Remote working

One in Austria, the other in France.

Here’s a plea to look for a way of working that suits you best. And a big pat on the shoulder to any employer who gives employees the space to start exploring that.

At Bunchmark we hardly know any better by now; some of our colleagues do ‘workations’, Marieke works from the south of France, Birthe (temporarily) from Austria. We were not sure beforehand how that would work out. Below you can read their stories. What do you gain? What do you hand in? How does it work for us?

Marieke

I have a desk by the window. When I look out, I see mountains. And behind them more mountains. Just like on the packages of A. Voogel. You guessed it, my desk is not in the Netherlands, but in France. And it is right here.

I’ve also been right at home at Bunchmark since day one as a communications and marketing consultant. But I was no longer senang in Amsterdam. I love the city, but it also makes me restless. With a Francophile as a friend, and without a house to buy or children to consider, a plan emerged; work from France for three months and see what happens. After that, we’ll see.

“Good idea, go!” was the response at Bunchmark. To find out if it works, we just have to do it. So we loaded up the couch, the dog and my desk and drove to France. And it worked. Now, three years later, still does. We found a mode that covers the 1254 kilometers:

• I come to Amsterdam every 6 to 8 weeks. During that week, I see as many people as possible, plan check-ins and brainstorming afternoons.
• For an offsite or other team-building activities, I fly back.
• If I feel (figuratively) too much distance, I discuss it with my people lead with whom I have biweekly check-ins.
• Some assignments work better from a distance than others. We take that into consideration with new clients.

It’s a joy to be in Amsterdam every few weeks, seeing all the Bunchmarkers and making new plans face-to-face. But for all the moment in between, I’ve found my niche here in France. That’s a big win for me, but also for Bunchmark. Since living here, I am happier, sleep better and the restlessness has largely disappeared. This makes me more creative, focused and resilient on a daily basis. I do my work more confidently. They see that at Bunchmark, too.

Working 1200 kilometers away from your colleagues is also sometimes difficult. I miss get-togethers, Christmas dinner, or assignments that just don’t go from a distance. But the hardest thing to miss are the spontaneous moments that arise alone in the office; throwing a problem on the table at lunch, taking a look at a quote together, immediately asking a colleague to help you. And vice versa.

Yet every day I realize that I am lucky to have an employer who has given me such freedom in my exploration of a better place to work. But in the end, we both reap the benefits. Our motto will remain; If it works then it works. After that we’ll see!

Birthe

Last summer it started itching: spending a winter in Austria in the mountains to further develop my great passion of skiing. But I’m also having a great time as an HR consultant at Bunchmark. Could it be combined? I asked my people lead Irene that question. She answered without hesitation: if that would make you happy, let’s make it happen! Several open conversations followed about possible challenges and expectations on both sides. What began tentatively with “just January in Austria” has since grown into a stay of almost four months. Was it what I expected? A big fat YES, and so much more!

I work four days a week, so I keep three days to enjoy mountain life to the fullest. Most of my free time is spent on skis, which gives me the ultimate sense of freedom. In addition, my work is still fun, my colleagues share in my enthusiasm, and I spend the rest of my time in the way that makes me happiest. With the right balance, there are very few times when I reluctantly sit down at the computer to work.

When I tell people that I work remotely as an HR consultant in order to do a lot of skiing, the first reaction is often, “you got that right!”. A second reaction that usually follows: “but is that possible with your job?”. My answer then is, yes with my current assignment it goes very well. We were lucky with that, certainly not every assignment lends itself to working remotely. In my current assignment, I have the role of HR project manager on a transition of business, with all transition employees working in different locations. So there is little difference whether I dial in from Amsterdam, Haarlem or Mayrhofen. Precisely because we work together remotely, we have been able to optimize our online collaboration as a team and have taken our online project management skills another step further.

Why I think my remote adventure in Austria worked out so well?

• Together we saw opportunities rather than obstacles
• About the challenges and tension we have always talked openly. In that, we made clear agreements about the expectations from both sides.
• Trust is the code word: my colleagues could trust that my work would be completed on time. Unspoken, I felt this trust, so I felt the freedom to arrange my schedule flexibly.
• For me, this is an ideal work-life balance, making me a happier person in both.
• Team meetings on Fridays are “sacred.” Friday is our Bunchmark day, where we check in with each other weekly and discuss more comprehensive updates monthly. For me, these meetings were sacred in order to maintain a connection with the team. I made sure I attended and the home team kept in mind the online participants (“hoho, not all mixed up, then it won’t be followable for Marieke and Birthe”)

This way, remote work is just possible, even as an HR consultant, and it has enriched me so much that I am happy as a human being because I have been able to pursue my freeride skiing dreams. As a result, I enjoy my work even more because I know I don’t have to leave my personal dreams outside the door. That is ultimate work happiness for me