OLX is to classifieds in Nigeria as Google is to search engines in most parts of the world. Building a brand that has become a household name is no easy feat. It is a journey that could have been halted as a result of the unique Nigerian situation of poor identity management and other negative factors. However, it looks like the journey just began as the enthusiasm and excitement in the room when the OLXis5 event held was unmissable.
I watched keenly and took notes as the day’s activities progressed. The joy on the faces of the members of staff was unmissable. Everyone spoke about their work and business with so much passion. This attitude piqued my interest in the brand and the work culture that has contributed in maintaining a great relationship not just within the staff but also between the brand and their millions of users.
Humility and sophistication doesn’t always go hand in hand but they were the words that came to my mind when Lola Masha, the country manager took the mic to share the story of the brand over the years.
I didn’t even know she was the one at the helm of affairs when she went from table to table thanking everyone that attended the event earlier.
She didn’t have the air that many bosses carried, hers was different in a positive way. She lauded her members of staff and was quick to credit them with the successes recorded. I was surprised to see that the major departmental heads were women. I made a mental note that I had to find out more about their culture by visiting their workplace. I wanted to see how they worked and related outside of the festivity, so I booked an appointment to take an office tour.
We recently took a tour around the Iflix workstation and you would agree with me that the work place is getting revolutionised. From billiard tables to vegan cafes, new tech companies seem to have us all wanting to live at work. It is a gimmick too because staff members stay longer at work because it is fun to. I believe the revolution shouldn’t be about ripped jeans and tees on a Tuesday alone as it also has to encompass a degree of satisfaction and joy- key factors that most workplaces lack.
Like you would expect, the OLX office possesses the warmth that has become the hallmark of most new tech offices.
The reception has white and orange walls. There was a stylish glass magazine stand and a TV hung on a holder that could rotate around making it easy to view.
The orange wall had inscriptions that indicated OLX’ s global presence and its staff strength.
The front desk officer was away when I got there but I didn’t wait more than five minutes in the reception before I was joined by Uche, the PR and Communication head as I was quietly taking in everything in the small room.
We exchanged greetings as she led me into a meeting room which had mint chairs and white walls- on which hung picture frames of different iconic OLX events. The room served as the interviewing room with the country manager who I was meeting for the second time.
I watched out to see if there was something I missed the first time I met her that may have masked my opinion about her but she really is a cool boss. I sat through the interview and listened as she spoke about the challenges the company faced and the many opportunities they have created.
One thing that stood out as she spoke was how appreciative of her team she was. I am tempted to post the interview but that will be another post entirely (I promise I will share).
Soon as the interview was over, I had the full attention of Uche and she took me from one room to the other. It was a mid sized office with each room named after the core vision of the company.
The first point of call was the ‘Be Empowered’ meeting room which had walls that told stories of how OLX evolved from Dealfish to the brand we all know today. There was also another depiction of how the brand grew from a web focused website to a mobile site and ultimately evolved into a mobile app which is in line with recent development in consumer behaviour.
Of all the story painted on the wall, the one that stuck with me the most is that ‘Everybody wins’- a slogan often used by the company to depict the advantage of creating a platform where someone can easily trade an item he doesn’t have the need for to another that needs it, which is also environmental friendly.
We climbed a flight of stairs that took us into the office hall which had quite a number of desks and chairs. The office was half filled with those on their seats hard at work but there was still a relaxed air with the decorations made for the 5th anniversary event still very visible.
There were some additional meeting rooms each capable of accommodating two- three people each with warm and colourful furniture.
The lounge had a relaxing sofa and was well equipped with kitchen basics. The cool thing is you need not necessarily wait for lunchtime to make use of the room.
Like the meeting rooms the walls in the office hall also depicted the direction of the company and the many additions to the item categories. I think the inscriptions on the walls detailing the company’s journey and its core vision would easily stick in every staff’s subconscious .
While at the interview, I was curious to know if the happy vibe I got was a façade so I asked what the retention rate was, I was told the average staff stays for about three years. They have staff members that have been with the company over five years- a feat in the new age especially in the new tech space.
Creating an ideal workplace isn’t really about the physical office, it is an energy that cannot be seen but is capable of propelling a business or grinding it to a halt. Workplace joy is essential and a high level of emotional intelligence helps to get the best out of each individual.
It is like Richard Branson opined, ‘ happy employees make happy customers’.
