Growing culture at Zego: the roots, stems and flowers of our garden
Our post on building great company culture, and how the process can be likened to looking after a garden, raised the question of how we, at Zego, aim to nurture our culture. How have we been able to make sure that we keep our garden looking healthy? What do we do to ensure that weeds don’t begin to take over, breaking down the cultural foundations upon which our company has been built?
We’re not oblivious to how quickly our team has grown over such a short space of time, and so both establishing and scaling our culture have always been at the forefront of our minds. During times of rapid company growth, it is important to maintain unanimity between teams; the similarity of approach and mindset that enables people to work together efficiently and effectively.
Here are some of the key aspects of our approach that are pivotal for us to scale our culture alongside our headcount and our business.
Mission
Reimagining insurance for modern businesses and the self-employed.
Zego was designed to solve a problem that we identified for gig economy workers. Why should a part-time delivery driver have to pay for an annual policy that is not suitable for the way they work? As we grew, we questioned why anybody should be forced to take out an insurance policy that does not fit their individual needs. Our mission embodies this sentiment, holding up a mirror to our thought process and offering a platform around which everyone at Zego can align their thoughts.
We want our products to empower customers, enabling both businesses and self-employed professionals to work exactly as they want to, safe in the knowledge that they have the protection they need, exactly when they need it. By supporting and backing our mission, every Zegon is able to focus their efforts around working for our customers to create the best products we can.
Support
We are passionate about Zegons getting the support they need both inside and outside of work. We don’t believe in viewing people like batteries, which are used until they expire and then cast aside. Instead, we make sure that we support everyone in proactively looking after their own wellbeing and mental health and this is a significant cornerstone of our culture.
We have proudly signed the Sanctus pledge, encouraging everyone in the team to bring their full selves to work. Our team don’t need to put on a front or hide how they’re really feeling. We also support the wellbeing of our employees by offering therapeutic coaching, allowing everyone to have access to professional support, which they can use for work purposes or something else entirely.
Socials & Team Bonding
Whilst our approach to culture is not to centre it around particular activities, our team still enjoy the chance to take part in our monthly socials. Activities are important for team bonding, offering the chance for everyone at Zego to enjoy spending time together outside of the working day.
We’ve done everything from holding sports days and table tennis competitions to going go-karting together. We also saw stand-up comedy, performed karaoke and learnt how to make a macramé wall hanging. As soon as somebody accepts a job offer from Zego, they are invited along to these social events, so that every Zegon feels like they are a part of the company from day one.
It is the misunderstanding of this particular aspect of company culture that has seen the concept reduced to the placement of a ping-pong table in an office and expecting the culture to nurture itself. Returning to our botanical metaphor, putting a ping-pong table in the middle of an office helps to nurture the culture about as much as it would help the flowers in a garden grow.
Team activities and social events are not the foundations of company culture, but enjoying and partaking in them should be seen as one of its consequences. The roots of this garden lie far deeper than the flowers that appear on the surface.
