Background. The mass transition to remote work amid the COVID-19 pandemic profoundly affected software professionals, who abruptly shifted into ostensibly temporary home offices. The effects of this transition on these professionals are complex, depending on the particularities of the context and individuals. Recent studies advocate for remote structures to create opportunities for many equity-deserving groups; however, remote work can also be challenging for some individuals, such as women and individuals with disabilities. Objective. This study aims to investigate the effects of remote work on LGBTQIA+ software professionals. Method. Grounded theory methodology was applied based on information collected from two main sources: a survey questionnaire with a sample of 57 LGBTQIA+ software professionals and nine follow-up interviews with individuals from this sample. This sample included professionals of different genders, ethnicities, sexual orientations, and levels of experience. Findings. Our findings demonstrate that (1) remote work benefits LGBTQIA+ people by increasing security and visibility; (2) remote work harms LGBTQIA+ software professionals through isolation and invisibility; (3) the benefits outweigh the drawbacks; (4) the drawbacks can be mitigated by supportive measures developed by software companies. Conclusion. This paper investigated how remote work can affect LGBTQIA+ software professionals and presented a set of recommendations on how software companies can address the benefits and limitations associated with this work model. In summary, we concluded that remote work is crucial in increasing diversity and inclusion in the software industry.

翻译：背景。新冠疫情间大规模转向远程工作深刻影响了软件专业人士，他们突然转入临时性的家庭办公环境。这种转变对这些专业人士的影响具有复杂性，取决于具体情境和个体差异。近期研究表明，远程工作结构能为许多权益保障群体创造机遇；然而，远程工作也可能对某些群体（如女性及残障人士）带来挑战。目的。本研究旨在探究远程工作对LGBTQIA+软件专业人士的影响。方法。基于两大信息源采用扎根理论方法论：57名LGBTQIA+软件专业人士的问卷调查样本，以及其中9人的后续访谈。该样本涵盖不同性别、族裔、性取向及经验层级的专业人士。发现。研究结果表明：(1) 远程工作通过增强安全性与可见性惠及LGBTQIA+群体；(2) 远程工作因孤立与不可见性损害LGBTQIA+软件专业人士；(3) 益处大于弊端；(4) 软件企业制定的支持性措施可缓解弊端。结论。本文探究了远程工作如何影响LGBTQIA+软件专业人士，并提出一套建议，帮助软件企业应对该工作模式带来的益处与局限性。综上，我们得出结论：远程工作对提升软件行业的多元性与包容性至关重要。