Nothing screams start-up like flying as a team to a country where no team member actually lives and booking an Airbnb with eight rooms, all for a single team outing. Add thirty cups of coffee a day, almond milk, 2kg of pasta and overpriced tacos, and you've really found the start-up vibe.
But joking aside, at Seatti, we decided to experiment with meeting up every few weeks for team outings. And we think we've gained some valuable experience and insights for all the teams and companies that are currently trying out different hybrid work models.
Of course, there are companies with fixed hybrid work structures that want employees to come to the office on specific days or at least 2-3 times a week. But others may find the idea of making their structure more abstract quite appealing and see it as a possibility. And that is exactly what we did.
Admittedly, this type of structure is also possible because we are a start-up with a small number of employees. Our current structure works as follows: Our team works remotely most of the month and for a few days every few weeks we organize an intensive team outing where we all meet. During these outings, we've also discovered a few things that we think are simply essential for hybrid work — and we'd like to share them.
1. New employees must get to know the whole team ASAP
It is particularly difficult for new hires to start working remotely. And that's not just because onboarding is easier when you have team members right in front of you. But also because you can feel isolated and lonely very quickly. Part of the buzz when starting a new job is getting to know the entire team and seeing all the new faces.
That's why we've decided that we need to make sure that our new employees get to know the entire team as soon as they're hired. And that is exactly what we did. In a crazy rapid change that almost tripled our Seatti team, we invited all employees to Lisbon.
Admittedly, a lot more team members and we all don't fit together in an Airbnb. But there is just something about it when everyone is together in a new city, meets for the first time and immediately hangs out with each other all the time — it just really screams teamwork and bonding.
And we know that the new employees appreciate getting to know the whole team in person. Because this ensures an immediate connection that you simply cannot guarantee via a Microsoft Teams call.
2. Organize joint trips
That brings us to our second point. Team outings are much more intense when everyone doesn't go home at 18:00 as if it were a normal working day. And although “intensive” may sound like a terrible word, it has a positive impression on us, because intensive team bonding is exactly what we want.
A team that not only gets to know each other on a professional level is a team that sticks together. And that doesn't mean that you have to know all the private details of your colleagues' lives, but that you get to know their character and personality, laugh together and create inside jokes.
On our trip, we were able to do that by taking time to stroll around town together, have a couple of beers, watch the sunset, and eat at a restaurant. In this way, the whole team was able to share funny stories and anecdotes, create experiences that we can remember for a long time.
We were also able to establish a bond that is unique on such trips. And a team that has built this bond simply works better together because trust and confidence grow.
3. Plan enough onboarding
We believe that the need to properly introduce a company to new employees is often underestimated. We may not always necessarily recognize the need, for example, for a technical person to understand how the sales process works, or for a marketing employee to understand what new features the product team will be releasing soon. But it is actually very valuable.
After all, it is the hybridity of all elements that makes a company successful. So it only makes sense that all team members have a comprehensive idea and understanding of how each department works—and especially what each team member does. Not least to understand how valuable all employees are, even if you don't work directly with each other every day.
That is why our days in Lisbon were planned with various meetings, ranging from an introduction to our sales process to understanding the admin and presenting our vision of the future for the company.
Each team member simply found a place in our living room and listened with a cup to our founders as they explained the story of Seatti, our customer onboarding process, and all the different roles. Pro tip: Investing in an edding marker and some A2 paper helps a lot to visualize onboarding.
And those are just three things we learned during our second team outing in Lisbon. And we hope that we can continue this process for as long as possible. Because it helps us to grow together as a team while still being able to work remotely. The hybrid work model has many different options, and this is the one that simply works for us right now. And we are certain that we will continue to learn, adapt and grow as we continue to travel. And we couldn't be more excited about it!
But until then: Obrigado e Adeus 🇵🇹!
