Anthony Eden started DNSimple as a remote first, mostly asynchronous company in 2010 before it was cool.

In this episode of the Distributed podcast, host Jack Hannah sits down with Anthony, Founder and CEO, to discuss the intricacies of remote-first companies. Anthony shares his journey of building DNSimple as a remote-first company, highlighting how asynchronous communication and flexible structures foster a thriving tech culture. The discussion touches on what shapes a successful organization and the challenges he’s faced over the years.

Anthony also shares his experience with Shape Up and how it’s improved his team’s productivity and trust in each other.

Highlights:

• Remote work norms and fostering collaboration across different time zones
• Anthony’s journey with Shape Up
• How to facilitate trust among team members
• DNSimple’s culture of collaboration

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) - Kicking things off with Anthony Eden

(00:55) - Founding DNSimple: Anthony’s journey to remote work

(02:47) - Embracing remote work: the time zone challenge

(04:02) - Company growth and team structure at DNSimple

(06:56) - The shift to Shape Up: solving development challenges

(10:42) - Facilitating trust and commitments in remote teams

(16:06) - Asynchronous collaboration tools

(21:45) - Aligning remote work practices: learning from experiments

(31:20) - The human side of remote work: building emotional connections

(35:43) - Conclusion: looking ahead with a growth mindset in remote work

References mentioned:

DNSimple’s time tracking experiment

Shape Up

Where to connect further:

Connect with Anthony Eden on LinkedIn

Follow Tuple

Want to hear more? Check out distributed.fm

Connect with Jack Hannah