Work from home is here to stay, at least at Medallia. We interviewed Medallians about their preferred style of work and share why we’re committed to a flexible approach to work.
After working from home for more than a year due to the pandemic, people are starting to receive ‘office return date’ emails from their companies, which for many can instantly trigger a feeling of anxiety. This is due to a multitude of reasons, from ongoing concerns of health and safety related to COVID-19, to the anxiety of facing racial microagressions and inequalities, being a caretaker or parent, fear of losing their work-life balance due to commute times, and so many other reasons.
This is not the case for Medallians. Medallia has a long history of supporting flexible working with options to choose whether to work from home (WFH), go into an office (when safe) or a hybrid of both, geo-transfers, and international work assignments. We continue to successfully navigate and thrive while away from our traditional office environments, which presents an opportunity for many Medallians to consider new ways of working.
“‘Work from anywhere’ is important to our Medallians and the future Medallians we want to join our team,” says Mary Ainsworth, Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resource Officer at Medallia. “We support our people and believe this way of working makes us a better company. We can hire talent anywhere in the world and enable current Medallians and their families to live and work where they choose. What an exciting time to be in the tech industry! Work from anywhere is here to stay.”
Medallia continues to value the experiences of our employees by listening to their needs. Hear from a few Medallians below and let us know your preferred work style by leaving a comment on our LinkedIn page.
Patrice Enoe, Learning and Development Director (United States)
What is your preferred style of work?
I prefer to work from home for a few reasons. The main one being the flexibility it grants me. As a single parent, being able to flex my time is really important to me.
What does work-life balance mean to you?
Work-life balance to me is having the capacity to be both a high-performing employee and an amazing mom. I’m a self-proclaimed workaholic and I love the work I do. But my family also comes first, so being able to balance those priorities that can often conflict is challenging. I want to have the ability to show up and do my best in both areas and being remote enables me to achieve that.
How has WFH impacted you?
Being able to WFH has impacted me in a positive way. Eliminating my commute has not only saved me money, but it’s also improved my overall quality of life. I do miss the social aspect of being in the office and interacting in person with my team members, but I think we’ve been able to find creative ways to compensate for that.
How does the thought of not WFH affect you?
The thought of not being able to work from home makes me nervous because I need a certain amount of flexibility in my schedule to help support my family. I’m 100% remote right now, but even if I were to go back into the office, it would have to be a hybrid model for me to be the most productive with work and my overall life.
A recent study showed that only 3% of Black workers want to go back to the office. Why do you think this is the case? And can you relate?
I think the majority of Black workers do not want to go back into the office because it alleviates us from having to deal with many of the social obstacles that can hinder our productivity. For example, the chances of encountering unconscious bias, or microaggressions drop significantly because my social interactions have decreased. Being at home and in your own space whether that be your living room or a coffee shop gives you more opportunities to be your authentic self, which is something not all Black people can do at their workplace. Thankfully this isn’t a concern of mine at Medallia, but I certainly can relate and understand the sentiment.
Facundo Tripodi, GlobalDiversity, Inclusion, and Belonging Data Scientist (Argentina)
What is your preferred style of work?
WFH, with the possibility of going to the office from time to time.
With Medallia’s flex WFH policy, what excites you the most about this whether it’s going into the office or being able to stay home and work?
For me it is the possibility to choose, and adjust that decision almost on a daily basis. Also knowing my co-workers can do the same. There is no wrong choice here, all of them are right!
What does work-life balance mean to you?
It’s been an important part of my job-related decision making for a while now. But since I became a parent, that has become more evident to me. Feeling that I have control over that balance, and that I can adjust as needed, is something I value a lot.
How does the thought of not WFH affect you?
Right now WFH is such an important part of my life, that the thought of not WFH worries me. We’ve already gone through so much change, and adapted to it the best as we could, that I wouldn’t like to lose this flexibility.
Do you think we should go back to normal by returning to the office? How is normal defined?
I wouldn’t say returning to the office is back to normal. Normal is a dynamic concept, and the only constant in life is change. Normal for me is collectively adapting to our environment. Old solutions to new problems never work. We have to think cleverly, we need to think together.
As a parent how does the choice affect you and your family?
I feel very blessed to be close to my family during these particular times, and for being able to witness a baby becoming a little child. That is priceless. Most of our family decisions happen on the basis of two work-from-home parents.
Danniella Markovic – Account Executive (Australia)
What is your preferred style of work?
A mixture of remote and in office.
What does work-life balance mean to you?
Work-life balance means that I have control and power over my work decisions and my personal life. It means I’m enabled by my manager to be successful at work and trusted to make decisions regarding time allocation … Taking an extra long run when I need to, flying to different states to see loved ones and still excelling at work. Enabling all parts of my life, that is balance.
How does the thought of not WFH affect you?
Life is ever evolving, things change all the time so it doesn’t “affect” me. I know I’m a happier human and harder worker when I have a mixture of both.
Do you think we should go back to normal by returning to the office? How is normal defined?
Normal is a strange concept. It’s defined by what the median is; a measure of the centre of a dataset. Will we go “back to normal?” Never. Will we live with the ripple effect of the pandemic and with COVID-19 for the rest of time? Without a doubt. Human beings are incredible, I believe we will continue to evolve and innovate to create something new.
What excites you most about Medallia’s flex work policy?
Medallia is a wonderful place to work. One of the value pillars is, “we hire the entire person.” The WFH and flexible work policy enables everyone to be their best both in their personal and professional lives.
AUS has been in strict lockdown for quite some time, how has this affected you?
Lockdown is difficult for many reasons. It’s taught me a lot and I’m thankful for that. I’ve formed deeper connections with our clients, my team and in my personal life. Ironic how difficult times bring us closer together.
Medallia is growing and dedicated to “hiring the whole person.” Join the #MedalliaLife by heading to our careers page and applying today!
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