With 2024 looking like one of the most exciting years to date for SmartFrame, People & Culture Director Isabella Lourenz writes about her experience so far.

Like most people in startups, the last few years have very much been a case of wearing many hats!

At first, my job was all about establishing the foundational elements of HR, such as policies and handbooks, as well as the recruitment process.

But then in 2023, things really took off.

We onboarded several new colleagues, expanded operations to Oceania, secured a new home for our team based in London, and continued to raise funds – all of which I’ve been lucky enough to be involved in.

The saying that if you fail to prepare you should be prepared to fail comes to mind; without all the documentation we have in our company handbook, I don’t know how we’d get everyone up to speed – especially being a remote-first company.

Since being promoted from HR & Talent Acquisition Manager to People & Culture Director, I am now in a much more strategic position, directly engaging with the senior leadership group on how we best grow the company.

SmartFrame’s culture in three words: Friendly, transparent, intuitive

Taking a more hands-on approach to how we grow is something I’m excited about as, when working in a startup, hiring is arguably the most difficult yet rewarding component.

Understanding the nuances of what type of skills you require to grow as a company, what a new hire needs, and how they will embed themselves in the culture, are all vital factors in creating an effective team.

During my time here, and at other startups, I’ve come to realise that there are a few traits that are better suited to the startup environment than to larger companies.

I think adaptability and resilience are two of the most important – things often don’t go to plan.

Having that willingness to learn from your mistakes, maintaining a belief in your skills, and being able to bounce back even stronger are all vital.

However, that doesn’t mean we want robots!

Being a team player, and recognizing the value everyone brings to decision-making, are also essential. We’re a stronger team and a better company because of it.

Our leadership team must be the biggest champions of our values, living and breathing them on a daily basis. The passion of our CEO [Rob Sewell] is infectious and certainly helps me in creating a positive culture.

Transparency is also key, so we’ve recently implemented a new format for our monthly update meeting.

We allow each director in the company to inform everyone else about what has happened in the business over the previous month, as well as the company’s long- and short-term goals.

This is all summarized in a short document sent out to everyone before the meeting to allow them to digest the information properly and to come with prepared questions.

Growing with SmartFrame

Another area in which we are continuing to focus is learning and development.

We want our people to keep on expanding their skill sets, exploring how they can better their competencies beyond their day-to-day tasks.

Every employee is entitled to a monthly book allowance, which can be put towards any book that helps with their personal or professional development.

On top of that, every employee has an annual allowance that can be used to pay for a course or some other kind of professional development.

While some startups expect people to learn new skills on demand, we’re doing our best to help people scope out the skills they want to develop and support them.

Ultimately, people want to work in a place where they can be themselves.

From organized skill development programs to light-hearted channels on Slack for pet photos, we want to build those connections within the company and foster a great work environment.

Remote working: Maintaining speed – and sanity!

In a startup, the energy is electric and we move fast. However – and especially since the shift to remote work due to the COVID pandemic – maintaining balance is crucial.

To keep everyone firing on all cylinders, we offer flexible work arrangements. This lets our talented team prioritize tasks and schedule breaks to avoid burnout. Excessive overtime should never be expected.

We also take well-being seriously. Sometimes life just happens and unexpected situations crop up.

Say that your child has fallen ill at school or your dog needs an injection. It’s not hard to let adults be adults.

Trusting the team to be responsible fosters more accountability than any other generic exercise or training.

We care about the quality of our work, not the amount of time sat behind a screen. This is one of the key aspects of our culture that helps everyone stay connected and engaged – no matter where they’re working from in the world!