As a global company, we don’t want to limit ourselves to just one office or location. Read on to hear about our move to a digital HQ.
Otrium was dreamt up as a digital-first company and we’ll always be that way. That’s why we’ve launched our HQ in the cloud.. It gives our employees, the O-team, the freedom and flexibility to carry out their work however suits them best. It also reaffirms our global, inclusive mindset.
Beliefs
We hold four important beliefs that were the foundations of creating a HQ in the cloud. Firstly, we have a high-performance culture – we trust our teams to always deliver the best work. We understand that output is more important than the hours put in or the location the work was carried out in.
Secondly, we already do everything in the cloud – our meetings, documents, daily communications (next to our communication in real life or in our hubs). It’s all online so it makes sense to cement this with an HQ in the cloud.
Thirdly, we see all our hubs around the globe as equally important. All Otrium employees should receive the same employee experience. Last but not least, we see our hubs as social places where we can collaborate, concentrate and create. And we don’t want this process to stop just because our teams are in different cities or timezones. And everyone gets to choose the work model that’s best for them – and can change their work model twice a year to reflect their lives and changing circumstances as required.
Working models
The Otrium work models include: remote first, hub first and a hybrid version of the two (50/50). With remote first, employees are 90% remote and will mostly work from another location other than our hub (so not necessarily working from home). With hub first, you’ll work from a hub for 80% of your time. We ask our O-team to keep working remotely for 20% of their time, to stimulate our digital way of working, productivity and to decrease commuting. The third model is our hybrid model, meaning you work 50% remote and 50% in one of our hubs.
Freedom and flexibility
Finally, along with our HQ in the cloud, Otrium gives our team the freedom and flexibility to work remotely for eight calendar weeks per calendar year from another country than where registered on the employee’s contract. This could include working from another Otrium hub or location of choice.
When dealing with different time zones, we make sure we document as much as possible. We use Notion as our source for company-wide info, our employee handbook, team pages and for all meeting notes, slides and recordings. Whether it’s 8am in Amsterdam or midnight in Auckland, all our information will always be there – in the cloud.
Milan adds: “The future of work is flexibility. We’re building a truly global and diverse team. To do that we’ve created a model that adapts to people’s lives, instead of a one-size-fits-all model, which doesn’t reflect the way people want to work now. We’re giving our people the choice – in when, how and where they work. With our HQ in the cloud, we’ve developed a truly flexible working model that works for everyone, wherever they are in the world and whatever their personal circumstances. Our HQ in the cloud is the future of flexible working.”