t is often said that our lives and the relationships we build can be forever marked by first impressions. The first day of school. The first solo trip. The first job interview. The first salary. The first child. In my case, a second and a third, all unique and unrepeatable, each experienced for the first time.
Every new professional challenge is a fresh start, with many first impressions to be created. With co-workers, but also with customers and partners.
I recently arrived at Coverflex, and I remember my first day at work very well. I left Porto very early, took a flight, landed in Switzerland, but before the process of getting in the plane my onboarding had already started. The team that boarded with me in Porto made a point of introducing itself, and immediately showed a particular – and, I confess, unexpected – complicity, considering that Coverflex is a 100% remote company.
Being 100% remote means that each of the 71 people who make up the team can choose, every day, where they want to work. Sometimes this reality leads people to meet face to face, whenever they find it beneficial and necessary. Alternatively, people meet virtually, when it's either impossible or unnecessary for them to do so in a face-to-face logic.
This onboarding - on the plane and in the company - coincided with my debut: I was lucky that my entry into Coverflex, to lead a new team dedicated to the Portuguese market, occurred at the same time as the company retreat in Italy.
Let me explain: Coverflex and the pandemic are practically contemporary. This means that, when the initial idea of Coverflex began to take shape, a new work logic was also being born, in line with the times we were living in.
“Remote team” means a global talent market, asynchronous communication - as much as possible -, process transparency, a lot of planning and a lot of documentation. “Remote team” means a specific budget that allows us to work where it is most beneficial - 1.000 euros per year per Coverflexer, which can be spent on expenses related to work away from home, be they travel, accommodation or coworking, among others. “Remote team” means having a budget to “build” my home office, to my liking and that meets my needs, whether because I like to be among many plants, work at a table that allows me to stand up, or get together with colleagues on top of a pilates ball.
Creating an environment in which freedom and flexibility are key foundations is a challenging task, even more so in scenarios of “great resignation” and “quiet quitting”. Or rather, thinking about an environment in which these are the pillars is, perhaps, the best answer to this challenge.
Much is said about how much the world has changed in the last two years. But the world wouldn't change if there wasn't a profound transformation in the way people want to live. Attracting and retaining talent in a scenario of enormous market competitiveness is, for people and company managers, perhaps the biggest business challenge they have ever faced in their careers. Every day at Coverflex, in conversations with clients, partners and colleagues, I realise that the happiness and well-being of each person, within organisations, varies in proportion to individual freedom. And this implies that each person is looked at in a unique way, with all their individual characteristics, aspirations for personal and professional development, and with attention to their particular life context.
It was thinking about this impact on people's lives, ours and those of our customers and partners, that Coverflex was created. And it’s with that in mind that we make it grow.
Through the possibility of implementing a benefits policy suited to each employee, with our all-in-one solution, we help managers and companies to create the best first impression on each of their employees, making them feel welcome and understood, as well as helping to make the organisation-wide compensation offering process more efficient.
Our starting point is our obsession with people. Our arrival point too.
* this article was first published in Fintech Report 2022.
