Workation Chronicles: Our Software Team's Cyprian Adventure

The “Global work-from-home experience survey” by PwC in 2021 found that 72% of employees worldwide want to work away from the office at least two days a week.

A Buffer survey reported that 38% of remote workers said they would like to have the option to work from different locations, indicating interest in workations. As you can see, the convergence of technology and individual preferences has contributed to the popularity and growth of remote working and its variations.

If you've been keeping up with CodeRiders, you're likely aware that our emphasis is on people. We firmly believe that skilled and content individuals are the architects of exceptional projects and outcomes. It's only natural, then, that we take into account our software developers, engineers, testers, designers, and other specialists' inclinations and harmonize them with our software development office's work culture.

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, our team has temporarily switched to a remote working routine for safety purposes. As we are a software outsourcing company, remote working was not a big challenge for us. We work remotely for our international clients across the globe. Most of our portfolio and case studies include the development, implementation, and maintenance of complex software development projects for companies from all of the continents.

After the pandemic, we decided to embrace a dynamic hybrid work culture, driven by our employees' performance and happiness rates. We officially adopted the hybrid working model into our company culture, letting our employees work from wherever it is most convenient for them. Furthermore, we remain vigilant for the most compelling work strategies to enhance employee satisfaction and ensure our team remains as united and robust as ever. Simultaneously, we are mindful of the potential drawbacks of remote work and proactively employ diverse approaches to mitigate these challenges.

One of these diverse approaches is “workation” – a strategy-generating buzz in recent times. In July 2023, the entire CodeRiders team embarked on a 3-week journey to Cyprus, where work seamlessly blended with life and enjoyment.

Join us in this article as we open the doors to our transformative experience.

What is workation?

A "workation" is a portmanteau of the words "work" and "vacation." It refers to a scenario in which employees combine their work responsibilities with leisure and relaxation, often by working remotely from a vacation destination. In a workation, people can continue their professional tasks while enjoying the amenities and surroundings of a different location.

Why Cyprus?

Deliberation played a pivotal role in our selection of the workation destination. We intended to opt for a country that could present a spectrum of advantages for our software development company while ensuring a rewarding and unforgettable experience. Additionally, we sought cultural affinities with Armenia to foster a sense of familiarity. We also wanted a sea-type vacation because Armenia is a landlocked country.

After evaluating numerous options, Cyprus emerged as the victorious choice. Situated in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, Cyprus, an island nation with its beautiful and clean beaches, secured its place as our destination of choice. We hired a villa in a coastal city called Paphos in southwest Cyprus.

CodeRiders Typical Working Day and Weekend During Workation

Imagine staying in a cozy three-floor villa with a large pool with your colleagues. We even invited the spouses of our married team members to join in the fun. As soon as we arrived, we turned the main room into an open-space office. We all worked together there, just like we do at our regular office.

We also made sure there were quiet rooms for those who needed to make important calls with the clients. During lunchtime, we cooked meals together or ordered takeout, just like our usual office lunches. It was a great time to connect.

Right next to our workspace, there was a large pool. So, whenever anyone needed a break, they could jump in and relax. It was a fantastic place to have serious work discussions in a relaxed setting. For example, we are currently working on a mobile app for the Armenian market, and we used to brainstorm and plan during our stay, which was awesome. We also blended meaningful professional discussions with enjoyable evening poolside activities, creating an enriching experience that allowed us to exchange knowledge while unwinding and having fun.

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After work, we explored the local scene. We went to cafes, played games by the pool, and, on weekends, became tourists. We visited famous places like Aphrodite's Rock, Coral Bay, Ayia Napa, Adonis Baths Waterfalls, Paphos Harbor, Lefkara Village, and more. Some of us even had fun riding donkeys at the Donkey Riding Park.

We documented our adventures with cool videos and shared them on our social media pages. You can see them on CodeRiders' Instagram and Facebook pages.

Our story celebrates the blend of work and fun, where we discover the magic of teamwork, creativity, and adventure.

What Did Workation Bring to the Table for CodeRiders Software Development Company?

