17 years at OCG

On the 11th of this month I clocked over 17 years at OCG.  I had a someone say to me ‘how have you stayed in one company so long’ and it got me thinking and reflecting on my time at OCG.  

When I joined OCG I had 3 months off work before I applied for the reception role. What drew me to the ad for the role was that the ad was mostly made up of information based around the values of the company and the people in it, rather than the skills required for the role.  The role was a step back for me and also a big financial step back but I hadn’t worked for 3 months so money wasn’t my main focus, it was getting the right company with the right people that was most important to me. 

Values was one of the reasons that I decided that my time at my previous employer was over.  It was after attending a leadership course where as a group we discussed our company values and people, it soon became apparent that my Manager at the time had very different thought patterns to me. So I did the risky thing of resigning and left a secure job because I didn’t feel aligned with my leadership at the time.    This was a hard decision for me as I loved working with the people that I worked with and my Manager prior had been one of the most inspiring people I had ever worked for. Sadly he passed away last year very suddenly and he’ll be a massive loss to his team at Auckland Council I’m sure, I know I miss him and still think about conversations we had.     

Anyway, I digress…..I can remember the day I joined OCG, it felt so amazing to be employed to begin with, it also felt like I had joined a company that felt like family.   And this is where I got to about being at OCG, they are my family.   I have had the privilege of fantastic career progression over the 17 years. It has seen me move through many different roles. In this time I've also seen the business go through some terribly tough times but it is through those times that we ‘the OCG family’ have all come together to fight for what we care for. This is how we have seen the business come out of the other side of these tough times.  

This year, as everyone knows, has been an amazing test of our resilience. I am so proud of our team who is spread all over New Zealand. We have come together to help each other and to jump in when needed.  Some of us have had to step outside of our comfort zone, we have had to use our courage to stretch beyond but all through this it has been us wanting to do the right thing and show us, and our business, the care that we all need. 

This year for me has been really hard. I lost my Dad in May after a very long struggle for him. I can’t tell you how amazing OCG was for me through the time I had to take to support my Dad and Mum. Sometimes I would have to drop everything and go to my Dad and it was never a problem. I was so amazed how the team would just pick things up.  

Dad was very unwell through the first lockdown and I would be absent from work for large periods of time, it was never questioned and everyone worked to make it as easy as possible for me and my family which I will never forget. 

My children have grown up in OCG. Poppy is 10 and Oscar is 7 so they know my work well but still have absolutely no idea what I do. They just think I have a cool desk that goes up and down and they know they get lollies when they come in….oh to be a child again.  

Having a company that supports you bringing your kids to work is probably one of the most important things as a parent you can have.  The flexibility to come and go to sports events, assemblies, parent teacher meetings etc is great. It takes away from the stress of balancing work and family. It has meant that I can commit to my job and also commit to my kids whilst not feeling like I am letting down anyone.

So to stop my ramblings and answer my first reflection, the reason I am still at OCG is because OCG is my work family. Just like family we debate, we don’t agree all the time, we make up, we laugh, we cry, we plan and we succeed.  

So to the person who asked me that question, thank you. This time of reflection has made me realise that I work for a great company full of really special people and together we've got this.