Joms
Hello, my name is Joms, the lead developer of Groei Grenzeloos from the Philippines. I would like to share to you my experience with Groei Grenzeloos and how I managed to love this company.
As a home-based developer that works for a company abroad, one of the best things to have with the company is trust and loyalty – 2 things that are rare in this line of work. Both are very important in Groei Grenzeloos so they make sure that it goes both ways – developers give their best time and effort for the company, and the company assures the developers of a great future ahead. One may ask why I trust them with my future, so I’m going to provide you with a list:
Honesty
This alone can make or break a company for me. With different companies I worked with in the past, this is the most transparent group I’ve been with. We share everything – stories at work, plans for the future, clients, life experiences, etc. I find this awesome because it makes us feel that we really are part of the company, even if we’re thousands of miles away.
Incentives
Since I talked about honesty above, I’ll go straight to the point – one of the most important factors why we work hard is money. Groei Grenzeloos pays a lot higher than any company that I’ve worked for. By a lot I mean 2 to 3 times higher. They give you what you truly deserve and do not hold back in doing so.
Before I started working for GG I had just enough money to get my family through the day. Working at home was not easy; you’ve got to pay the bills, food, and other expenses. It all changed when I worked for Groei Grenzeloos. Fast forward to 2 years and I’m no longer having financial problems. I got my nieces and nephews to school, lent some money for relatives in need and gave myself a gift last year – a brand new Ford Fiesta :).
Fun
We have always implemented a Google-like way of working. Developers are not treated like robotic slaves; the work environment is relaxed; there is almost no pressure at work and we treat ourselves as friends, not just employees and bosses. I find this method works best for me as positive reinforcements tend to produce better results like the quality of work done. We also do team buildings at least once a year where we go out and have fun!
Last year our Project Manager, Jossi, came to the Philippines to spend time with us developers. A detailed article about it can be found here.
Personal Growth
In Groei Grenzeloos you never stop learning. New projects mean new things to learn from. What’s great on how developers are handled is that they can freely choose which methods they deem fit for a given project. There are no restrictions and strict guidelines as long as you can deliver what the client wants. Developers also have an allotted time where they can review or study different programming skills and techniques to improve their current skillset and be up to date with the latest features in web development.
I’ve started in the company only knowing basic PHP and web design. Now I know different Content Management Systems, E-Commerce, Social API’s (Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin), and Frameworks.
Now these are just some of the reasons why I love the company. There are a lot more, and there will surely be more as the company grows! Please don’t hesitate to contact me on my email for further questions – joms@groeigrenzeloos.nl. Thanks for listening to my story; I had fun sharing it with you!