Seven years engineering remotely from the Gulf
Lessons from years of remote and distributed work across Saudi fintech and academia — on communication, ownership, and doing work that speaks for itself.
I spent the better part of seven years working remotely and across distributed teams, first at Argaam in Riyadh and later leading digital projects at UBT in Jeddah. Remote work rewards a specific set of habits that are easy to underrate.
Write things down
In a distributed team, the written record is the team. Decisions, trade-offs, and the reasoning behind them belong in a place others can find without asking. Good writing is not overhead; it is how remote teams stay aligned without constant meetings.
Own outcomes, not hours
Nobody is watching you type, and that is the point. The engineers who thrive remotely are the ones who take a problem, drive it to a result, and surface blockers early. Being recognised as Employee of the Year during fully remote service came down to owning outcomes, not logging time.
Let the work speak
When you are not in the room, your shipped work is your reputation. Reliable systems, clear commits, and dependable delivery build more trust than any status update. That is also why I keep this site and my projects current — the work should make the case before I do.
Takeaway
Remote engineering is less about tools and more about discipline: communicate in writing, own results, and ship work you would be happy to be judged by.