It’s Complicated: A Changing Dynamic at Stratus

Stratus Solutions, where I am interning as a Software Engineer, was not immune to COVID-19. Like other companies, work shifted to remote. Speaking to HR before I accepted the internship, I learned that the best aspect of the company was their workplace culture. Because of COVID-19, the culture has inevitably changed, but it’s clear that HR is still trying to maintain that positive culture which makes working for Stratus so unique.

The company uses Microsoft Teams to communicate, and there are various forums, created by HR, where people talk about the mundane, like their weekend, or other non-work related topics. There is also a forum dedicated to thanking team members for helping on a project or providing guidance. The aim of these initiatives is to foster a sense of community, where anyone can ask for help and find solutions to problems that aren’t necessarily work-related. Stratus has a very clear organizational hierarchy. There is an online OrgChart where you can look up anyone in the company and see who their boss is, and who works under them. Even though I am clearly at the bottom of the hierarchy, I feel very comfortable using these forums to ask for help with my projects, or even to just ask for general career advice. People from all over the hierarchy respond to my questions, and I really feel engaged with people at all levels of the company.

Last week, I had the opportunity to sit in on a meeting concerning the company’s response to COVID-19. The executive board spoke about the struggles the company has faced, the responses, and the outcomes of those responses. The executive team made it very clear that they were concerned with the well-being of the company. The effectiveness of the company’s responses was evaluated not only financially, but also by simple company-wide surveys. This also shows that the company truly values the input of all workers. At the end of the meeting, the executive leadership led an informal townhall where people could write-in anonymous questions. From my viewpoint, people were very happy with the executive board and the way they have been handling the company during this pandemic.