Remote work: Meeting the boss for the first time in two years

Doing without a commute, coworking, or taking the kids to swimming lessons in the afternoon? What sounds like a dream to many is a reality for the four-person team at Ofri. This Zurich-based company has been operating an independent craftsmen's portal since 2011. Ofri's employees freely determine their work location and work schedule. With remote work, the focus is also on the work result of the employees and not on his or her attendance time.

Result more important than presence

"The result of the work is important to me. When and from where my employees work is not important to me," introduces Benny Hertach, founder of the craftsmen's platform. Since 2015, the Zurich-based company has been working completely location-independently. Its employees are currently located in Greece, Poland, Spain and Switzerland. The only thing he requires is that the time difference to the office in Zurich is a maximum of two hours. "During the first four years, I was the only employee of my company. During this time, I learned to appreciate the advantages of working independently. On particularly hot
days, I took a break in the afternoon and worked longer in the evening." For him, it was clear that he wanted to offer his employees the same freedom. Some team members are night owls, others work better early in the morning. Everyone knows when and where they are most productive, so he doesn't want to interfere artificially.

Documentation and regular meetings via webcam

The decentralized and asynchronous form of work requires transparent documentation. Using communication and project management programs such as Slack, Trello, or Confluence, employees can view the status, goals, and upcoming tasks. The team meets regularly - at least virtually. Using the video conferencing program Zoom, the Ofri team holds weekly team and project meetings. Here, too, meticulous documentation is kept, its employee Corina Burri recently told Forbes.

Company retreat as compensation

Remote work also has challenges, Hertach points out: "We don't just happen to meet in the coffee kitchen. There's a risk that the working relationship becomes too sterile." To counteract this, the Ofri team added a 15-minute culture session to the team meeting a year ago. For once, it's not about metrics optimization or customer service, but about weekend plans, series tips and favorite blogs.

For the past three years, the Ofri team has also held an annual company retreat. For five days, the team members meet in a city and work together on product development for the following twelve months. But the cultural part is not neglected. During one and a half days, the team indulges in a leisure activity together. Be it hiking in Malta, stand-up paddling in Lisbon or a conference visit in Zurich. It was also at the first company retreat in Malta that Silvia Piangou, responsible for customer service, met her supervisor in person for the first time. "I naturally looked forward to the first real meeting with excitement. We had been in daily contact via Slack and Zoom for two years, but had never met," Piangou says. "The tension dissipated with the first handshake," Piangou continues. She was amazed at how well she already knew her supervisor through digital collaboration. "The meeting allowed us to further strengthen our mutual trust," Piangou adds.

Search for professionals across Europe

"When recruiting, I could also consider candidates from far away from Zurich. The applicant radius increased, I was able to be more selective and recruit the people who really fit in best with us professionally and personally," that was the most significant advantage for him from an entrepreneurial point of view, explains Hertach. In his experience, he says, experienced employees in particular are not willing to relocate for a new job.

Source: Ofri