Collaborate and Counsel
One of the most obvious, not-so-hidden benefits of working in an office is collaboration. You just don’t get that kind of connection on a zoom screen. At Kaseya, our leadership team, starting with myself, has an open-door policy. We are not Ivory Tower executives. I like to walk the sales floor and talk with our teams — see what’s on their mind, what customers are telling them and so forth. These casual conversations often lead to innovation. A sales rep may share a challenge one of their customers is having, and that may lead to a new product offering that provides a solution for that specific problem.
Beyond the C-suite, in-office fosters collaboration among teams. People are social creatures and having your manager close by gives you access. It allows employees to ask questions, brainstorm ideas and showcase their talents so they can grow with the company. I attribute the success of our Grow Your Own (GYO) program to this approach. GYO is an initiative we launched to create a pathway for employees to move up within our organization. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing people come in as junior employees now leading teams, and I do believe that is because we foster a culture of collaboration and mentorship.
What Does Culture Really Mean?
You hear a lot about company culture. For some, it’s a shared vision amongst employees. For me, it’s about people, specifically employee centricity. I believe in making people’s lives better. You work hard, you are rewarded. It’s really special that I get to see people be able to buy their first home, pay off their college debt and hit other milestones in life as a result of the financial rewards they earn for putting in the work. Employee centricity to me means taking care of your people so they’ll take care of our customers.
One of my favorite business books is Leadership and Self-Deception. Yochi Slonim, co-founder of Anima Biotech, a world-renowned software and biotech entrepreneur, and my mentor, first presented it to me. I re-read it at least once every two years and it’s required reading for every senior leader at my company. It is about how we can all fall into “in-the-box” thinking and how to get out of it. I’ve used it to encourage conversations around work in-office, so as a company, we can get on the same page as to why it makes sense for us. The lessons in the book have been very valuable to me for more than two decades, professionally and personally, and I recommend everyone read it at least once.
Other Perks of In-office
Beyond the obvious, working in an office has been shown to enhance employee well-being, promote team building — we have several sports leagues at my company — and boost local business as employees will go out for lunch and support restaurants, stores and more.
Working from home versus working in-office will continue to be the subject of many conversations for CEOs like myself. We’ve found that being an in-office company has many benefits and works for our employees. As leaders, it’s important to create an environment where employees feel comfortable and want to be present, whether it’s catering lunch monthly, hosting holiday events and happy hours. It’s up to leadership to foster both an employee-centric culture and a welcoming place that people come to see as a second home. After all, we do spend the majority of our time at work and with our colleagues.
