29th July, 2021 was my last day with the company Global Infonet Inc. Dock 365 is the name of its parent company. Last 2 weeks were very emotional for me as this organisation and its people were so much attached to me.
How it all started
I joined GI on December 17, 2018. The interview call from the HR of GI reached in a very crucial time. I wasn’t looking for a job change at that time in SBSOL but suddenly there came a situation where I preferred to switch for the good.
Saranya was the HR manager of GI at the time. As per their instructions I wrote a test blog first. As their requirement was for a technical writer, I did a lot of research and took enough time to make the content piece good.
As expected, I got selected for the next round. It was a phone-in interview with their marketing head next. I cleared that too, and went in for a face to face round next. I did a LinkedIn check to know more about the company and the people working there.
Sneha Gopal was the digital marketing head and when I reached the Carnival Infopark, second floor as per the company address communicated to me, I saw Sneha standing there talking in phone. I wasn’t sure it was her but her face was familiar as I saw her profile in LinkedIn before.
The interior of the company looked old and the people inside seems to be silent. I had a discussion with Sneha once again and she explained to me the job there and a basic work culture of the organisation. I remember she saying ‘there is no one here who will nag you and always micro manage and destract you. It’s a comfortable work environment.’
I went back after the discussion and I think they told me that I’m selected. After a week they again asked me to come as the company CEO is here and he wanted to meet me before he leave to USA. When I was waiting in front of the door a man wearing a formal t-shirt asked me ‘do you want to get in?’, I said yes and he provided me access.
The discussion with him went well. My greatest strength at that time was my personal website. I showed him my own website to prove what I am cable of doing. He was impressed with my blog posts and the graphics I have created for it. I returned after the meeting and accepted the offer letter soon after.
The joining day
When I came to join I saw one more girl joining on that day. Her name was Aparna. It was Christmas month and there was a Christmas tree placed in the front desk area. A bell was lying down. I picked it and placed it back on the tree. I said on my mind that this is my company from now so it’s my please to do this silly thing now!
After the joining formalities Sneha explained to me the tasks and the basic workflows. I was happy with the overall setup even it wasn’t something we expect from a company in Infopark.
Sneha was a friendly manager so I felt so relaxed and calm. She gave me tips on how to do things asper Joe’s expectations. It wasn’t the first time I am working for a single owner company, but i soon realised that everyone and everything here is greatly dependant on the CEOs decisions, ideas, thoughts, etc. Well, i coped with it quickly.
Making friends
The first two weeks I found it a bit tough to be in the company as I didn’t get any good company. I was literally alone roaming around inside and outside the office premises. Then suddenly I became friends with Sujith and everything changed after that. Suddenly, office became a friendly place for me. I was so happy that I got atleast one good friend who understands the difficulties or loneliness I was facing there.
Even though there were nearly 30 people working there, no one actually tried sincerely to be friends with me except Sujith. Developers had a group, designers had a group and the seniors were another group. Only me and Sneha was in the marketing team and so there was no scope for building a group at that time.
The first team outing
Soon after I joined GI, there was a team outing to a resort. That day helped me to become more familiar with others. I had a long conversation with Geo as no one else was there for me to talk.
When Sujith Joined the team bus things suddenly became friendlier for me. Throughout the day he was with me and ensured that I never felt alone. There was a boat ride, we stood in middle of the river where the water wasn’t shallow.
After having food we explored the property, played some games and by evening we returned. Soon after Sujith step down from the bus when reaching his place, I was again alone. However I was happy because I had a good time there. I became friendly with Arjun, Justin, and Geo too.
My Manager – Sneha
Sneha was the digital marketing head at that time, and I was her assistant. She was nice and made me comfortable in the initial time. However, as time passed, she left the company and I was prepared to lead the marketing activities of the company from that point.
I gifted her a book on her last day. I am very glad I did that on her last day because it wasn’t a pleasant farewell.
Finding more friends
I became friends with Hafeez and made our tea times more enjoyable. Jewel joined by that time and I made him part of our gang as well. Sujith stopped coming to office as he had some health issues, and slowly he switched to another company. He was an amazing friend of mine, I am very grateful that I met all these people.
Covid & Our Bike Tours
By the beginning of 2019, we planned a Dhanushkodi bike trip. During that time, Covid was spreading so fast around the world. It wasn’t so furious in India, so we completed our trip and soon after that lockdown started.
Soon after lockdown suspended we made a trip to Alappuzha. Jewel’s cousin was also with us. That trip made our relationships more stronger.
Shymi – The Quinn
Since my joining in Global Infonet, Shymi was around but I was not friends with her. She was friends with Hafeez though. Once she had some trouble with Hafeez, i became friends with her. We even made her stay with us once in a while, as I found her very emotionally broke at the time and I felt like she needed some support. I’m glad that I was able to support her during her tough phase. After that she was married to Preeth and our relationship became weaker, but still she is always an important one for us.
My Team – Betty, Alna, Nithin
By the time Sneha left the company, i expanded my team with a few SEO people, Betty was the first to join. I recruited all of them directly, so all of them were special to me. Throughout the lockdown period and even before that it was nice working with Betty. She was a very pleasant and bubbly person. She was pregnant sooon after she joined but still she did well to make our project go well.
After lockdown, Betty migrated to UK and so we hired Ankita and Nithin. They also did well as a team. Nithin became a great friend and support there after.
Stepping down and relieving
After that point, so many changes happened in the company. Eventually, i resigned from my role. I was glad that, I made Dock 365 new heights in terms of digital presence at that time.
GI and all my friends there will always stays with me.
