As a tech-led company we managed the practicalities of remote working easily when COVID-19 hit. But we’re also a social and office-centric company, so our work rhythms had to adjust significantly.

Post-pandemic we see an opportunity to refresh our working model. We’re giving our people more freedom and flexibility, putting their preferences and productivity firmly at the centre. #1Team1Dream is one of our core values for a reason. So what does our new work philosophy look like and how did we get here?

Flexibility and impact go hand-in-hand

It has been inspiring to see the team come together to deliver for our customers when they’ve needed us more than ever. #MakeItHappen, another core value at Kriya, has defined the tenacity of our team.

We’ve all experienced benefits and frustrations while working remotely. But early on, our people said they felt more productive and enjoyed having greater autonomy. We want to protect and promote that, as a more fluid work setup can have life-changing impact. For many of us, and especially those who’ve been able to see families abroad or start their own, not having to commute five days a week has been a blessing.

Our talent goes international

Opening up our own hiring pool is something we’re committed to as part of our Banking & Competition Remedies grant. Remote work has made onboarding people across the UK much easier, but we’re not stopping there. We’ve learnt that we’re able to work effectively and stay connected wherever we’re spread. This year we’ve hired engineers overseas and have already welcomed four new joiners based permanently outside the UK.

In line with this international growth and frequent feedback from our Tech team, we decided to go one step further. We’re offering all our engineers the option to work entirely from home by default. This is coupled with the flexibility to work from the office whenever they want or need.

Hybrid work is here to stay

We also had plenty of feedback that the team didn’t want to go to the extreme of becoming a fully remote company forever. Working shoulder-to-shoulder offers an unrivalled platform to collaborate, onboard new recruits and strengthen company culture. Our new hybrid working policy strikes the balance between these worlds.

When restrictions are completely lifted, our team members can work from home and our newly revamped offices. Our expectation is that we’ll spend around 40% of our time in the office versus at home. And rather than getting too prescriptive by mandating 2 in-office days per week, we trust everyone to work out the logistics with their managers based on what makes sense for the business, our customers, their team and their own development.

Work from anywhere for up to 45 days a year

We want to go the extra mile when it comes to flexibility, especially as a) our team loves travelling, and b) there are 26 different nationalities represented at Kriya so far. So we’re letting staff work from anywhere in the world for up to 45 calendar days every year. Hopefully this will increase in the coming years if it works well.

This perk will enhance our team’s ability to travel internationally, not just during holidays but as part of their lifestyle. We’re a curious bunch, and a work policy that allows our team to expand their horizons through travel feeds into our other core value, #AlwaysBeLearning.

Bringing everyone together regularly

Staying connected and aligned as we dive into a more decentralised working model is vital. So we’re planning a 2-Day All Hands Experience every quarter. We’ll bring our overseas team members in and everyone will come together for two days at our London HQ to meet with colleagues (old and new), participate in training sessions, and hear about company priorities and updates from senior leadership. Naturally, we’ll tie things up with a social to celebrate being together!

Connected teams in the days before COVID.

Staying open-minded

After a year of working remotely, embarking into the new era of the office is exciting and daunting. Our flexible policy aims to bring the best of both worlds by placing a lot of autonomy into our people’s hands. We believe it will result in a happier and more productive team. We also hope it helps attract and retain the best talent, worldwide.

The pandemic has closed off a lot for so many of us, but we’re embracing the flexibility it has offered to working. We’re committed to remaining open-minded and ready to evolve whenever we find a better solution. We’ll be encouraging feedback from our team and will feed improvements over time to make it even better.