171 replies to this topic

[Victoria Watcher]

it's a computer and a desk.  they could set up at the beach at gonzales (with an extension cord) and still do what they need.  i don't think it's anywhere near a crisis for them.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 30 December 2019 - 09:54 AM.

[spanky123]

^ There is lots of available office space in town. IIRC, the last Colliers report pegged available space at about 8%. There may not be office space at the rates or with the flexibility that some tech companies want but that is a different issue.

[AllseeingEye]

does tech - of all things - need everyone under one roof? even Kano quoted in the article says it has simply moved around in the same building 3 times. tech is also pretty mobile.

Depends on the org and the culture therein; some are proponents of staff working remotely others are most assuredly not. I've worked in both environments and both have their pluses as well as their drawbacks. In our case as we are partnered up in high dollar value, double digit-year contracts with major government clients, it is a requirement to be downtown physically near those customers for a host of reasons.

 

Regardless if local tech executives are concerned about (lack of) office space I would say they have a better perspective than do commentators on VV, unless they themselves are industry CTO, CIO, VP's  etc. So I would take them at their word that this is an issue.

[Victoria Watcher]

i’m not interested in that.

i think generally VV posters have a better perspective on crime homelessness tech or rocket science than any professional in those fields. like obama said.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 30 December 2019 - 06:39 PM.

[spanky123]

Regardless if local tech executives are concerned about (lack of) office space I would say they have a better perspective than do commentators on VV, unless they themselves are industry CTO, CIO, VP's  etc. So I would take them at their word that this is an issue.

 

I didn't see any tech experts quoted in the article!

[AllseeingEye]

I didn't see any tech experts quoted in the article!

 

Two company founders and a CTO by my count; I wouldn't expect a tech expert necessarily to be up on the business end of an enterprise in terms of office space/scalabilty - but then that wasn't my point. You focused on the 'tech' when executive was the cornerstone of my comment.

 

I would certainly listen to anyone at a C-level with regard to business operational needs. If you founded an organization which you are still closely associated with I think its safe to assume your insight into the physical space required for the viability and health of their the org is both informed and valid.

[Victoria Watcher]

Two company founders and a CTO by my count; I wouldn't expect a tech expert necessarily to be up on the business end of an enterprise in terms of office space/scalabilty - but then that wasn't my point. You focused on the 'tech' when executive was the cornerstone of my comment.

 

I would certainly listen to anyone at a C-level with regard to business operational needs. If you founded an organization which you are still closely associated with I think its safe to assume your insight into the physical space required for the viability and health of their the org is both informed and valid.

 

news flash:  c-level executives want less expensive stuff like office space. 

 

not sure it's a news story.

 

https://www.saanichn..._medium=twitter

 

the article never mentions space issues or rent prices in other jurisdictions.  

 

news flash:  victoria has rent prices just like everywhere around here.

 

non story.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 02 January 2020 - 07:07 PM.

[AllseeingEye]

As already stated above I've worked in both environments where remote work was encouraged and also where it was (heavily) discouraged.

 

If its not a news story then I'm having a hard time figuring out why every employer I've worked for in the last 15+ years - four of them - has either moved to a new/bigger/custom built office and all collectively struggled mightily prior to those moves due to "space" and operational need issues. And two of those orgs have since moved yet again. So yeah....planning for office space is a big deal unless you work as an independent gunslinger for hire or at Mom & Pop's corner store.

[Victoria Watcher]

were all the organizations you work/worked for financed by tax money?  i believe so.  you've never worked for a private company that does not at least take some government contracts.

 

 

 

that's a different story maybe than private firms.  crown/government organizations have money to burn.  private money is smarter.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 02 January 2020 - 07:17 PM.

[Mattjvd]

were all the organizations you work/worked for financed by tax money? i believe so. you've never worked for a private company that does not at least take some government contracts.



that's a different story maybe than private firms. crown/government organizations have money to burn. private money is smarter.

Wait, so you're disqualifying the experience of the poster you quoted because he has worked at firms with government contracts?

Edited by Mattjvd, 02 January 2020 - 07:22 PM.

[Victoria Watcher]

i'm just saying he or she has no expertise / knowledge of how private firms that do not do government work operate.  he or she has always been paid by the taxpayers all their life.

 

the real world - where 60% or 70% of the commerce is done - is different.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 02 January 2020 - 07:27 PM.

[AllseeingEye]

Last time I checked both the second largest credit union in the country - the largest by membership - and one of the top data communications firms in North America are both firmly entrenched in the private sector. Needless to say you're just a little off. And this gem......"always paid by the taxpayers all his life" Huh!? Pretty bold statement for someone who has zero clue who I am. Not to mention it is utterly wrong. 

 

Want to try again......?

[AllseeingEye]

Oh and my current employer - just for the record - is based in Virginia. Its stock BTW trades on the NYSE......

[Victoria Watcher]

i'll give you the credit union thing but that was a long time ago. 

 

but the data firm has/had government contracts.

 

you've worked in the public sector or public sector adjacent for the last 10 or 15 years or more.  that has shaped your view.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 02 January 2020 - 07:34 PM.

[Victoria Watcher]

Oh and my current employer - just for the record - is based in Virginia. Its stock BTW trades on the NYSE......

 

and does what percentage of business with government?  or at least your part of it?  100?

 

not looking for an online fight.  just trying to understand your perspective on the article that was about private firms - not government involved - in the app etc. space.  

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 02 January 2020 - 07:39 PM.

[AllseeingEye]

Keep digging that hole. This is fun. And offhand I can't think of too many major tech firms that didn't have contracts with one level of government or another, be it local, provincial, state, federal etc. Which of course has zero to do with how I managed my piece of the various businesses in the private sector with which I have been associated. Was responsible for up to 300 people - check. Managed budgets, both Capex and Opex. Check. And check. Planned and executed disaster recovery and business transformation scenarios. Check, check. But yeah my world view is shaped by what governments do....riiiiiiiight.

[Victoria Watcher]

you did not answer my question.

 

anyway twitter tells me ww3 has started now.  back to this thread tomorrow.

 

, 

[AllseeingEye]

You would have to pose it to one of our execs; offhand I don't know as there are always new lines of business in the pipeline which are not always communicated out in a timely fashion. Certainly the piece my team works on is 100% in partnership with the provincial government. Again though that has no bearing on how we manage our business, which is subject to contracted SLO's, SLA's, measurable deliverables and anything else required to run any large enterprise. 

 

I will excuse myself for now as well as I'm logged into another laptop providing remote support for our BI-reporting environment. I'm now in my 12th hour of work....you know, along with my 'government mindset'.....

[Victoria Watcher]

$6.7M deal settles Victoria firm RevenueWire’s fraud case

https://www.timescol...case-1.24124210

[spanky123]

^ For those familiar with the tech industry, it has been no secret over the years as to how some of the industry's largest players made their money.

 

Great thing about a small town is that a lot of people are willing to turn a blind eye as long as they are in on the action. You need not look any further than League Assets, Ian Thow, etc, etc as examples.