What we offer at Frontier
Frontier’s culture has been through various rounds of moulding and grounding. Frontier sometimes adapts to its people, and sometimes it adapts to tides of change that the market brings. As a result, what we offer at Frontier for those who become a part of it has also changed over time. Here are a few things that you might find odd or refreshing if you were to join the Frontier team.
1. Transparency
We are transparent about our pay and path to progression within Frontier. Pay is dependent on specific levels, and these range from support work to being able to independently deliver significant value to Frontier. These levels will be presented to the team, and pay changes are made during the regular evaluation period. During these appraisals our team members receive a detailed update on their contribution to Frontier, their role within the overall Frontier team and their potential progression path. This is meant to help team members develop the skills necessary to continue to be value adding to Frontier, while simultaneously developing a skill set that is individually beneficial to the team member.
2. Exposure to top corporates and financial services firms in Sri Lanka
Our work involves drafting reports and making presentations to corporate and investor clientele predominantly in Sri Lanka, and a few based abroad, in a simplified manner. During this process, our team interacts with key decision makers at these entities regularly, giving them the ability to grow their communication, interpersonal skills while also gaining more unique insight into each of the sectors the firms operate in. Frontier does not discriminate on age or gender, so no matter your age or qualification, you will be given an opportunity to present to top corporate boards, in contrast to bureaucratic office spaces, where senior team interacts with high level clients. While many might find this challenging at first, we do provide training and support which bolsters confidence to approach our clientele. This also helps our team members grow their professional network which supports them further to leapfrog in their career even beyond Frontier.
3. A safe and receptive work culture
Our team hail from different places, backgrounds, schools of thought and actual schools or universities. We believe in freedom of expression, unless and otherwise, there’s potential harm inflicted upon any team member because of your opinion. We do not tolerate bullying or exclusion as specified in the induction document on Frontier culture which would be the first thing you read upon joining Frontier. However, we foster a culture that respects alternative opinions and diverse views as we believe that helps not only in the work we do, but in creating a safe space for all at Frontier to thrive. No matter which tier you are in the hierarchy, team members are free to voice their opinion, provide feedback to those above and below, and also chime in to decide what our monthly team event should be.
4. A student friendly leave policy
We have a policy of unavailability in lieu of a formal leave policy. If you are honest with Frontier about the study commitments you need to make and require extended periods of leave such as 2–3 weeks to study or take a couple of days of leave to focus on your exams, this can be arranged through discussion with your supervisor. Our unavailability policy is naturally more flexible for interns as we believe that their academic pursuits would be their number one priority. However, as you progress in the ladder and become a full-time member, communicating duly on extended periods of unavailability is expected. Frontier allows team members to pursue their personal interests in studying or otherwise, since our “life first” philosophy exists to provide that flexibility to the team.
5. A communicative culture
We believe that communication is key. As we are mostly a remote firm with two in person office days, we use various online tools such as Asana, Slack and Google calendar to ensure that we communicate clearly. Communication helps us set expectations when it comes to not only work, but also in terms of having an honest conversation if team members would like to pursue other opportunities or to provide useful feedback to support team member growth. We have various tools such as the four monthly questions which each team member writes to their direct supervisor and the team lead responsible for human resource development at work, which is used to communicate how fulfilling the team member finds the work to be or to let the team leads know if they are facing any personal or work related challenges which they would like support to address. While a certain level of ambiguity remains as is the case for any role, our team is open and approachable which helps the team clarify any concerns they have. Team leads also have regular chats with each team member to understand how they’ve been doing, and to have a feedback loop going for improvement of the firm and the individual.
The above is not an exhaustive list of all that Frontier has to offer. Overtime, we have learnt that various cultural elements at Frontier as detailed in other blog posts appeal to different team members. What matters is that Frontier is not a set of jargons, but one which follows a specific philosophy deep rooted in elements such as freedom to voice one’s opinion, treating each other with respect with no qualms about age or gender, and refusing to propagate corporate cultural elements such as gossiping behind each other’s back or focussing on personal growth at the cost of another. As stated on our website, “change is the only constant” and as we continue to adapt, we hope that Frontier continues to be a safe and challenging space for professional growth and development for all those who cross our path.
