A Day in the Life at Talis by Natalie Naik, Marketing, Talis
In this article, we ask Natalie about her typical day working remotely in Spain and how the flexible working hours work for Natalie and her home life.
What excites you the most about your job at Talis?
In three words: trust, flexibility and opportunity.
I feel lucky to have been given the opportunity to work remotely in Spain. Originally from the Midlands, I moved over to the Barcelona area in 2017 to give remote working from a sunnier climate a go. It’s not for everyone, but I really enjoy it, and this positive experience was made possible because of the culture of trust and flexibility we have at Talis. My team adapted to me no longer being in the office every day, and we shifted to relying on calls and messaging to keep in touch. The pandemic meant that everyone got a taste of my usual day to day!
The expectation at Talis isn’t that you are chained to your desk. We all know that popping out for a walk (or a cafe con leche) can give you those moments of inspiration, or just a break so you can come back refreshed and ready to tackle the next challenge of the day. My team knows that I’m committed to working on our shared goals, even if they can’t always see me.
Another part of this trust means that opportunities are there for you to carve out for yourself. If you want to try something new, then build a plan, and go for it! I recently started ‘Talis Share’ an internal project allowing us to share expertise across the business, helping us to broaden our knowledge of the sector, or the way other teams work, as well as learning new skills and connecting with members of the Talis Team we wouldn’t normally work with.
What does your typical day look like?
I’m not a morning person, so I’m delighted to have that extra hour in time difference from my team. A good morning looks like a workout, a dog walk and a coffee in the sunshine before work. Sometimes it’s just scrolling the latest on Twitter for 15 minutes in bed before heading to my home office. No work day looks the same. Once I’m at my desk I could be doing anything from speaking to partners about upcoming campaigns, organising an event for our user communities, or writing content for new audiences in North America. I stay in touch with our product, services, account management and sales teams constantly. Whilst I don’t speak to customers directly every day, it’s important that I listen to those in the team that do, so I can ensure everything we create stays accurate and relevant for our audiences. Every day ends with a dog walk, a great chance to stretch my legs, get some fresh air and reflect.
When you are not at work, how do you take time-out?
During the winter months, I’ll be finishing up early on the occasional Friday to go skiing for the weekend. I live just 3 hours away from the mountains, so along with my husband and our friends we try to go skiing 4-5 times a year.
In other times of the year, I like to go up to the mountains for the beautiful views, or walk along the beach with my dog (Spring and Autumn are best, when it’s quieter and cooler). I live near the wine region of Catalunya, so we are always on the hunt for a good wine tasting at a local vineyard. In the evening you’ll find me at a local tapas bar, or cooking for friends.
