Talking Drupal Newsletter 7/30/25
#513 - Back To The Office
Today we are talking about Working from home, heading back to the office, and the current state of remote work with guest Kaleem Clarkson. We’ll also cover Microsoft 365 Connector as our module of the week.
Topics
Exploring Remote Work with Kaleem Clarkson
Trust Issues in Management
Employee Red Flags and Data-Driven Decisions
Managerial Concerns with Return to Office Policies
Respectful Implementation of Return to Office
Challenges of Enforcing Office Mandates
Benefits of In-Person Work
Hybrid Work Models and Their Challenges
Variations in Hybrid Work Policies
Impact of Seniority on Office Policies
Cutting DEI Initiatives: Fear and Legal Risks
Employer Brand and Social Contracts
Resources
Guests
Kaleem Clarkson - kclarkson
Hosts
Nic Laflin - nLighteneddevelopment.com nicxvan
John Picozzi - epam.com johnpicozzi
Rich Lawson - richlawson.co rklawson
Module of the Week
With Martin Anderson-Clutz - mandclu.com mandclu
Microsoft 365 Connector - The Microsoft 365 Connector module gives you a connector service that makes it possible for developers to easily connect to the Microsoft Graph API
TD Cafe #007 - Stephen & Nic: Drupal Hooks Continued
In this episode of Talking Drupal Cafe, Stephen and Nic continue Talking Drupal #510's discuss about Drupal Hooks. They discuss the challenges, successes, and the importance of community collaboration in open-source projects. Nic also touches on the personal impact of working on Drupal core and the balancing act between contributing to the project and client work. Along the way, they share personal anecdotes, including a discussion on watches and coffee preferences. Watch this insightful conversation to better understand the evolution of Drupal hooks and the dedication behind core development.
Topics
Stephen Cross
Stephen Cross is a seasoned Drupal developer, community advocate and content creator with over a two decades of experience building and optimizing web applications.
In 2013 he founded and still hosts the Talking Drupal podcast, a community show where he’s published over 500 interviews and deep-dives with core contributors, agency leads and end-users—helping drive best practices and innovation across the ecosystem.
Capitalizing on his podcast production expertise, Stephen also offers end-to-end remote video podcast services: he handles all technical planning, multi-camera recording, post-production editing and distribution, so clients can focus solely on their content. He’s used this service to help real-estate, fitness, interior-design and other niche shows establish polished, engaging interview- and panel-style programs.
Outside of Drupal and media, Stephen is an horology enthusiast, he collects Casio and mechanical watches, and is a Linux and Raspberry Pi enthusiast.
Nic Laflin
Nic Laflin is an accomplished Drupal architect and the founder of nLightened Development LLC, a web development and design firm established in 2008 that leverages highly extensible CMS frameworks to solve complex business challenges.
They’ve been working with Drupal since late 2008, delivering creative solutions for a diverse roster of clients—from government agencies and e-commerce platforms to higher-education institutions and HIPAA-compliant medical services. Recently, Nic has focused on Native Web Components for platform-agnostic design, and has deep experience integrating AWS and building mobile application back ends.
A recognized Drupal guru, Nic speaks regularly at regional Drupal camps and co-hosts the Talking Drupal podcast, where they share best practices and innovations with the community.
Outside of technology, Nic enjoys building with LEGO, experimenting in the kitchen, and designing home automation projects. You can learn more at www.nlightened.net.
Discussing the Game Blueprints
Drupal Hooks and Core Contributions
Procedural vs Object-Oriented Hooks
Challenges and Project Management
Bulk Conversion and Future Steps
Scaling Back and Procedural Hooks
Challenges and Lessons Learned
Balancing Core Contributions and Client Work
Documentation and Community Awareness
Impact on Client Work
Core Committers and Project Management
Coffee Preferences and Personal Interests
Conclusion and Final Thoughts
Guests
Nic Laflin - nLighteneddevelopment.com nicxvan
Stephen Cross - StephenCross.com
Longhorn PHP Conference
This year, the annual Longhorn PHP Conference in Austin, Texas is Oct 23-25.
Call for sessions is open through August 1.
The Texas Drupal community is organizing Drupal content at Longhorn PHP. Airfare and hotel is available for out of area speakers so submit your Drupal sessions or sessions of broader interest to the PHP community!
Join this mailing list to stay in the loop about the Drupal element of this conference (and other Drupal events in Texas).
We’re also seeking sponsors to help keep ticket prices as low as possible while compensating speakers.
- JD Leonard (edited)
My Go-To Setup for Local Drupal Development with DDEV and Colima
by John Picozzi
As someone who frequently builds POCs and demos with Drupal, I’ve spent plenty of time spinning up local environments. A while back, I switched to DDEV as my go-to local dev tool after hearing great things—and it quickly became a core part of my workflow. It's fast, reliable, and makes managing Drupal projects a whole lot easier.
In this post, I’ll walk you through how I set up a fresh local Drupal site using DDEV. Whether you're new to DDEV or just looking to streamline your Drupal dev setup, these steps will get you up and running in no time.
Continue reading at Picozzi.com
Contact Us
#talkingdrupal on Drupal Slack