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STRIPED GIRAFFE
Innovation & Strategy GmbH
Lenbachplatz 3
80333 Munich
Germany

info@striped-giraffe.com

+49-89-416 126-660

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by Striped Giraffe Team
15. March 2023
Time to read: 16 Minutes
Interview

How an IT company wins the hearts of employees and customers alike

Striped Giraffe Innovation & Strategy, winner of the latest TOP JOB employer award, is an IT service provider in Central Europe. At their headquarters in Munich, they compete with IT companies such as Google, Microsoft, and Intel. The question is: With such popular competition, how do they manage to get – and, more importantly, keep – all their skilled employees?

Let’s talk about this with Striped Giraffe’s HR managers in Germany, Poland, and Romania – Anđela Kirlojević, Kasia Bloch and Raluca Ghete.

Companies like Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Co. are very popular among IT professionals. What makes you more attractive than them? Why should IT experts apply to you?

Anđela: That is simple. We have completely different people working for us than the big IT enterprises. People who prefer corporate structures would probably not fit into our company at all.

Our flat hierarchies allow for flexible and efficient work, where employees can fully concentrate on their work. No power games. No ego mentality. Just collegial, constructive collaboration. That’s why Striped Giraffe is not a place for people who like to climb the career ladder and use the workplace for competition.

Kasia: Our ideal employees value respect, recognition of their achievements and non-political work.

The fact that they can work without political games and go home in the evening satisfied and less stressed is actually a point that is most appreciated by our employees.

When you feel that your work is meaningful, that you are being heard, and that you are having an impact on the organization, engagement grows.

Raluca: We are far from the hierarchical and bureaucratic way of running a business that is common in large corporations.

Striped Giraffe is exclusively privately owned. There are no external shareholders, investment funds or other external capital investors.

The owners of the company are our colleagues, whom we meet every day in the corridors or in an online chat. They strongly encourage us to participate in the organization and its future. For this reason, we can all feel responsible for the company, almost like co-owners.

Kasia Bloch, HR Manager at Striped Giraffe office, Katowice, Poland

The fact that they can work without political games and go home in the evening satisfied and less stressed is actually a point that is most appreciated by our employees.

Kasia Bloch, HR Manager
Striped Giraffe Office in Katowice, Poland

The IT industry is struggling with high employee turnover. Are you also facing this problem?

Kasia: Our entire human resources strategy is designed to keep our employees in the company as long as possible. Therefore, we make sure that they enjoy their work and have the opportunity to continuously develop their skills.

So far, we are very successful with this strategy. Most of our employees have been with us for many years. There are even some colleagues who have helped shape the company from the very beginning, since 2013.

Anđela Kirlojević, HR Manager, Striped Giraffe office in Munich, Germany

We have a lot to offer: Flat hierarchies, an open culture, a value system based on respect, authenticity, fairness and more, attractive offices in several European cities, close interpersonal relationships, renowned and interesting clients, exciting projects, and opportunities for personal development.

Anđela Kirlojević, HR Manager
Striped Giraffe headquarters in Munich, Germany

What else do you do to retain employees long-term?

Anđela: We have a lot to offer: Flat hierarchies, an open culture, a value system based on respect, authenticity, fairness and more, attractive offices in several European cities, close interpersonal relationships, renowned and interesting clients, exciting projects, and opportunities for personal development.

Kasia: For us, it is very important to be honest with applicants right from the start, i.e. already during the recruitment process.

We play with open cards right from the start and say openly how we work, what we offer and what not. We don’t sugarcoat anything or promise the moon, because that’s how you lose an employee after just a few months.

Raluca: In general, honesty is one of the most important values for our company. Our entire communication is based exactly on honesty and trust.

Personally, I appreciate the fact that there is full openness to engage in dialogue on topics that would be considered uncomfortable in other companies. Therefore, besides talking about positive things and successes, we are also not afraid to discuss mistakes and failures.

We see that our management empathizes with the problems and needs of employees. And they always find time to talk, explain something and show support when needed.

Raluca Ghete, HR Manager, Striped Giraffe office in Cluj-Napoca, Romania

Personally, I appreciate the fact that there is full openness to engage in dialogue on topics that would be considered uncomfortable in other companies. Therefore, besides talking about positive things and successes, we are also not afraid to discuss mistakes and failures.

Raluca Ghete, HR Manager
Striped Giraffe Office in Cluj-Napoca, Romania

What made you interested in the TOP JOB certification?

Anđela: Several aspects. Applicants are always looking for the best employer. And awards like TOP JOB are an indicator that a company not only wants to make a profit, but that it is also aware of its responsibility as an employer. Accordingly, we hope that the TOP JOB award will help us attract many new talents and win them for our team.

In addition, companies also pay attention to such awards when looking for new IT service providers. This is also proven by a recent study by LinkedIn. It shows that for 88% of tech buyers, it is important to work with technology companies that leave a positive impression as an employer. This means that companies that are good employers are also perceived as reliable partners.

Raluca: Even more important for us was the opportunity to be evaluated by our employees. After all, you need to know that the TOP JOB certificate is awarded primarily based on the opinions of employees, who fill out an extensive anonymous online survey.

In this way, we have received a lot of important tips on many areas such as leadership and vision, staff motivation or even workload. Based on this feedback, we are developing new initiatives to further improve ourselves as an employer.

And how did you perform?

Anđela: We scored above average and were among the “best practices” in almost all areas. We received two recommendations for action, which we are currently looking at. One of them is to strengthen the sense of community despite the large number of remote employees. We are already working on this.

Kasia: The first measure was even decided before the public announcement of the TOP JOB Award.

Raluca: From the TOP JOB initiators we received a list of anonymous opinions that employees included in their questionnaires. We were very delighted by how positive these statements were.

