Laptops and Flip-flops: Vezeeta Opens In The Egyptian North Coast
Out of office, but not really.
Imagine taking your lunch breaks by the beach, return, rinse off the sea water, and get on that never-ending excel sheet. Lucky for Vezeeta's team (or as they call themselves, "Veez"), they don't need to imagine. This summer, the health-tech startup decided to rent out a space in Hacienda Bay, North Coast, and open up a summer office for a month to breathe in beach air in the team.
Vezeeta's summer office is a new People and Culture initiative where their “Veez” have the choice to work from the summer office in the North Coast during the blistering month of July. The sole objective to this initiative is employee happiness and well-being - which of course pours onto productivity and overall office culture.
According to a study released earlier this year by the American Institute of Stress, 75% of employees believe that workers have more on-the-job stress than a generation ago. With the heatwave and the seasonal migration to the North Coast, Cairene urban dwellers are caught almost despising their luck for having to be stuck in the merciless capital for work. Vezeeta didn’t want to be affiliated with this bitter feeling, so they also migrated to the North Coast.
Vezeeta's north coast office space is open to all Vezeeta employees - who enjoy access to the beach from 4 PM to 6 PM on weekdays and from 12 PM to 6 PM on weekends - during the summer time. As an added perk, they have also provided accommodation with the condition of pre-booking.
Three and a half hours away from Cairo, where the wind blows 6 kilometres faster per hour, we sit on a bean bag at their sunny-yet-breezy summer office and have a conversation with Vezeeta’s sunbathing employees. “When I told my friends I was going to the North Coast for work, they were nothing but jealous,” People and Culture Advisor Noura Wahid told Startup Scene. “I actually have a friend that shared a post throwing shade at her own company saying: “shayfeen el sharekat.” (Franco Arabic for: See what other companies are doing for their employees?)”
We were interested to know how their daily routines changed now they work by the beach. “There is no such thing as daily routine at Vezeeta,” explained Nada Akrab, Business Development Manager. “We are at a time of rapid growth. Every day there is a new challenge or opportunity coming our way that we must jump right onto. This doesn’t happen with routine.”
Co-living side-by-side with co-working has definitely added even more harmony to the team to bring about better outcomes for Vezeeta’s users. Groups that were unlikely to mingle, mingled over the beach and summer activities. “What is great about this place is that it motivates you to really know and bond with the people you work with,” Engineering Lead, Ahmed Taher told Startup Scene. “There is a real sense of togetherness.”
Having a taste of this new work lifestyle - and from the looks of their empty Cairo office - this office-by-the beach experience seems like a definite perk that Vezeeta will be adding to their long list of employment incentives.
Vezeeta is a leading health-tech startup that provides users with the ability to search and book medical appointments and health services. Since establishment in 2012, Vezeeta has served more than 3 million patients and connected more than 13,000 doctors in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Jordan.
Pictures are courtesy of Vezeeta.
The content of this article is sponsored by Vezeeta.
