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Comment by prh8 | Hacker News Reader

> If they talk about how great it was to do their laundry during work hours, thumbs down.

That really just means they're a butts-in-seats company that doesn't have an office. Take this from a job listing of theirs[1]

> we don't care if you work at night, on weekends, in your pajamas, after class, in another timezone, etc. We do ask that you are available by Skype during regular 9-5 CST work hours

That's great if you can flex your work time, but if you have to always be available, that means you are either working or thinking about work almost all the time. This makes work even more stressful, unless you only work during the proper business hours.

On another note, the laundry thing is just ridiculous. That's a 5 minute task. People in an office environment burn 10 minutes at a time playing ping pong, foosball, or any number of time wasters.

[1]: https://community.articulate.com/discussions/building-better...

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That's a pretty hilarious quote from the job posting... We don't care when you work, as long as it's in addition to the regimented 40 hours we prescribe.

Don't forget the very first line: 15-20 hours to start. So you're paid for 15 hours, but required to be available for 40.

Decorum prevents me from saying how I truly feel about that.

Also don't forget the:

    Cool things about working for us:
        Potential to earn bonuses for projects. Very *LOW* salary but since we are ROWE (Results Only Work Environment), bonuses are part of the deal!

I didn't even make it that far in the posting. Here's another gem that is very close to the top

> You would be part of our underpaid production team

Reminds me of this: http://www.theonion.com/article/laid-back-company-allows-emp...

The job posting you're referring to is posted on the Articulate community site, but it's not an Articulate job. Another company posted it there. :)

Of course, one of the benefits of working from home is that you can do a load of laundry and perhaps background process on a complicated problem in the meantime. No question that it's a nice perk. The flexibility to craft a healthy work-life balance is wonderful.

I think the point in the article is that if that's the FOCUS of why you want to work from home, it COULD be a red flag. The people we've found really thrive in our remote environment are those that cite the fact that they are more productive when not working in an office.

I've been here at Articulate for 5 years and prior to that I worked at several butts-in-seats companies. I hated working at those places where my value was measured by the amount of time spent in the office or with co-workers. This is not that kind of company. Sure I have folded laundry and done other low brain power tasks while thinking through a tough problem before. Putting my hands on auto pilot helps me find creative solutions to problems. That works for me. May not work for everyone. What excites me about working here is the freedom and autonomy I have to get shit done and the opportunity to work with a stellar group of humans to build something great. I have never felt like my butt had to be in a seat while working here. Not once. My time is my own and I'm responsible for making things happen. That's it.

Ok so I'll just turn off Skype for the day then.

Yeah, let's also point out that it's an internship posting that requires 1 year of experience publishing content and knowledge of multiple LMSs.

Yeah, anybody who has those "must have" requirements is not going to be looking for an internship, being low paid, or part time. It's an interesting posting to be sure

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