In time of coronavirus, this Bengaluru startup relocates to a farm in Tamil Nadu

“Even though we tried work-from-home options for a couple of days, work became strenuous and employees started developing panic primarily after seeing several people around wearing masks. Some of them even started getting calls from their relatives asking them to get back to their respective hometowns,” Andrea Fernandes, HR Manager of the firm told indianexpress.com

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The farm owned by the grandmother of the CEO turned out to be an instant make-shift office for the startup. (Express Photo)

She added that the company thought of this ‘temporary getaway’ to ensure their employees felt positive and at the same time to avoid their productivity taking a toll. “We started to notice that the team was feeling insecure and was finding it difficult even to communicate well among each other due to this. Even though only eight employees joined us to move out of the city initially, the rest joined after a couple of days after they got good feedback from their peers on this experiment,” Fernandes added.

However, CEO and Co-founder of Vumonic Data Labs Aravind Raju said that the plan to work from a village has been in the cards since last year. “The current situation was just an excuse to implement it faster. The flexibility and liberty startups possess to make things happen quickly was an advantage for us,” he said, adding that the idea to do the same initially cropped up during a visit to the Netherlands.

“As cities getting more crowded lead to multiple problems like inflation, traffic, and pollution among other, setting up an office in a village or a small town will also help us strike a work-life balance,” he added.

The farm owned by the grandmother of the CEO turned out to be an instant make-shift office for the startup. However, from coping with soaring high temperatures to finding a good spot for uninterrupted internet coverage, the team faced many challenges in the initial days of their relocation.

“Once we completed a successful scout for spots with good coverage, we laid mats around trees that gave shade in the area and started to work there. The serene feel that trees give and the fresh air that we have been getting here has definitely added to our positivity on a daily basis,” Fernandes added.

While the team has not planned as to when to return to Bengaluru, they are keen on staying off the city until all news related to coronavirus ebbs away

The team is now following a different schedule beginning their day with exercises soon after sunrise, working till 5 pm, and then going out for fun activities like trekking, swimming, and discovering new places around.

Such activities and the overall ambiance of the farm have helped fuel a transformation from panic to positivity and further productivity, Venkatesh Varan, a business analyst in the firm said.

“While we were in Bengaluru, we used to be extra cautious by using hand-sanitizers every hour and would think twice even if we wanted to go out for a smoke. Even though this plan was taken in haste, it has turned out to be a great option as colleagues have turned mates enjoying the vibes of work and this place together,” Varan added.

Varan said that having fruits and vegetables directly from the farm while at work has also kept him away from his smoking habits, improving his appetite as well.

All this put together has contributed to a better performance by the company, CEO Raju asserts. He further attributes the hike in productivity of his team to the rise in downloads for his startup’s flagship product InstaClean in the last 4 days. “While we had around 12,000 users at the beginning of this month, we have witnessed around 5,000 new downloads since March 7,” Raju claimed.

While the team has not planned as to when to return to Bengaluru, they are keen on staying off the city until all news related to coronavirus ebbs away.

“We haven’t planned of making this a permanent location yet but the welcoming attitude of the farmers and other natives here has given us a lot of confidence,” Raju said.

The CEO added with a chuckle that a couple of villagers approached him with an offer to work for free for the startup provided they were trained to do the work.

However, the employees have proposed that they would like to work in the ‘getaway office’ once every fortnight. “It is important that we need to balance our personal life, also spending time with our dear and near ones. It would be great to work from here leaving the city once in a while but not permanently,” Varan added.