A home away from home...

Or Casa lejos de casa!

I just came back from an extended spell in our Barcelona office.

I remember the time when that was all it was - an office.

One of the most envied views in the whole of the city, where the beach is laid out before you – and in our break out room, you really DO get to take a break and escape, getting lost in the beauty of the Spanish coastline.

So, from a shell of a place with no belongings to a buzzing place that belongs to over 150 FTE’s, how did that happen?

From SCRATCH, is how it happened.

• It took many months of research and planning back home in Manchester, before we even got on a plane.
• We learned about the candidate market in advance but moreover on the job as we hired.
• We developed a clear understanding of what mattered to people.
• Knowing we had a story, our story to tell, we made a point of doing it in the right way with honesty and clarity.
• We fused existing colleagues with brand new ones.
• We discovered as much as we delivered and vice versa, through the people we met.

Rome wasn’t built in a day and our new centre, certainly wasn’t - but the past 10 months have flashed by for all our team members and we found that the further we got, the more, the momentum of the momentum kicked in. Like any new set up, we had our learning curves, that’s fair to say (and maybe the subject of a future article) but we carried on building never the less.

The opportunity to re-visit a fledgling, satellite office was irresistible. I’d heard and been reassured that we had “great people” there, but what did that mean? I’m quite fond of the word “great”, but I become even more enticed when I understand precisely how “great” the great IS.

My reflections:

1. There was a sense of #great – friendly, genuine people were in abundance. I knew this from the smiles, the amount of “hello’s” yours truly received and the atmosphere in our breakout areas was one of warmth and social ease. People here liked each other, the rapport was evident and flowed like Prosecco at a Poblenou party.
2. People cared; about each other, our customers and our business. Doesn’t get better than that.
3. The place had literally come alive. Credit to our people. I’d not seen the work & initiatives our Team Managers had done (team huddles on the beach, Yoga moments in the park, pizza delivery etc.) but I DID see the rewards of those escapades. They paid off and continue to do so.
4. I personally hired a brand-new army of external Team Managers to complete the management team. I was blown away by and grateful (#understatement) by how fierce their company & people pride was, how focused they were & how “us” they were. Not fishing for any kind of pat on the back, but these people (you know who you are) were the real deal. You can fake a smile, but you can’t fake a legit one; I was humbled by their dynamism and to see them in action.
5. Our people team had become more than part of the mechanics of the office – they were regarded and viewed as the heart of the business. Nothing was ever too much trouble in terms of the questions they were asked or again, the WAY they dealt with their colleagues. They were clearly respected by their co-workers; once more, you can’t fake that and make it last.

I could go on, but THIS was the #Barcelonabuzz I’d heard and came expectantly, wanting to see and feel. It had taken hard work, commitment and time but it was there.

“What” was there?

I guess, the result of ultimately selecting brilliant people – who cared, who welcomed and who championed the values.

You really can’t build a culture of any kind without #trust – you expound it, for others to run and reciprocate it. It’s always grounded in trust, and I hope with a little fun along the way. This is all promising and in under one year, not to be underestimated; we know we have more to do and will be ushering in new ideas as a way of working. I’m a big believer in keeping things fresh, and if you want “fresh” that means new & original a.k.a. people innovation.

I must shout out to the impeccable people I met and saw in Barcelona, I am loving YOU!!

If you’re reading this, know: you have so much to be proud of and I’m so grateful you’re there collaborating & walking step by step with us on making the customer journey and colleague experience the very best they can be.

What you’d call a home away from home?

For me, yes and I believe for many of my colleagues who are based there too. That’s priceless stuff. The world needs more #pricelessstuff IMO. It’s the true gold of any people in any profession.

Until next time ??