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Atwix is a distributed company. But once a year we break all our rules… Well, almost all :). For the whole year Atwix heroes work hard and from anywhere they want, except during one summer weekend when we all take a break together at the annual offsite meeting. This is an informal event that brings all our teammates, no matter where they are located, together for a long weekend – to spend time together and communicate face-to-face. Last year we had a pilot offsite, and since then we are committed to doing it annually.

This year, we wanted to improve our experience, and came up with some basic principles for holding a successful offsite.

An office manager is an obvious hire for any company. The very definition of an office manager implies that there needs to be an office. Thus if you have one, after reaching a certain size there is no question whether you need a person, who provides day-to-day comfort and maintenance of the working environment. But when it comes to remote or distributed companies, the question is not that easy to answer. And since Atwix is a distributed company with both remote-only and in-office employees, we decided to share our experience with having an office manager, who manages more than just a physical office. This is what we are going to learn from Ksenia, our office manager.

The first association with the term remote work is a dream-like work, while lying in a hammock at the sea side. We take it as a holiday, rather than usual daily responsibilities at an office. But when you start your remote job, you soon figure out that your table, a chair (or a hammock) and your laptop become your work place for a full busy day. The same as an office with a slight difference that it’s not necessary to wake up early and commute, or having a chance to escape to any warm place from a soul-crushing winter and work from anywhere you want. Because what matters in the long run is the result.