Missing the office?

I only joined the Think office in February this year and to then be working from home a little over 7 weeks later has been quite a change. I have had roles in the past with the option of working from home and you think it will be brilliant but in reality, I do not believe working from home can ever beat the office atmosphere. Finding the right team is the key to working happiness for me!

When you join an established team it can take time to build relationships, to find your place if you like. I had a slight advantage having known our Managing Director, Chris, for many years and being able to meet the team before starting - but what a team of people. I never have felt like the “newbie” as everyone just treated me like one of the team. It got me thinking of the many people now working from home or perhaps on furlough and missing that daily interaction with other people.

Quite often the people we work with everyday are not people we would interact with in everyday life, but work colleagues become the people we tell everything to. They know more about your pet peeves, your children, more about your relationship than your best friends as you just see them more. Working in recruitment I know the importance of finding the right person to join an established team – it can be sometimes more important than someone who can do everything on a job description!

What do people miss about the people we spend so much time with? In every office people tend to take on a role. You have the one who always makes the tea/coffee, the person who seems to get blamed for everything, the joker, the emotional one, the one who talks too much (possibly me!), the one who catches every cold/flu out there, the one with the best one liners, the one who has the best andecdotes, the one who always seems to be there first and always leaves last, the one who smashes every target set, the one on a new diet and the one who always brings in treats and breaks everyones “I am being good this week” pledge!

Working from my dining room, with constant interuptions from the kids, dog, cats or my other half asking where something is makes me miss my work colleagues even more. Even after such a short time. Having just come back from maternity, I had craved adult interaction and now I am back needing it more than ever.

I miss looking at Bobby over the screen and constantly asking him questions, I miss the jokes, I miss the atmosphere, I miss how people are too polite when it comes to who goes for lunch first and I miss sharing things as they happen rather than waiting for the next team video meeting! As a recruiter I miss the buzz of the office when we secure people a new role and the dicussions around day to day work duties. I have tried talking out loud to my dog but he thinks I am mad!

So as we all hang in there, ready to come back bigger and better I reflect on what a great welcome I received and look forward to helping people, just like me, to find the perfect team and role within a business.

What role do you have in the office and what or who do you miss the most?

Clare Baker
Accountancy & Finance Recruitment Specialist – Herts, Beds and Bucks
[email protected] / 07731 122938

Share