A few years back I started working at an international dot.com in London that tried sooooo hard but just couldn't get it right; the place was soulless, everyone just sat at their desks and worked 8:30 till 6:00, no talking, no water-cooler moments. Management weren't overbearing, that's just how the work environment seemed to have developed. They had large rooms filled with beanbags and swings which no one ever used. They even had beer fridges; every Friday at 5:00 everyone would grab a free beer - then go back to their desk to drink it in silence whilst working for another hour.
I managed 4 weeks there.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
