I got dinged on my latest review for not participating enough in the team channels, and I feel like I’m back in middle school. Apparently, shipping clean, bug-free code ahead of schedule takes a backseat to not dropping enough memes in the #random channel. My manager literally told me that social presence is a core metric for our remote culture this year. Is this normal? I’m so grumpy about it.

How do you deal with the feeling that your entire professional output is meaningless? I’m watching my company ignore every single one of my user-centric findings. They pay me to conduct deep-dive interviews and usability tests, but at the end of the day, the CEO just goes with whatever gut feeling he had. It’s soul-crushing.

I was terminated and escorted out of my last job in the Healthcare IT industry without warning. It was due to reporting a few coworkers for violating HIPPA, and preventing a social engineering attempt in real time with security and fellow clinical systems analysts. Was informed that doing so was a terminable offense because it is not my responsibilty to contact our security team. Later found out that the Human Resources Department didn't approve of my termination and advised against it

I’ve been WFH from a different country for three months without telling HR, and the anxiety is finally starting to eat me alive. My VPN is holding up, and my manager hasn't noticed that my home office background is just a stock photo. The tax implications are probably a nightmare, but my quality of life has doubled since I left the Bay Area. Is it better to ask for forgiveness if I get caught? Should I just keep going?

What is the dress code for woman in tech? It feels like it is really casual for men in the office but I think it is still a double standard for women to dress up more.