Do you want to know how to work from home in a productive, effective and innovative way? Larry English has a book for that.

English graduated from Miami in 1990 with a degree in systems analysis. After graduating, he began working for an international consulting firm where his work days seemed never-ending. By 25, he was burned out from the monotony of day-to-day office life, and took a leave of absence and traveled abroad for a year, searching for an alternative to the typical office lifestyle.

Now, two decades later, English is the president and co-founder of Centric Consulting: a firm that does everything an ordinary firm does, with a couple alterations.

Centric Consulting offers a new approach to work, with a focus on culture and a balanced life.

Oh, and they don’t have any office space.

As a completely remote company, English and the rest of the firm’s team have been very successful. After receiving years of questions about how the company functions so smoothly without office space, English decided to write a book to explain the concept.

The book, “Office Optional: How to Build a Connected Culture With Virtual Teams,” is a how-to guide for businesses that wish to permanently adopt remote work, while staying connected to their workforce.

Given the recent circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, this concept has been especially popular. Centric Consulting has been inundated with companies looking to transition to a completely remote work environment, as many have seen the benefits of the atypical work life.

English says that his time at Miami was very beneficial to his career trajectory, as both mentorship and his courses were critical to putting him where he is today, especially his business writing class.

“Communication is super important even if you are a computer science [major]...It’s critical,” English said. “[And] I’m so grateful to the professors that I still interact with that were just such patient and kind mentors that I learned from.”

Proceeds from English’s book will go toward COVID-19 relief efforts.

By Jenna Calderón, CEC Reporter