The ‘Coolest Office in NYC’ Goes Remote-First
Ceros makes software for interactive content creation used by companies like NBC, Red Bull and Buzzfeed. Its 2.000-square-meter New York headquarters was an Instagram-friendly hub with different themes.
UpdatedMar 15. 2023
Photo: Courtesy of Ceros
Imagine the envy of your friends when you’re posting a picture from the 1960’s (vinyl records, a lava lamp), the company’s own British pub with a rustic, dark wood, 12-stool bar, vintage arcade games and leather club chairs, or the hidden meeting room behind a sliding bookcase secret door.
Bookcase secret door - Photo: Ceros
Along came Covid
Unexpected global game changer forces everyone to rethink and revalue. Luckily, Ceros was open-minded about what work could look like. They pivoted.
“I was an everyday-in-the office kind of guy. That’s how I’d build culture and connectivity between myself and the team,” says Ceros CEO Simon Berg. But after spending more time with his family during the lockdown, he embraced the workforce’s call for more “autonomy, mastery and freedom in their life.” Ceros told their employees that they could live and work anywhere. Immediately, employees started relocating to other states.
New trend, new opportunity
Instead of panicking Simon Berg went into glass is half full-mode. “We changed our hiring policy to recruit from anywhere around the world.” Remote work was here to stay and Ceros employees were even happier with the flexibility than they had been commuting every day to New York’s coolest office.
Unexpected global game changer forces everyone to rethink and revalue. Luckily, Ceros was open-minded about what work could look like. They pivoted.
“I was an everyday-in-the office kind of guy. That’s how I’d build culture and connectivity between myself and the team,” says Ceros CEO Simon Berg. But after spending more time with his family during the lockdown, he embraced the workforce’s call for more “autonomy, mastery and freedom in their life.” Ceros told their employees that they could live and work anywhere. Immediately, employees started relocating to other states.
New trend, new opportunity
Instead of panicking Simon Berg went into glass is half full-mode. “We changed our hiring policy to recruit from anywhere around the world.” Remote work was here to stay and Ceros employees were even happier with the flexibility than they had been commuting every day to New York’s coolest office.
60's room - Photo: Ceros
“We proved that Ceros could not only survive while employees worked remotely, we could thrive in that environment.”– Rob Bender, CFO Ceros
“It became apparent, quite quickly, that we no longer needed the N.Y.C. office”, says Bender, and decided to redistribute the funds — more than $1 million per year — to explore a hybrid work pilot.“Our objective was to reallocate resources that were once only used to support employees in the tri-state region to support employees all over the globe,” says Bender. “These last few years have been trying for all, and sometimes a change of venue for the day can make all the difference.”
3 out of 4 in hybrid transition
After the pandemic, companies around the world were forced to embrace a new approach to the office: workplace flexibility. As of late 2022, three out of four U.S. companies were already working remotely or planning to transition to a hybrid work model. They see it as a must when it comes to staying agile, cutting costs and competing for top talent.
Read the full article here.
After the pandemic, companies around the world were forced to embrace a new approach to the office: workplace flexibility. As of late 2022, three out of four U.S. companies were already working remotely or planning to transition to a hybrid work model. They see it as a must when it comes to staying agile, cutting costs and competing for top talent.
Read the full article here.
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