What it's like being a new starter at Deeson

Yesterday marked exactly one month since I joined the team at Deeson. Here’s my perspective on what it’s like to be a new starter here.

The first day

Immediately I was struck by how well prepared the team was for my arrival. It might seem obvious that I should have a desk, laptop and email address ready to go, but I’ve previously worked at places where my turning up at 9am seemed to be something of a surprise, and they’ve had to scramble to get things ready. 

Even before I officially started, I noticed how slick the onboarding process was. I was sent a welcome email with key information I’d need, and a checklist of things to read or bring. This meant I walked in on my first day feeling confident about what I could expect and what was expected of me.

As someone who prefers a lot of information upfront, I also found the company handbook incredibly useful. If I’m honest, I’d read the entire thing before even being offered the job! It outlines company policies, and has a ton of useful guides (including one on joining Deeson).

Within my first hour, I got to sit down with a manager (in my case, managing director Simon Wakeman) and go through some of the basics – the systems and processes I’d need to know to be able to do my job. This was particularly useful as I’d finished at my previous job only 3 days before, so the meeting helped me re-calibrate and prepare for life at Deeson.

The antidote to imposter syndrome

Having been at my previous company for four years, I felt like I had things pretty figured out there. Being in a new role with a new employer suddenly brought on all sorts of feelings of “what if I’m no good at my job?” Luckily, I didn’t have a chance to dwell on this thought for long!

When Deeson hires someone, they trust that the person is capable and motivated to do the job at hand. They demonstrated this confidence by giving me ownership of projects and plenty of responsibility straight away, which meant I instantly felt that I had something to offer, and helped banish any feelings of imposter syndrome.

At the same time, I was granted access to whatever I needed to help me get the job done. Deeson gives employees a £500 yearly personal budget to spend on hardware, software or accessories. I spent some of mine on a monitor to complete my home office, which feels more official than just working on my laptop from my couch.

Remote working

As a distributed team member, I work from home for most of the week. We have offices in London and Canterbury, but quite a few people in the team are based elsewhere in the UK and Europe, so I was thankful to see there’s real focus on fostering communication and collaboration across the entire agency.

We use video conferencing technology to “attend” company-wide meetings, and there are plenty of opportunities to touch base with colleagues online and in person. I’ve spent a bit of time in both offices since joining, allowing me to meet most of the team face-to-face already – and Deeson pays for my train tickets when I need to travel.

Everyone in the team has been warm and generous with their time and knowledge, which has helped me settle in quickly.

The culture

One of the things I liked immediately about working here is how readily people show their appreciation for one another. We give out tacos in Slack to say thank you or well done, and it’s honestly a much more meaningful act than you would expect of an emoji-based interaction!

There is also a genuine emphasis on work-life balance, exemplified by flexible working practices, mandatory paid sabbaticals every five years, and an annual wellness fund per employee. These benefits have a positive impact that far outweighs any number of ping pong tables and free smoothies. More importantly, these perks aren’t given begrudgingly – you’re actively encouraged to make the most of them.

My future at Deeson

With an unlimited training budget and paid tickets and travel to conferences, I’m looking forward to taking full advantage of opportunities for self-development, and growing with the role.

It feels great (if a little scary) to be starting out afresh somewhere, and I’m glad to be working with such a friendly and supportive team on some truly exciting projects.

I love it here – maybe you will too! Read more about what it’s like to work at Deeson and check out our current vacancies.