The Pesto Podcast - The Latest In Startups, Remote Work, And Tech

Hey Pesto Podcast listeners, Today I'm incredibly excited to sit down with Chris Dzoba, Director of Engineering at Side Inc. Side is the only real estate brokerage that transforms agents into businesses and has seen crazy growth in their business over the last 3+ years. Today's interview is full of actionable insights on how to build your distributed engineering team as well as other helpful startup advice. In today's episode how you'll learn: Why a having a distributed team has reduced Chris's recruiting time. How the decision to build a distributed team started as an experiment, and the lessons Side Inc learned. Why Side still wants leadership to be located in SF. The one thing that has been a struggle as the Side Inc Engineering Team has grown as a distributed team. How Side Inc was able to turn one of SF's biggest storms into a positive. The importance of good documentation when working remote. Why focusing less on recruiting has allowed Side to deliver more value to customers. Productivity lessons from having a distributed team. How having a partially remote team allows you to keep employees that otherwise might quit. The main differences between running co-located and remote teams. Side's "watercolor" replacement when having meetings. The biggest surprise from transitioning to remote work, and the future of work in startups and tech. And much more. I hope you enjoy today's interview! Andrew Linfoot Co-founder/Co-CEO @ Pesto

Hey Pesto Podcast listeners, I have a really great show for you today, where I sit down with Dorian Johnson, Heap's Head of Engineering. Heap is a web and mobile analytics company that automatically captures every web, mobile, and cloud interaction to help you better understand your customers and make better decisions based on data. As someone who has spent a lot of time tracking various metrics myself, Heap's product is really powerful. In today's episode, Dorian and I talk about how he was Heap's first remote employee, the mindset you need to work remotely, a how to successfully run a standup. Here are a few things you’ll learn in today’s interview. How Dorian was able to become Heap's first remote employee. Which tasks are ideal for working remotely, and which tasks are ideal for co located. Why there is no silver bullet for building a distributed team. The trade offs of building a remote team and what Heap looks for when hiring remote. How the Heap Engineering team whiteboards while working remotely. Why having a team on site ritual can help improve company culture and bonding. The difference between a satellite office and have a distributed team. Heap's unique process for handling timezones and scheduling meetings with their employees. Why Heap requires all employees to be in San Fransisco for two weeks when starting. The importance of investing in your team's equipment and why it can make a huge difference when building your remote team. How to have the 'perfect' standup with your team. And much more! Andrew Linfoot Co-founder/Co-CEO @ Pesto

[10:10]On The Challenges of Remote Work

"Well you know what I'm gonna, I'm gonna be honest with you, I, I struggle with it from time to time.

[13:02]Whether Or Not Co-Location Is Crucial When Building A Remote Team

"I think temporary periods of intense bonding co-location can be useful but I also don't like to believe that it's required."

[27:22] Why Team Bonding Is So Important

"So I think when new people come on, the habits they learn, like what they learn are acceptable norms, what they learn are success, they're gonna learn that from the people that they're gonna work with. So I think it's like, expose them to habits, expose them to what works, like and then let them effectively figure out how they're gonna go bring that in to their own remote life."

[29:38]On Writing Your Own Remote Work Playbook

"My fundamental belief on everything is stop trying to make your remote company look and feel like a co-located company."

The State of Remote Work With Liam Martin

About Today’s Guest

Liam Martin is the cofounder and CMO of TimeDoctor.com and Staff.com and runs Re
Liam’s Twitter

Hey Pesto Podcast listeners,

Today I’m stoked to sit down with the Liam Martin, cofounder of TimeDoctor.com and Staff.com.

He is also responsible for putting together one of the largest conferences devoted specifically to those who are working remotely.

Not only is Liam one of the nicest people I know (he’s Candian after all), he’s incredibly intune with the current state of remote work and how to achieve peak productivity.
Here are a few things you’ll learn in today’s interview.

The current state of ‘digital nomadism’ and what to expect over the next few years.

The essential tools needed to work effectively while remote.

How to build trust through transparency with your team

The sweet spot of how much you should work each day as a remote worker.

Liam’s thoughts on the difference between being productive vs busy.

The most important metrics to track when running or growing a remote team.

Documentation best practices to help you scale your remote team.

And much more.

It was a pleasure having Liam on the show, and we cover a ton of actionable tips on how to become more productive and scale your remote team.

Andrew Linfoot
Co-founder/Co-CEO @ Pesto