Last updated · 26 March 2024

Office-first

Let's cut to the chase, shall we? We are an office-first company.

If you've read Culture, you’ve found how much we value human contact and personal relationships as part of our working culture. If you’ve read Hiring criteria, you've realised we believe that anybody can grasp the technical skills, whereas with the social ones, not so much. If you've read Hiring criteria, you've discovered we value the social aspect of a candidate as much, if not more more, as the technical one.

Significa wouldn't be the same had we been scattered all over the place. Serendipity, which often results in amazing, spontaneous moments of creativity, sharing, love, laughing, productivity, bonding, discussion, beer-drinking and munching, ideological arguments, and pats-on-the-back when they are needed the most, are pretty much non-existent in remote environments because the relationship is strictly professional (no matter how hard one tries to counter it).

Most of us spend more time at work than with our families and friends. We believe that if you can be surrounded by people you enjoy hanging around with while at work, your level of happiness, satisfaction, and productivity will increase.

Exhibit A is the surveys we conduct each semester. On-sight (yes, on-sight, not on-site) people, either in full-office or hybrid, are happier and more engaged than the ones working mostly from home. By quite some margin.

Survey conducted at the end of 2023. The 22 respondents exclude Managers and Partners (5) and people who have been hired in the last three months (a total of 3 at the time of the survey).

This policy won't cut it for everyone and limits our talent pool, but there's nothing left to chance with it. If you are not interested in sharing the same office space as us, Significa isn't the right company for you, and you are not the right person for Significa.

Problem solved. If you’re looking for a remote position, off you go. There are plenty of amazing all-remote companies out there that totally understand your love for your cat and your wishes to be with it all the time.

The policy, then.

Being office-first doesn't mean you have to spend all your working days in the office. We know, sometimes you'll have to run some random errands, do some shopping, nurse a sick kid, pay the bank a visit, or you were just too goddamn lazy to wake-up on time because you’ve spent the night playing Fortnite until 4 AM, and now the traffic is in full havoc mode and it will take you hours to get to the office. Which is totally fine. In other words, you can still work from home when you see fit.

But, based on where you live, you'll have to pay us a visit a certain number of times:

• Within 40kms, at least twice a week.

• Between 40kms and 60kms, at least once a week.

• Beyond 60kms, don't bother coming at all. Stay with your cat.

We realise this may cause inconvenience to some of you, particularly regarding travel. For those who prefer to drive, it sucks even harder because the gas prices are through the roof. But, as a workaround, we will cover your full transport costs. All of them, on us. For public transportation only! We’ve got feather!

Significa does not condone bad-climate behaviour. Therefore, we will not subsidise personal modes of travel.

It is a save-save situation. You save money and the planet in one go. “Thank you”, from the round Planet Earth.

I love my cat. Am I being punished?

If you love your cat and you prefer to stick with it every night and day, you won't be punished for not coming to the office: Maximum freedom, maximum responsibility. But, should you wish to work exclusively from home, please be aware that as an office-first company, all our resources and activities will be directed towards supporting the working environment that is built up and nurtured within the office-first approach.

Oh, and by the way, we’ve got cats in the office too. And dogs. And bees, sometimes.

Sometimes, your cat will have to be alone.

At times, we’ll need you here, in the office, where I’m writing this from. Unfortunately, this means leaving your spoiled cat alone for a few hours. Poor thing.

Situations like this may be Client workshops, team events, or urgent matters requiring physical attendance.

In situations where you are told to come to the office, you must. But then again, your transportation costs will be reimbursed should you wish to take the moral high ground and use public transportation.

But don't worry. Your cat will be fine as long as you leave it with plenty of food. Make sure you lock all the doors and windows, too.