Today, we’re proud to state that our trip to Cyprus fulfilled our in-advance planned workation objectives that we wanted to accomplish. These objectives include:

Foster team collaboration

During the workation, our days were spent entirely together. While we had a great deal of fun, work naturally became a topic of discussion. We shared our experiences, concerns, and excitement about our ongoing projects. At the end of the day, we are all colleagues in the same industry. Some of us are software engineers and developers, others are UI/UX designers, IT project managers, and business development specialists. Our work is interconnected, making it inevitable that we discuss it. Spending time together beyond the confines of the workplace, allowed us to delve deeper into each other's interests, worries, and aspirations, bringing us closer together as a team.

Throughout this experience, we gained insights into our colleagues that we might not have understood fully before. For instance, we began to comprehend why they behaved in certain ways, and any reservations we had about sharing our thoughts dissipated. Living and working together organically provided answers to many of our questions. It became clear that we are all human beings with our fears, motivations, strengths, and weaknesses. Recognizing these aspects within our team members enabled us to support each other effectively.

We learned how to complement each other's weaknesses and further enhance our strengths. This experience also taught us valuable strategies for approaching our colleagues to foster collaboration and mutual understanding. On the other hand, providing a change of environment planted a feeling of excitement and motivation in our team encouraging them to learn and accept new concepts and new approaches to work.

Boost creativity and idea generation

A refreshing change of scenery stimulates the mind and encourages new ways of thinking, and this is exactly what happened with CodeRiders. With reduced stress by combining work and relaxation, we embraced new ideas coming from spontaneous brainstorming sessions, local culture, nature, and architecture.

Cross-functional interaction

Cross-functional interaction during workation involves collaboration and communication among team members from different departments and areas of expertise within an organization while they are on a workation trip. This interaction is valuable as it brings together diverse perspectives and allows team members to gain a deeper understanding of CodeRiders' overall functioning.

Additionally, workation provided a unique opportunity to break down potential departmental silos that might hinder effective communication between different parts of the organization. As a result, our team members developed a stronger sense of unity and acquired valuable insights into the functions of other departments. For instance, software developers had the chance to learn more about project management and business development, gaining insights into the motivations and actions of their colleagues in those roles, and vice versa. This cross-functional exchange of knowledge and experiences enriched our team's collaborative spirit and overall effectiveness.

Team Recognition and employee work-life balance

Workation became an opportunity for team CodeRiders to acknowledge outstanding team members with awards, tokens of appreciation, or public recognition. Such recognitions are important as they reinforce positive behaviors and contributions to the team.

Workation also encouraged peer-to-peer recognition, where our team members expressed gratitude and appreciation for each other's efforts.

Final Thoughts of Our Team Members about the Workation

“This trip gave each of us some time to think about what we do, how we do it, and why we do it. We all had our time to chill near the water or grab some drinks at the noisiest spots on the island.

Zaven Ter-Stepanyan

Director of Business Development at CodeRiders Software Development Company

“I'm incredibly impressed with our trip to Cyprus. It allowed me to simultaneously relax, have fun, and work hard. It was also a fantastic opportunity to deepen my understanding of my colleagues, as we spent the entire day together. Surprisingly, even after living with my colleagues for nearly a month and seeing them every day, I didn't grow tired of their company. Upon returning from Cyprus, I eagerly returned to the office to reunite and collaborate with my colleagues. I would love for this workation to become an annual tradition. Organizing a workation, especially in the winter, would be even more appealing, considering the extreme cold in Armenia. On a side note, many of my friends in the Armenian IT industry were keen to learn more about our experience and expressed their admiration for CodeRiders as a fantastic software development company.”

Sona Avetyan

Software Developer at CodeRiders Software Development Company

In the end, our Cyprian adventure with CodeRiders reaffirmed that being part of our company is not merely about fulfilling a job, earning a paycheck, and then moving on to personal pursuits. Working with CodeRiders is about finding joy in your work, pouring your heart and soul into your tasks, and relishing the experience. This philosophy is the cornerstone of our software development company's exceptional performance and the satisfaction of our valued clients.

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