Still the same com­pany?

When traveling, Theseus was continuously replacing the damaged planks of his boat by new ones, so by the time he arrived at Crete, there was no single plank in his boat which was there when he left the harbor. I wonder whether the ship which he came with is still the same boat on which he set off. It’s an interesting philosophical question. For a long time, I have never questioned why it wouldn’t be the same boat since it existed without interruption; everyone knew at any moment that it is the boat of Theseus. However, if we envision the ship at the time of her departure and arrival, there are no identical pieces within.

There have been such changes at IV as well. Several people have left the company in the past few years. Half-year ago, we said goodbye to Timi and now to Vince. In the meantime, Andi, Dia, and Lilla have joined the team. And I keep thinking about Theseus’s boat that how could it be the same boat! Of course, there will still be someone to liaise with the customers, someone who thinks with them on their needs and possible solutions. There will be someone to open the issues in JIRA, someone to issue the invoices, and take care that we all get paid month by month. But it is undoubtedly not true that we would be the same team as in August. It is a painful period when we have to say goodbye to colleagues who are dear to us, even if it is just a temporary leave sometimes. Meeting new people is always very exciting and a great opportunity. Still, sometimes I feel how it breaks the intimacy, security, and connections when there is a lot of change.

I’ve been working in Integral Vision for more than three years, and I love to be here. Many form the people I used to consider to be the promise of safety are not here. Something changed: it is not me who learns from the processes at IV from others, but they learn from me. There are people for whom I am the point of reference, and it is kind of a strange feeling. There is a cause, shared values we work together for. Each of us contributes, and in the meantime, some of our fellows went off the ship. I know it is just natural, and I never feel anger when someone quits as everyone deserves a job they dream of. I just don’t know how to grieve our losses, how to deal with them in the long run. How not to think about the question of how long the “dream team” I like so much with my favorite tech lead will last? If you have any well-established methods for saying goodbye, please let us know.