Trivial things you don't understand/mildly annoy you

[RobertT]

Happy to be of service.  For every comment I make about 1939 and not 1942, I learn something new about the USA for balance I guess.

[WEBBERhyde]

If you distil this story down to 'should the CEO of a bank survive having spoken to a journalist about a customer' it is pretty clear that she had to go. Would it have been okay if she'd been blabbing about King Charles' accounts, or Mrs Miggins in Number 32? I think not. Of course Farage has leapt on it but she absolutely shafted herself. No one serious could think this element was in any way survivable, and for the board to back her was quite mad.

Sorry for bringing this back after a while:

But that’s not actually the distillation of this story, it’s come as part of the saga mid way through…and is my entire point. I never said the CEO shouldn’t have got the boot. My point was that Farage has managed to use his voodoo magic to make this recurring headline news and thus trick people who should know a whole lot better, into exposing themselves to wrong-doing by blabbing about his account and breaking one of the fundamental rules of banking.

The nub and origins of the story, as I said, is a complete non story that should have been totally ignored. He was the one that went public about it - Self styled anti-establishment moron gets establishment bank account closed (for legitimate reasons: risk vs reward, coutts decided Farage no longer held enough wealth to offset the risk of reputational damage and cost of servicing his account, apparently Farage had publicly stated he banked with them back in 2019) and offered a plebs account instead…but he doesn’t like that and kicks up a fuss.

It’s a human right to have a bank account, but it’s a privilege to have a Coutts bank account. And that’s the bigger wider point that I find so egregious about how this has been reported and farage’s general schtick….he uses rights and privileges interchangeably (and knowingly), but so many people and huge swathes of the media just lap it up and spit it back out at you without even the most basic levels of critical thinking. It all makes it easier for people to buy into his tiresome fucking grift.

I was reminded to reply back to this today because it sounds like he’s been offered to bank with Coutts again  . Again how this bloke manages to get people dancing to his tune is unfathomable.

[Audrey]

Why do I keep getting this captcha shit when my VPN is on

[Bob's Orange]

Having to schlep into the office 3 days per week (currently 2) for 'collaberation' purposes from October, even though my team consists of me (UK), someone in Ireland, someone in India and my boss who works in Chicago. 

[RobertT]

Having to schlep into the office 3 days per week (currently 2) for 'collaberation' purposes from October, even though my team consists of me (UK), someone in Ireland, someone in India and my boss who works in Chicago.  

There are only two reasons behind companies "insisting" on office time (for those that can be remote), and that's either a complete lack of trust that employees will deliver and the fact a massive asset is currently sat idle burning a hole in the Opex budget for no apparent reason or way of getting out of it.  I really do wonder what is going to happen in a couple of years to Commercial real estate.  Do not underestimate the Sunk Cost Fallacy.

[Jimmy Quinn]

Red tape will be cut and commercial real estate will be turned into flats!

[Bob's Orange]

There are only two reasons behind companies "insisting" on office time 9for those that can be remote), and that's either a complete lack of trust that employees will deliver and the fact a massive asset is currently sat idle burning a whole in the Opex budget for no apparent reason or way of getting out of it.  I really do wonder what is going to happen in a couple of years to Commercial real estate.  Do not underestimate the Sunk Cost Fallacy.

I suspect it's probably the latter. We've a reasonably long lease in Canary Wharf and they've just spent a lot of money refurbishing the place.

I've never heard of the Sunk Cost Fallacy before - just had a read about it, very interesting!

[RobertT]

I suspect it's probably the latter. We've a reasonably long lease in Canary Wharf and they've just spent a lot of money refurbishing the place.

I've never heard of the Sunk Cost Fallacy before - just had a read about it, very interesting!

That refurb sounds like a great example - money spent, gone, never to be seen again (bar maybe some resale value).  Someone has to determine that the spend was a failure in order to scrap it - instead, force some people to use it, probably impacting productivity and employee retention.

[Batch]

There are only two reasons behind companies "insisting" on office time (for those that can be remote), and that's either a complete lack of trust that employees will deliver and the fact a massive asset is currently sat idle burning a hole in the Opex budget for no apparent reason or way of getting out of it.  I really do wonder what is going to happen in a couple of years to Commercial real estate.  Do not underestimate the Sunk Cost Fallacy.

Three - you have to be on-site for secure work reasons.. Though out of context with what was said.
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Which office you going into? Is it that the company had many employees in the UK but your team is spread Bob?

[horlock07]

Red tape will be cut and commercial real estate will be turned into flats!

Already happened and happening, pace will  increase rapidly once leases start to lapse and commercial market realign accordingly.

But isn't the same nationwide, commercial is still booming in some places, it's mainly secondary locations at the mo.

[Jimmy Quinn]

Already happened and happening, pace will  increase rapidly once leases start to lapse and commercial market realign accordingly.

But isn't the same nationwide, commercial is still booming in some places, it's mainly secondary locations at the mo.

What happened to Boris's "get the workers back in the office plan"😀

[Legends-Lounge]

What happened to Boris's "get the workers back in the office plan"😀

Clearly Labour Isn't Working. 🤣🤣🤣🤣

[Bob's Orange]

Three - you have to be on-site for secure work reasons.. Though out of context with what was said.
--
Which office you going into? Is it that the company had many employees in the UK but your team is spread Bob?

I mean I kind of get it, there are departments that will probably benefit having more people in the office. But the department I work in is made up of smaller teams in a project type role that I just can't see any on site collaboration really adding much value. Everything is so global these days, we have offices in London, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Chicago, Krakow, Pune, Bangalore, Mumbai and more.

Making it so black and white is frustrating. I suppose when I signed up I was 5 days in the office so I'll just have to grin and bear it.

[RobertT]

Three - you have to be on-site for secure work reasons.. Though out of context with what was said.
--
Which office you going into? Is it that the company had many employees in the UK but your team is spread Bob?

The security aspect comes under Trust, surely?  In the modern age there is little that a company cannot do to ensure security if it wants to, to support remote working.  Maybe a few, very specific people working on National Security stuff, other than that, what else?

Nah, it's a mindset thing.  I imagine there was uproar when the Cottages were abandoned for the Mill, now, despite the pace of change in the world, we seem fixated on some 1750's model of management of the "resources".

[RobertT]

Oh, and I am speaking to the "forced" aspect of in office working.  There are no doubt people who work better when around other people, a business should have the ability to identify different ways of working and maximise the benefits of them all.