I started at virtual7 in July 2017 and was able to actively shape the future of our company for two and a half years until I went on parental leave in October 2019. However, after my focus was on the family for one and a half years, I am happy to be an active member of the Core Cluster Human Relations and part of the virtual7 family. Actually, the plan for me was to come back later, but since my daughter’s acclimation to daycare went great, I didn’t want to stay at home any longer.

The night before my first day of work, I was a little sad because I really enjoyed my parental leave. Everything went by so quickly. However, the next morning when I walked towards the office, all sadness was forgotten. It was just nice to be back at virtual7 and I was happy to be able to contribute to the company again. In December, I had a workshop in advance where we discussed how my re-entry will take place and which roles I will take on in the future. After all, a lot has changed at virtual7 in the last year and a half. So, it’s even nicer to be welcomed back with open arms. I had the feeling that I had never been away. For me, it’s like coming home and it’s nice to be able to focus on myself again and be able to contribute to virtual7.

What makes the job at virtual7 unique is the team and the team spirit. Together we experience many things and can shape the future of the company. I really appreciate the trust that the Managing Directors have in us employees. Unlike a large company, where everything is set in stone, everyone has the opportunity to play an active role. Everyone has the opportunity to actively participate, to help, shape and contribute. That’s exactly what I missed in my previous job. I was one of many who did their work and then went home. At virtual7, it’s completely different. Working here is fun and you know that you are contributing to the progress of the virtual7 team.

Slowly, things are clearing up in the tunnel. In the first week, I asked myself a lot of questions, such as: Where am I in all of this? What do I have to keep in mind? I had a lot of question marks in my head and a lot of respect for the topic responsive company organization. The new meeting structures were not clear to me at first. What these “Tactical or Governance Meetings” were all about was a big mystery to me. I had to get used to the new terms and processes. But the added value quickly became obvious. You work more efficiently on a topic with a specific goal and afterwards you still can exchange ideas in a relaxed atmosphere. The mixture of both makes the difference and has convinced me!

Now I get along much better. It’s also much easier to contact the right people for specific issues. I take a quick look at our holaspirit system and know directly whom I can contact without annoying the wrong people. The switch has brought many changes. However, the basic features of virtual7 have remained the same. Before, there was already a lot of emphasis on transparency and the opinions of employees. Holding employees accountable is a very important step, in my opinion. The realignment also means that I have many more interfaces with colleagues from other Clusters, whom I might previously have only met briefly at the coffee machine, at a trade fair or, like our Romanian colleagues, virtually via Microsoft Teams. It’s great that we don’t just have the team concept written on our foreheads but live it each day anew.

It’s great that all the tasks are no longer carried on the backs of individuals. The distribution of responsibilities allows each role to advance its own project and to think outside the box. I think when our Heads function existed, they almost collapsed under all the tasks. The change to Responsiveness has taken a lot of pressure off them.

On the one hand, I have the Role of Candidate Management, which means I deal with applicant management. As soon as an application comes in, I am responsible for looking after the applicant and coordinating appointments. In this context, I also have the Role of Research & Active Sourcing, in which I approach potential candidates on platforms like Xing to get them excited about virtual7. Another Role of mine is Content Creation. This was the Role I was a bit worried about at the beginning because no one from my Cluster wanted to take on the Role yet. But it’s really a lot of fun and even has potential to become my new favorite Role. In addition, I now have one of my former tasks as a Role as well: HR Marketing. This is a little love-hate relationship of mine. There can be some real friction, but in the end both HR and Marketing are happy with the results and that’s what matters. Besides that, there’s the Role of Recruiting Support. In this Role, I support the team when a new position in the Human Relations Core Cluster needs to be staffed. And finally, there is the Role of Trendscout, which ensures that virtual7 is always one step ahead of the competition on the market.

At virtual7, the human component has to be right in addition to the expertise. When you’re part of the team, you should simply be able to feel comfortable. We all harmonize very well with each other, and a lot of emphasis is placed on this in the recruiting process. We’re not just colleagues or numbers – friendships are formed here and that makes working twice as much enjoyable.

Yes, I would choose my job at virtual7 again. I simply enjoy working with people and I have arrived at my job. I have contact with a wide variety of characters, which means it never gets boring. Whether it’s an Office Management candidate or a Developer, everyone has their own story and personality. It’s also nice to be able to support people who have lost their jobs, for example, and give them a new perspective through my work. To see candidates develop into employees, colleagues and friends who work together with you on something great and realize themselves in the process is something very special. Being able to tell all of these stories in combination with the Content Creation role is something that no other job could offer me. This job is worth getting up every day with a smile and full of energy to make new dreams come true. I am happy to be a part of the virtual7 family.