Virtual Company No no receptionist, no cubicles, no rent, no

commute, no dress policy, no office.

Real clients, real work, real deadlines, real teams, real pay, real work.

Not for: Slackers, chair fillers, soap opera junkies, full-time caregivers

For: Self directed people who don’t look forward to putting on a tie or hose every morning.

Social StackMore important than technology. (Gasp!)

No office space to start - it's okay (maybe even better) if everyone is remote.

Frugality - spend money when you need to, but don't spend money if you don't have to.

Camaraderie - you should enjoy each other's company, because you'll be spending a lot of time together.

Joie de vivre - it's really important to have native (and naïve) optimism.

Intercommunication - communicate by writing, and as much as possible communicate in a commons (wiki, IRC, email , bug tracker, etc.)

Group introspection - create a culture that regularly does after-action reviews and write-ups of what we learned.

Leadership - make sure people know what they're supposed to be doing. Figure out how to distribute leadership among the team.

Cultivate knowledge and wisdom - the organization and individuals both should be learning all the time.

Working Rules Tasks are defined – People need to

know what they should be doing and it should be written in a common location (Trac)

Project Management is distributed – Ownership of a solution promotes bi-directional reviews

Technical Stack Hosted Solutions – Centralize and

outsource as much hosting as possible– Email– SVN / Trac / Wiki / Bugtracker (The

Commons)– Development Servers (Web & DB)– Central File Hosting / Trading– Timesheet Software

The Commons SVN – Version Control and shared

development space. Split / Merge based development tracks.

Trac – Manage tasks, milestones, teams

Bugtracker – Feedback from testers. Wiki – Process, documentation,

random notes

Shared Space GoToMeeting.com – Conference calls,

white boards and shared desktop VNC – “Let me show you what it looks

like on my machine”

Shopping List Real desk in a dedicated room with a

door. Comfortable office chair. Fast Computer (You can spend extra,

you aren’t paying rent) High speed Internet access (Duh!) Telephone (Vonage) Window shades…

Communication Traps Scheduling – Make sure everyone

knows when everyone else is expected to be available – Shared Calendar (Google)

Mass Calls – Schedule at least 15 minutes once a week for an all-hands meeting. Allow chit-chat, it’s important.

Face Time? Never really felt the need, but some

people do, so if your team isn’t too spread out, plan at least 1 meeting a year to get everyone together socially. Don’t make it required.