🚢 Virgin's "Work From Helm"

Good Morning,

What a week for remote partnerships. More and more major corporations are accepting that remote work is here to stay, and as a result there have been some creative developments in the business world.

In this issue, we showcase the recent plans that Virgin Voyages, AMC, Zoom, and a Utah college have all made in order to encourage and benefit from remote work.

We’ve seen programs that connect remote workers to sports stadiums, neighborhood homes, wine bars, and now theaters (!) all in the last few months. What other venues would be great for remote workers?

Looking forward to what these next few years bring us!

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Need to Know

🚢 Virgin announces “Work From Helm” cruise for remote workers
Virgin Voyages, Richard Branson’s cruise line, just announced its Scarlet Summer Season Pass, which is aimed directly at attracting remote workers who have the ability and desire to work from a cruise ship instead of their home offices.

Covering 9 ports in the Mediterranean, the cruise line claims to have the fastest Wi-Fi at sea in the industry, allowing remote workers to work from anywhere on the ship itself. Add in amenities like workout classes, laundry service, and 20 restaurants to choose from, and the all-inclusive pricing for 4 weeks ($9,990 for two people) starts to look very appealing. (The Independent)

🏋️ Gympass reduced turnover by 69% by allowing WFH
The corporate well-being platform announced two years ago that it would allow employees to “work from where you prefer,” and it’s seen positive results since. In addition to a drastic reduction in voluntary turnover, engagement increased by 43% and worker satisfaction doubled.

The company credits this policy’s success to a few things: sticking to their guns and not wavering on the policy, emphasizing communication and transparency, and being very clear about performance measurements.

Doesn’t it make you wonder why more companies haven’t done this? As more case studies like this are published in the next few years, it’s inevitable that we see more and more companies adopt similar policies. (Fortune)

🍿 AMC launches Zoom Rooms partnership
Can’t say I expected this, but happy to see it: AMC and Zoom announced a partnership that will allow companies with distributed teams to meet in ways that allow them to connect both in-person in theaters, and by video call with colleagues in theaters around the country.

It’s expected to boost AMC’s theater rentals business, and will help continue to cement Zoom as a premier videoconferencing service. The Zoom Rooms are currently offered in 8 theaters in major markets across the US, with plans to expand. (Yahoo! Finance)

☃️ Snow College encourages remote work
This university in rural Utah found that 40% of its students want to live in the area after graduating, but saw there aren’t enough employers in the area to support that. By working with an entry-level job board, Handshake, to promote remote jobs to its soon-to-be graduates, the university is able to help more students stay in the area and contribute to the local economy, instead of continuing the “brain drain” that so many smaller communities suffer from. (The Daily Yonder)

💵 Cities paying to bring in remote workers
Speaking of brain drain, there are several cities that are offering remote workers financial incentives to move there for a given amount of time.

Tulsa is on this list, and famously has run Tulsa Remote with incredible success, but Indiana, West Virginia, Alaska, New York, Michigan, and more all have programs that can pay up to $15,000 in exchange for relocation. (CNN)

🙅🏻‍♂️ EY turnstile data shows resistance to RTO
In the UK, teams at EY aren’t complying with the mandate that employees spend at least two days a week working from an office. Some teams had less than a 50% compliance rate with the rule.

Unfortunately, one source said there was a correlation between office attendance and performance reviews, meaning those who didn’t comply with the rule may be less likely to see career advancement than their peers. If you’re at a company like this, all the more reason to find a remote-friendly job. (Fortune)

Stuff We Like

🧠 How to convince your boss to let you work remotely
This advice column from Fast Company tackles something many of us have had to address in the last few years, and it’s always good to review these articles in case there are fresh new angles worth taking. From this author, sharing examples of how well you’ve accomplished work for the company in the past, and even personal circumstances that would allow you to do better work remotely, may be worth using as you make your case. (Fast Company)

💼 Handshake: entry-level job board
If you saw the Snow College story, you know why we’re including this link. Handshake partnered with the university to help students find remote jobs upon graduating. It’s often difficult to find companies willing to allow complete remote work for entry-level roles, but Handshake has done just that. Send this to your friends and family in college looking for remote jobs. (Handshake)

🔊 Home office speakers for audiophiles
David Heinemeier Hansson (DHH), a remote work advocate we’ve mentioned before, recently raved about his new “HiFi” home office speakers. Here’s the link to check them out, and his blog post shares more about why they’ve been so impactful for him. (DHH’s Blog)

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