We updated the article in 2026 - we went through the text, links and illustrative images.
At vibration, we operate as a semi-remote company. We have our own offices in Bratislava, where part of the team meets. We also use these spaces for meetings with clients. However, a large part of our team works from home. We have programmers scattered all over Slovakia and many other external contractors all over the world.
We call it semi-remote because we still have a shared physical space. For now, we plan to operate this way in the future as well. We are effective when we can give quick feedback. Offices are also suitable for junior team members who need a more senior member by their side. After all, onboarding is better done in person.
Online tools allow us to communicate with each other, conduct meetings with clients, organize tasks, make specifications, price offers, come up with texts, draw wireframes, design, program, test, report or invoice.
The freedom to work from home or travel in addition to work is convenient when the agreed work is done at the agreed time. It's all about communication and trust.
The trend is clear
Whether it is programming, web design, online marketing, or other administrative work, the results of which are reflected online, the number of people who work remotely is increasing from year to year.
The numbers also prove it. According to Owl Labs, in a sample of 1,202 respondents in the US, 62% of people in the online industry regularly work remotely. This means at least 1 home office per month. Of these 62%, however, 30% work remotely full-time. According to the company Global Workplace Analytics the number of people who work remotely has regularly increased by 173% since 2005.
This trend is slowly but surely showing itself in Slovakia as well. According to Professions, home office is among the most frequently offered benefits in the IT, marketing and finance or accounting sectors. Home office was ranked as the 7th most common benefit in 2019.
Examples of successful remote companies
Probably the most famous companies that promote the remote concept are Basecamp and Automatic.
Society Basecamp is a medium-sized company with up to 100 employees. It is based in Chicago, where about 14 employees work permanently, with the remaining majority working remotely. The company particularly emphasizes the importance of corporate culture and strong relationships in a remote team. This makes sense, because if you have remote employees, it is necessary that you trust each other.
Automatic you may not know it by the name, but by reading this article you are using its product: WordPress. The company has more than 700 employees scattered around the world in 62 countries. In 2017, the company closed its offices in San Francisco because they were not being used by enough employees. Instead, the company provides a kind of stipend worth $250, which employees can use for rent in a coworking space or coffee in a cafe.
Comparison of classic work and remote work
Tools for remote work
G Suite
It is a Google application file intended for corporate use, and all tools are available online in a browser, or there are also native applications for mobile devices. You've probably already encountered most of its tools.
- Gmail: for emails, quick search option, extended services such as reminders of unanswered emails, excellent threads for longer communications, automated widgets for various online services
- Google Calendar – excellent integration of invitations, directly integrated online meetings, notifications, repeated tasks, sharing of team calendars
- Hangout – application for online chat and video calls. It also supports screen sharing. It also runs without installation
- Google Docs: an online alternative for Word
- Google Sheets: an alternative to Excel but in the Cloud. Excellent for creating price offers, specifications. Good use with links to marketing tools that have an API. You can also create your own scripts in sheets.
- Google Presentations: an alternative to Powerpoint or Keynote
- Google Forms: creating forms and questionnaires. It also automatically creates a database for you in Google Sheets from the answers. Without the need for programming, you can create any questionnaire in Google Forms relatively quickly
- Google Drive – organization of all files in the Cloud
Asana.com
Tool intended for project management and organizing short-term and long-term tasks.
Everhour
A tool for measuring the time allocated to a given activity. In it, we report the hours worked by clients, and at the same time, employees measure their hours worked. The Everhour plugin in Google Chrome can display measurement buttons directly in the asana.
Figma .com
Figma is also a tool for collaborative creation of wireframes and designs. And subsequently it is also used for chopping into CSS. Figma we have already presented it on our blog.
Sources of inspiration for remote work
Books
A four-hour work week
This is probably the best-known book on remote work. In it, Tim Ferris describes how he turned from an ordinary employee into an entrepreneur who travels and at the same time works on his travels around the world. This book is a great inspiration for anyone thinking about remote work.
Read it four-hour work week you too.
ReWork
The book from the founders of Basecamp, which we mentioned above as a good example of a remote company. The authors explain observations from their own business and do not focus on specific solutions, rather on a minimalist business philosophy.
ReWork – Change the Way You Work Forever.
Remote work
Another work from the founders of Basecamp. Here they already explain remote work in a more practical way. They point out the advantages and disadvantages as well as challenges related to working remotely. They describe in detail how remote work makes an employee a better worker and, at the same time, refutes many prejudices and myths.
It doesn't have to be crazy at work
Until the third book from Basecamp. He deals with solving complex problems in the company, such as long working days, unrealistic deadlines or not being able to complete work tasks. However, each of these problems can be solved if you break it down into smaller parts. You will find out how in this book.
V práci nemusí byť blázninec, alebo ako mať pokojnú firmu.
A weirdo
Organizational structures as you know them can be done differently. In the book, the author presents a vision of a company in which employees have a share of the profits (the better the performance, the better the salary), elect their superiors and hire new employees themselves, set their own goals, etc. Quite unimaginable, right? Try reading the story of Semco, which has been operating since 1953.
Freaks – the story of the most unusual workplace in the world.
A seven-day weekend
A free sequel to the book Podivín, which focuses on the effective way of working in the 21st century. The work follows on from Podivín, elaborates the story of Semca, one of the most unique companies today.
A seven-day weekend – smarter way of working in the 21st century.
Podcast - Distributed
WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg and his company distributed are dedicated to remote companies that are decentralized around the world. He invites interesting owners to his studio who manage companies remotely on a daily basis.
