Spread across the whole world
Spain, the US, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland: a team of experts ensures that Emmi and its subsidiaries grow closer together. But the team itself is scattered across the globe. How does that work?
It is somewhat unusual for a team of eight to be spread across five countries.
«What’s the point», you may ask. «Because our subsidiaries are located in many different countries, so are we,» says Markus Blatter, a corporate developer at Emmi with a focus on ERP, a software for collecting, storing, managing and evaluating business data.
Virtual recruitment
His team consists of highly specialised experts who would be difficult to find in the small Swiss market. Sofia Siverbo, for example, lives in Spain. «Sofia’s recruitment took place entirely online. Today, she is employed by the Emmi subsidiary Kaiku.»
Apart from Spain, two employees come from the US, two from Switzerland and one person each works in the Netherlands and France. One part of the work consists of rolling out the system in a company. «We all come together on site at the subsidiary for each go-live, so we see each other maybe four to six times a year.»
Time zones get tricky
More than 90 percent of the work takes place virtually. One challenge is the time difference, which is nine hours between California and Switzerland. It is also not so easy to embody the Emmi culture, values and good team spirit.
«We have a super team,» Markus emphasises, «the diversity and the different backgrounds and cultures make things very exciting.» Nevertheless, he makes sure that everyone gets acquainted with the Emmi world. Last spring, the team met in Switzerland and visited various sites, including the Kaltbach caves.
“For some it’s still morning; for others it’s already evening.“
Getting close despite the distance
«It’s about creating a kind of home, so that everyone feels included.» That’s why virtual get-togethers are held regularly. «For some it’s still morning; for others it’s already evening.»
To lighten things up a bit, the team also meets from time to time in the online social tool Mibo, where they can meet in a virtual space, move around and come together in different groups, just like at a real get-together. «That helps to bridge the physical distance.»
International environment
Emmi’s international environment, with its subsidiaries in 15 countries, offers its employees attractive opportunities to gain valuable experience abroad. Employee development is firmly incorporated in our strategy as part of sustainability. In this context, Emmi creates an environment in which development opportunities are available to all.
