he gets home at 5:30 because he gets back online after 8:00
"Goldberg leaves work at 5:30 PM every day to spend time with his family. While he does get back online after he puts his children to bed after 8:00 PM, he sets an example that makes it easier for the company to build and maintain its workforce."
Even if he gets back online after 8:00, his leaving the office premises at 5:30 makes it much much easier for others in the company to leave around the 5:30 time frame as well.
If he didn't do this, many employees would implicitly feel compelled (even if the CEO "says" that everyone should leave at 5:30) to stay much later than 8:00pm.
His behavior is definitely something we can learn from.
That's a good point. Fully agreed that the misdirection is in bad taste.
But I do contend that being able to work 4/12 hours at home versus all 12 hours at work is a substantial improvement for both yourself and for your family (especially if you have young children).
But I do contend that being able to work 4/12 hours at home versus all 12 hours at work is a substantial improvement for both yourself and for your family (especially if you have young children).
I agree. Completely. My employer gives me similar freedoms (assuming something isn't actively melting down at 5:00 PM), and I can say that it has contributed to the strength of my family and marriage.
Many nights I don't get back online at 9:00 PM, but knowing that I can be productive and be present for my family is an enormous perk.
Which is perfectly fine. As a parent, 6-9pm is the most valuable time of my day, because it's when my wife is home and my baby is sleepy and cute and getting ready for bed.
The battle that a lot of people have to fight is that they have to stay till 8-9 for the sake of appearances, then they got home when the kids are asleep and they have nothing to do but veg out on the internet until bed time.
If the boss keeps strict 8-9 to 5:30 "face time" hours, that can greatly free up everyone else to allocate their evenings in a more suitable way.
How common is it really to work past 5:30 or 6:00 PM on a daily basis? I mean unless you are working in Investment Banking or Management Consulting at one of the big firms, for the typical software developer (outside of the Silicon Valley /startup crowd) is this even an issue?
Company norms and cultures aside, the software industry was built on working late. Whether or not the CEO goes home at 5pm, the software part of a software business needs to get built, and it's usually not done 9-5.
It obviously depends on your employer, but it's very common for managers to write off people who go home on time as not the right kind of material for promotions, etc.
"Goldberg leaves work at 5:30 PM every day to spend time with his family. While he does get back online after he puts his children to bed after 8:00 PM, he sets an example that makes it easier for the company to build and maintain its workforce."