© Copyright TOPJOB & zeag GmbH

What can candidates expect when it comes to the recruitment process?

Kasia: I think a very important message for all candidates is that the entire recruitment process can be done remotely. This is especially important for applicants from other locations.

Anđela: All applicants who are shortlisted for a position with us based on their resumes usually will go through two interviews.

The first is a general interview where we want to get to know the applicant better. After all, all eligible candidates must fit in with our values. We also introduce our company and our expectations of the respective candidate.

This is followed by an in-depth interview with someone from the relevant department, who reviews the applicant’s knowledge and skills and also talks about the projects the person will be working on.

After these two interviews, we can already determine whether the candidate is the right person for the job or not.

If our decision is positive, we will have a final interview to agree on the terms and conditions.

Once I joined your team, what are my development opportunities?

Anđela: Our employees have the opportunity to receive further training at our in-house academy. We have outstanding experts in all areas who are also on hand to offer advice and support. They can then apply their knowledge in challenging projects. As a rule, leading technologies from the fields of data management and e-commerce are used in these.

Kasia: And speaking of technologies, we can’t miss the fact that we work with many renowned technology partners, such as SAP, Adobe, Informatica, Snowflake or Stibo Systems. Therefore, another skill you can acquire in our team is in-depth knowledge of solutions from these leading IT vendors.

Raluca: Our employees have the opportunity to acquire regular certifications from our partners. In addition, you can also participate in other, external training to acquire required competencies.

Speaking of the pandemic, how has it changed the way you work?

Anđela: The biggest change was the switch to completely remote working in all our offices.

As an IT company with employees at various locations and customers scattered all over Europe, the use of digital communication channels was of course nothing new. Therefore, communication was not a problem.

Our customers and partners also adapted very quickly to this type of collaboration. On-site meetings have been eliminated. It turned out that most things could be done remotely. And that has remained the case, so the number of business trips has dropped significantly.

Kasia: What we missed, however, were the personal meetings with our colleagues. We are now happy to see each other regularly in the office again. But we have also retained the flexibility to work remotely – even without Corona.

We also have colleagues in Ukraine whom we can only contact online because of the war. During our company event last year, we organized a video call with them to include them at least virtually.

Months of isolation probably had a negative impact on the wellbeing of employees. How did you deal with it?

Raluca: On a personal level, some colleagues struggled with isolation. Here it was important that we kept regular contact and communicated even more frequently than before.
As soon as the lockdown was imposed, we started holding weekly online meetings for all employees in each national team. Mainly to stay in touch with everyone, but also to keep them informed about how the company was dealing with this new situation.

Kasia: It was important that we didn’t just talk about work and projects. A large part of these online meetings was spent talking about our daily lives and how we were doing. There was a lot of joking and laughing, but there were also worrying moments around colleagues who had COVID. During this time, we were very supportive of each other on a personal level.

There was an important online meeting with our management. This had assured us at the time that no matter what the circumstances, we would all get through this turmoil as a team. This also included that, despite postponing some projects indefinitely, the staff would not be reduced and, if necessary, financial reserves would be drawn on.

This was extremely important news for all of us, giving us job security and allaying our worst fears.

Anđela: Apart from these video conferences, we also held less formal online meetings, just for fun and stress relief. For example, we organized an online game for all company employees. There were also online parties in the evening.

We have learned how important it is to maintain regular contact. That is why, in addition to the international meetings for all employees, individual national meetings are also organized – both online and offline. Through them, we manage to give everyone the feeling that we are not only a team, but also a family.

Most companies are slowly returning to office work, while still allowing employees to work remotely to some extent. How is it with you?

Kasia: We see that employees really appreciate the flexibility of hybrid working.

When we switched completely to working from home during the pandemic, we didn’t see any negative impact on the quality or performance of the team. That’s why we didn’t mind making hybrid work one of the options our employees can now benefit from.

Anđela: In order not to lose this precious personal contact, we strive to meet at the office on predetermined days.

Earlier, you mentioned the company’s culture. Can you say more about it?

Anđela: Sure. Our culture consists of specific values that are significant for us. On the one hand, they relate to the way we deal with each other internally and work together as a team, and on the other hand, to the cooperation with our customers and partners.

Kasia: Specifically, we follow the seven core values that constitute the word “giraffe”. These are Goal orientation, Inclusivity, Respect, Authenticity, Flexibility, Fairness, and Excellence.

Each value is described by a set of characteristics and behaviors that we apply in our daily work and interactions. All employees must respect and follow them. On the other hand, our employees can also expect these values from the company itself and from our customers and technology partners. This way, everyone is aware of what is in store for them right from the start. This creates the necessary transparency on which trust is built and quality can develop.

Why is it important?

Raluca: It is a great guideline. Based on our values, applicants and we know whether we fit together or not. We also use these values to evaluate our cooperation partners.

Anđela: Let’s look at the value of “inclusivity,” for example. Currently, our colleagues across Europe represent 21 nationalities and a similar number of different languages and cultures. In addition, our country offices typically work closely with each other on projects for companies with even greater diversity. Working in a diverse, multinational environment is part of our DNA.

That is why, we must ensure that differences are respected, all employees are included in the life of the company, and they are all treated fairly and equally.

Kasia: The results of the TOP JOB audit and the employee survey show that we have done pretty well. We have established a multinational organization in which we all feel comfortable – respected, listened to, professionally fulfilled, and appreciated.

We will do our best to maintain this.

If you are interested in finding out more about our values, our job offers, and how it is to work with us, take a closer look at our career site. You can also contact our HR team directly via career@striped-giraffe.com. We are looking forward to answering your personal questions.

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