How the proptech startup :Different adapted to the pandemic
It’s business as usual for many companies including :Different that have adapted to working online and remotely throughout their four offices across Sri Lanka and Australia.
What is :Different?
:Different is a prop-tech startup that wants to rebuild property management. Their primary market is in Australia where the industry is mature and property managers used to charge large fees from homeowners in return for a fairly mediocre service. Tenants use the app to make rental payments, lodge maintenance requests and communicate with the :Different team while owners use it to action maintenance requests, view statements and other documents.
The beauty of combining people with top-notch software is that the industry can now scale up without restraints that existed when the industry relied only on people and offer a smooth experience for property owner and tenant.
What’s work been like recently?
“It’s a normal workday for us, except that we’re all working from home. Slack and Google Meets are our main internal communication tools so it doesn’t feel any different,” says Rukman. With twenty employees in Sri Lanka and another thirty across Australia, nothing much has changed in terms of work.
Companies in tech have never been more prepared to work in unique conditions such as a global pandemic. In times such as this where companies are compelled to adapt quickly, tech companies and startups have a winning lead as opposed to massive corporations with traditional structures and practices that take more time to turn around.
What do you look for in the people you hire?
Working with communities beyond geographical boundaries means that people should be easy-going, open and flexible.
“Our work culture is built with people who can work independently and proactively with minimal supervision,”
“We’ve always wanted people who can own the piece of work they are responsible for. We don’t insist on ‘face time’ because we trust that everyone we hire is a responsible adult. We evaluate purely on output,” says Rukman who thinks that work shouldn’t just be a transaction with the employee and the employer.
“Having the right people is key,” emphasises Rukman.
What’s it like having a flexible and open work culture?
The main benefit of working from home and having flexible hours is that we’re able to do more with our time. Not having to commute long hours also saves time and money and allows us more time to focus on things like spending time with our loved ones, making our own food, exercising and even a few hobbies. It allows us to have a better work-life balance.
However, there is a chance that you’re going to get stuck in a cycle where you don’t know when to stop working and have very little productivity because you haven’t strictly divided work and personal life. Unless you maintain a time table and focus on measuring productivity, you may find that working from home is not very productive or conducive.
How do you measure productivity?
It all depends on how focused you are on delivering a task, how motivated you’re to see a task to the end and of course, communication. “We don’t like to breathe down the necks of our employees and chase them for work. Again, the assumption is that everyone understands their role and what’s required of them. We operate as a product team with regular calls and retrospectives and everyone understands the value of delivering on time,” added Rukman.
In addition to the :Different team working from home, the company took health and safety measures in light of COVID-19 for all stakeholders including owners, tenants and suppliers, and updated the way they handled important aspects of property management.
