Ultragenic turned 3 last November. As I look back on the year gone by, one of the key decisions we made as an organization was to move to a new office space. The first office as a start-up is always a special feeling and an exciting process. However, coming on the heels of the pandemic, this decision posed a set of challenges we never had to consider before.
The need for an office space
As a start-up, one tries to keep things simple so that the focus is always on the growth of one’s business. This includes staying away from the complexities of running an office. Ultragenic’s journey has been no different. Our first office was at a co-working space, where responsibilities such as office administration, technology infrastructure, security and facilities management were taken care of by a third party so that we could focus on business functions. However, every organization reaches a stage in its journey when they need to consider their own office space – for commercial, logistical and other compelling reasons.
For Ultragenic, ironically, this threshold was achieved during the Covid lockdown. We grew considerably during this period while our team continued to work remotely. By the time the worst of the pandemic was behind us, we realised that we needed to start engaging our colleagues in an offline space, given that most of them had never met each other in an in-person environment. We had also grown to a team size which warranted our own office space.
Narrowing down on our decisions
There are several crucial considerations before embarking on this important journey. The ideal location, ideal office size, space planning, interior aesthetics, technology infrastructure, administrative and day-to-day operational requirements are but a few of them.
What kind of office did we want?
Once the macro decision regarding the location of the office was taken, giving due importance to the daily commute distance for most colleagues, its connectivity via public transport, presence of a vibrant business ecosystem and availability of social spaces in the near vicinity for our young team, the next decision was related to the size of the office space.
It makes business sense to assess and plan for the future while designing for the present. Therefore, it was necessary to identify an office space, which could be scaled when required without disrupting the infrastructure we were currently setting up.
The next step was to onboard professionals who could assist with the configuration of our office interiors. We wanted to design a space which was open and welcoming, would encourage collaboration while allowing for closed-door meetings, provide flexibility for team members to work from anywhere within the office, a well-stocked café for short breaks and conversations, and an area which could be easily converted into a community space for workshops, trainings or special events. We also paid special attention to the interior aesthetics. Although we wanted our colleagues to have similar work flexibility and freedom as they had become accustomed to while working from home, we wanted them to be aware of the organization’s vision, values and persona, which we communicated through the use of creatively designed wall graphics and use of our vibrant brand colors.
The office planning team deliberated on every aspect of this process in much detail. For example, we spent considerable time on finalizing the office furniture, especially the chairs. Since our work is mostly computer based, we wanted ergonomically designed chairs which would provide comfort and correct posture support to minimize fatigue and stress for our colleagues. We built a strong technology backbone with best-in-class equipment to ensure that our teams had access to their work and data anywhere in the office. All the meeting rooms are fitted with top-of-the-line video conferencing facilities and sound absorption panels. We also paid special attention to the safety and security of our colleagues. We have provisioned for 24-hour security, e-surveillance, fire-alarms and clear passage to emergency exits, to ensure absolute safety of employees and visitors.
Unique challenges due to the Pandemic
Like I mentioned in the introduction, the Pandemic posed unique challenges during this process. Many businesses, including those of our long-standing service partners, had been disrupted due to Covid and the subsequent lockdown for almost 18 months. We had to identify new partners who would join us in this journey with equal commitment and vigour. There were acute shortages of materials and equipment at times, leading to avoidable delays. Our colleagues were returning to a physical office space after a long work-from-home spell. We wanted to provide them every facility and motivation to make this transition seamless and enjoyable.
All said and done, it was the most satisfying experience the day we opened the office for our colleagues. The joy, the excitement and the camaraderie among the colleagues was worth the hours of planning and execution. The journey, however, is not over. It is an ongoing exercise to keep enhancing the employee experience and maintain the high levels of energy, which makes them look forward to returning every day. And frankly, when we look around and see the smiles, we don’t mind the effort. And as I write this, we are getting ready for expansion!!
