COSTS
Remote working is very much in vogue in the tech world. Many companies seeking to cut costs will outsource work abroad to locations such as the Philippines and Indonesia, often using platforms such as Fiverr or Upwork as the reliable middleman.
FREEDOM
Other companies choose it as an identity. They want to empower and trust their employees as much as possible.
WORLDWIDE TALENT
Buffer and Basecamp have written extensively about their remote work process and setup that they feel has allowed them to flourish. They highlight their ability to tap into a worldwide pool of talent when searching for the ideal job canditate instead of restricting themselves locally.
Basecamp have even published a book on the topic that I strongly suggest reading if you are a decision maker at work. The tools and tactics may even apply for a very small company.
FLOW
Disruption is the enemy of efficiency and quality. Getting into the “flow” zone isn’t something you can just decide. Unnecessary meetings, colleagues making small talk, email announcements and office “buzz” can make it almost impossible to get in the zone.
What if you are your most creative in the evenings but have to work 9–5.
What if you are forced to work in an open planned office?
What if you have to be “online” on your companies internal messaging system?
You are far more in control of the situation remotely. It’s much more about the quality of the work rather than just showing up and going through the motions. The possibility is yours to be more efficient with time and effective.
REMOTE FOR DOGLEG
This year we moved to Arendal, Norway and welcomed our baby boy into the world. I also began a new job as the assistant golf pro at Oppegard Golfklubb near Oslo. So things have been busy!!
Moving from Aberdeen to Arendal has necessitated a remote approach as I work with our technical team in Aberdeen.
The modern tools we use mean that the above hasn’t impacted on my ability to keep working on Dogleg Golf as we move towards launching our MVP.
In Aberdeen, Kenny, Mark and the team at Pinnacle VL are the technical wizards behind our project. There is a fantastic mutual trust. I can design, write, research, question and make plans. But only they can weld the design together, make it function and withstand pressure. Only they have the technical insight to suggest different designs or possibilities.
INTERNATIONAL AMBITION
Too much ambition can be a dangerous thing for a startup. It encourages egotistical planning and objectives. Worrying about scaling to tens of thousands of users is a precious waste of time and resource.
But some things have to be baked into the products identity from the beginning. And Dogleg Golf is determined to have an international effect.
The golf scene is extremely nuanced throughout the world and it will take a highly individual approach to each country we hope to make an impact in. We will need help from PGA pros and industry insiders from around the world.
We don’t expect to have crazy revenue or make headline news. We simply want to create a sustainable business that actually makes life better for our users.
Our value is in our network and our knowledge. The only hope we have of international value is in successful remote work.
Read part 2 here to see what tools we use and how we work!
(Also I cannot recommend this book enough for a detailed look at the subject)
REMOTE by the founders of Basecamp:
The ability to be alone with your thoughts is, in fact, one of the key advantages of working remotely. When you work on your own, far away from the buzzing swarm at headquarters, you can settle into your own productive zone
Check out our prototype here and have your first conversation with Dani the Doglegger :) He’s waiting for you on Messenger! It’s time to change the golf industry!
