Sadki took up post as director of the Luxembourg branch of Eximius, a professional services firm based in London and Hong Kong on 2 March, just two weeks before lockdown.
He’d been working from the coworking site Spaces on place de la Gare, a location that offered flexibility for the Benelux hub he was developing. During those weeks he commuted by train to avoid the hour-long drive to work from his home in France.
“Our job is about relationships, meeting candidates and clients, so in the first weeks I had maybe three or four meetings a day,” he told Delano during an interview in September. He added that the networking events organised by Spaces were a big attraction to “develop my network and increase business opportunities”.
When the call came on 15 March to work remotely, Spaces kept the coworking site open. Sadki opted to work from home, where his employer had already provided him with the tools he needed to telework.
Colleagues
Having already worked remotely prior to the lockdown, he was accustomed to a certain degree of it. During the lockdown period, like many others, Sadki had resorted to virtual meetings for prospects as well as other company directors, plus the CEO. “I was due to go to London quite often, but with covid it’s not possible,” he said.
For nearly two months he and his colleagues worked entirely from their respective homes. “I think there were not a lot of business like this,” he said. “They maintained everything here to be able to work safely, so you could come without any feeling [of] pressure [or that] something bad would happen.”
Workplace
Sadki said he liked the fact that the coworking site has a gym, showers and other amenities, although he hasn't used them since the lockdown. Spaces also used to organise regular networking events prior to health crisis, which Sadki said was a good opportunity to further grow his professional network.
Among the steps taken, Spaces carried out “deep and reinforced cleanings”, according to its management, and also installed plexiglass at the reception area. It also set out clear guidelines for the common areas.
Sadki was impressed with the level of organisation by the office space management company. He said: “If an office was too small [to ensure proper distancing], they were offering another office with a big discount”--a 50% discount, to be exact. They also offered to spread the lease costs from the lockdown over the remainder of a tenant’s contract.
Workflow
Since returning to the coworking space, Sadki says he continues to work remotely on average one day per week. He still travels by train but on occasion uses the car--which he can do mask-free--“and I can breathe!” But particularly for the recruitment side of his business, he believes face-to-face interaction is still preferred.
Given that Sadki had worked previously in Luxembourg, he feels fortunate to have already had a decent network and experience here. Of course, while many budgets were being slashed and project put on hold, he has had his work cut out for him. But he is optimistic, having made some 25 placements in six months.
“We see now that the market is picking up. It’s better, projects are restarting, but it depends,” he said. “Parts are waiting because they are doubting how the situation will evolve, some prospects are saying, let’s wait until next year. So we have to find the right balance.”