Johanna Tannerfors, Director of Project Management, shares her thoughts on how the pandemic altered the future of work and how Pattern is evolving, adapting and raising the standard in the era of work-from-anywhere.
I’m currently sitting by a pool in Costa Rica looking out over the Pacific Ocean. Sounds like a nice vacation, right? But no, this is no vacation, I'm actually busy at work, this is my office today. I also happen to be enjoying one of my biggest passions in life, travel.
When I started my career in digital media back in 2007, one of my goals was to be able to work from anywhere, to be location agnostic. We weren’t quite there yet, but over the years the world has moved toward a more digital-first society. Fast forward to 2022 and even the most technologically resistant companies were dragged into the future and forced to adapt to a digital world due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
When the pandemic hit, we were lucky at Pattern to be a digital-first company already. We worked from home some days, we collaborated with remote team members, and we held many of our client meetings over video. While the transition to remote work went pretty smoothly for us, we quickly learned that there was still plenty of room for improvement.
As a few months of a temporary covid work situation morphed into a permanent new normal, we wanted to revisit what the future of work meant to us at Pattern, and how our work model could suit us, as human beings. So, in October last year, we regrouped as a team in the desert near Joshua Tree—team members flew in from the Bay Area, Seattle, LA, and Costa Rica—and we got to work! Here’s what we learned:
The 40-hour work week is outdated
For years, many accepted the 40-hour work week as the norm; working 9 a.m.-6 p.m. was just something we took for granted. But as technology has advanced, workflows have become more efficient, and we’re able to work from anywhere. For many industries, a strict schedule doesn’t really make sense anymore.
Creativity is not limited to a 9 a.m.-6 p.m. schedule, and neither are we. Some of our team members have their best ideas at night, while some of us are most productive in the morning. At Pattern, we don’t care when our team members prefer to do their work, as long as it gets done on time and we show up to meetings when needed.
"Creativity is not limited to a 9 a.m.-6 p.m. schedule, and neither are we."
Flexibility comes with a lot of responsibility
The new, digital-first work model offers a lot more flexibility. We no longer need to live in a busy urban area to have an interesting job and fulfilling career; we can live and work from wherever we want.
We no longer need to spend full days in the office. In fact, some of us are more focused and get more work done when we work from home. At Pattern, we can work from anywhere, as long as the Wi-Fi connection is stable and we have at least a few overlapping working hours.
We also really value in-person collaboration, and we still keep our beautiful studio in Berkeley open to everyone, any day of the week. We also use co-working spaces in San Francisco and LA, as needed.
To get to know each other better and to have some fun, we like to get together a few times of year for off-sites where we spend a few hours working together, and then go zip lining, wine tasting, hiking, or just lounging by the pool. So far we’ve met in Sayulita, Mexico; Palm Desert, CA; and most recently, Costa Rica.
It’s essential to design wellbeing into the way we work
With our new flexible, remote-first work model comes a lot of opportunities, but also a lot of risks for our personal wellbeing. We can now align our work-life better with our personal life and needs, and allow space for other passions. We have the opportunity to punctuate our workday with small things that make us happy, whether that’s cooking a healthy lunch, working out, taking the dog for a walk, or spending time with family.
Coming from backgrounds in hustle-culture agencies where stress and burnout were the norm, it’s been important for us at Pattern to create a culture where wellbeing and mental health always come first. Working remotely has posed its own set of challenges to our health, and we want to be proactive in finding solutions. Without the accidental exercise and socializing that comes with commuting and working in person, we have to work a bit harder to ensure we stay healthy and don’t get stuck in front of the screen. We encourage our team to take breaks, go outside, get away from the screen, spend time with people in person, or get off the grid for a bit!
"We have the opportunity to punctuate our workday with small things that make us happy, whether that’s cooking a healthy lunch, working out, taking the dog for a walk, or spending time with family."
As a creative and digitally-native agency, we have the opportunity to lead the change towards creating a healthier and more sustainable work environment. We want to set an example for what a modern work environment—that puts the team’s wellbeing first—looks like.
We’ll continue to learn and improve as we grow and adjust to new Pattern team members and their needs. If you want to join us and be part of creating a culture of stoke, send us a note.
At Pattern, we believe a happy and healthy team is a creative team, and a creative team produces great work, which equals a thriving business. If you need proof that this works, check out Adweek’s Fastest Growing Agencies, some of our recent awards, and our recap of the work we did in 2021.
About Pattern
Pattern is a digital design & e-commerce agency that helps brands succeed in the experience economy. We design modern brands, eCommerce experiences, products & platforms that help founders, disruptors and visionaries find their place at the intersection of culture, community & commerce.
