August 21, 2021 5 minutes read
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Companies around the world are getting ready for their employees to return to work as the world opens up. Many companies are advocating the hybrid model where employees work in an office one day and go home on another. Many workers are also threatening to quit if they have to stop working remotely.
Motivated people will find that blockchain companies openly welcome them as they seek to leave their dreary workplaces and exhausting commutes. According to FlexJobs' most recent global survey, blockchain firms like Protocol Labs, Chainlink Labs, and Kraken lead the charge in remote hiring. It begs the question: Why is blockchain focusing on remote work, while traditional finance and traditional finance encourage their employees to return to the office?
These are three reasons why Blockchain companies will not be able to compete with the rest of the world.
1. 1. A small talent pool
As Bitcoin continues to grow and the Decentralized Finance sector's total value keeps rising, media attention has led to a rise in applications for positions at blockchain companies. According to one agency, interest in blockchain-related job opportunities has increased by five to ten percent in the past nine months. It would seem that it is easier to hire in the blockchain industry than ever before.
In reality, however, there has been a slowdown in the number of qualified and top-tier candidates for positions with blockchain companies. According to a LinkedIn survey, blockchain was the most sought-after hard skill. It's still very new in the blockchain industry, making it extremely difficult to find qualified developers for smart contracts and blockchain. The number of GitHub repositories for Solidity (the programming language used by Ethereum) is nearly 55 times greater than that of jаvascript. Reports suggest that there are still only a few thousand active blockchain developers.
It is difficult to find qualified candidates for technical roles. A communications professional with no prior experience in this field will likely have little to no knowledge of blockchains and smart contracts.
Blockchain companies must be able to operate remotely in order to stay competitive. This is the best way to expand the talent pool and reach rare and qualified candidates from all corners of the globe. Qualified candidates are still scarce, despite all the buzz about blockchain jobs. It doesn't matter if the talent is working from home or at a nearby office, when companies require the best talent.
Related: 5 Ways Blockchain Technology will Change the Way You Do Business
2. Decentralization matters
Decentralization is the central theme of everything in blockchain. Decentralization refers to the idea that existing power centres across many industries can be disintermediated through people from around the globe participating in a network. Decentralization is something that people at blockchain companies think is very important in order to build the technology. Therefore, blockchain companies should be decentralized. As anyone can contribute to a decentralized protocol, just as anyone can become a node within a distributed network.
It is not a good idea to limit your hiring efforts to candidates who live in the most expensive parts of the world. A work-from-anywhere culture is a way to expand the talent pool that a blockchain company has access. It also supports employees with primary care responsibilities, and a more inclusive work culture.
Blockchain companies are aiming to revolutionize global systems. This vision is based on the belief that everyone, regardless of their financial status, can take part in the growth and development open-source networks.
Related: 10 Entrepreneurs That Are Proving Why Blockchain is Here to Stay
3. Stay agile
The meteoric rise in popularity of DeFi has shown us something: decentralized protocols can grow quickly and then lose it to other projects. DeFi has very low barriers of entry for developers and users. Developers can create multi-billion-dollar platforms from scratch with just a laptop and basic coding skills. Users can jump in and exit a protocol with all their assets at any time.
DeFi protocol developers must be agile in both their hiring process and workflows. It is difficult to recruit developers slowly over a period of weeks or months. It is also a time-waster to find an office. Many of these companies have smaller budgets and are likely to focus on office amenities, commute programs, and catering services.
Remote work allows blockchain companies to quickly scale up their teams and get to market to satisfy user demand for next generation DeFi products.
Future powered by blockchain, work from anywhere.
Many of the most successful blockchain projects are being done remotely. Many blockchain projects were started remotely and will benefit from the knowledge and best practices gained as remote-first companies scale. Blockchain companies are likely to continue leading the remote future, with increasing interest in the area.
Related: 15 Surprising and Crazy Ways People Use Blockchain
