Just a frame?

Once I told Kulcsi that I had a need to do something that few people understood and that I didn't see much opportunity for that at the company. I immediately added that, of course, I have no idea to move on, as I can't find a job with such a corporate culture anywhere else in Hungary.

Kulcsi replied that we are trying to create the conditions necessary to satisfy my need, but if I fail, I will have to go on because the way we work is just the form, and form is not something that can hold here.

The conversation then shifted in a different direction, but it echoed in me for a long time: "it's just the form ..." Is it just form?

I was surprised by his attitude. I thought this is crucial for him. When we first met in my interview, he told me that it is a success that the company still exists after ten years, as it is not easy to keep up a system working with this kind of freedom and flexibility. I thought he had made great sacrifices to make this form a reality.

I've always imagined he could be the leader of a company ten times that size if he didn't choose that path. And I was still grateful to him for choosing us.

Is it really just form? Is the way we work just a set of demo days and retro, spiced up with some integral approach, agility?

It means a lot more to me. A sheltered environment where I can learn to become an adult, accept constructive criticism, stand up for myself, live my freedom. Where I get personal attention, there is a constant opportunity for development, both professionally and personally. Where I experience what real democracy is like and see that it can work well.

This frame should be a holy thing, something that people promote to the world. How much would such jobs be needed in many areas! Where employees can give feedback from time to time, also to their superiors, without the risk of being fired. Nurses to doctors, teachers to principals. Jobs where leaders strive for their employees' well-being. Places where a team, a faculty, a workplace community makes decisions together on issues that affect them all. Work conditions where mothers can work flexible hours. Where they don't look ugly when someone is sick. Where working is not only about plodding and earning money.

A year and a half ago, I chose Integral Vision because of this "form." I draw strength from this form when my snowshoes are full of my duties. This form is the reason why seven-digit foreign payments are not tempting. Naturally, our system has flaws. Of course, it's not a perfect job either, but - for me, at least - it's closer to it than any company I've dealt with so far. Thanks to its frame.