Introduction:

H! 👋 My name is Laure Saintpierre. I'm in charge of the Employee Experience at Livestorm, the world's leading end-to-end video engagement platform. 🚀

Current Gig?

I started at Livestorm as an Office Manager when we were just 30 employees, and I'm now in charge of the Employee Experience for the company. We are now 130 contributors and counting! 🤗

Current Location?

Since I have to be at the office regularly to manage the workplace organization, I'm currently based in Paris, but I like to work remotely from anywhere. 🗺

Current Computer, Mobile, etc.

I work with a Macbook pro 💻 and all the necessary Apple accessories, and I have an iPhone📱 to handle all of the apps related to the office. I also have one screen at home and another one I can take with me wherever I go 🖥️.

Livestorm provides us so many things to work in the best conditions! So whether I'm at the office, at home, or on the go, I always have the perfect setup. 😍

Where can we follow you on the Internet?

Find us on Linkedin, Twitter, and Instagram.

Describe how you work in 10 words or less?

Giving Stormies all around the world the best possible experience. 🚀

Tell us a little bit about your background & how did you get started with remote work?

I've studied HR and started as an HR Coordinator in a company called Midas France. Then, I discovered the startup environment working at Yoopies (now Worklife), and a year and a half ago, I had the chance to join Livestorm. 🙌

Before this year, remote was really occasional for me, but the whole work organization has changed since then. Remote has always been in our company's DNA, but we are now officially a remote-first company. 🏡 For a year now, I enjoy working in a lot of different places. Since I'm fully equipped, I can work anywhere! For example, I've enjoyed working from the mountains or near the sea in the past few months. 😍

I have many plans for the upcoming months, mainly to visit our Stormies worldwide, mainly in Europe, to limit my plane trips. 🚂

What job responsibilities do you have?

Be in charge of the employee experience is challenging! You have to be attentive to the needs, look for ideas, try many different things to find the best ones, and always propose new things! You are the guarantor of the whole adventure of every team member, and it goes with a lot of projects, follow-up, communication, activities. But it's so rewarding to see that Stormies feel well in the company!

Take us through your typical weekday?

That's a difficult question. The days and weeks are so different from one to another. 😉

I usually start my day by answering my emails and Slack notifications, and then I take a look at my calendar and to-do list to know if I can focus on something big or if it's better to move forward on smaller tasks. A day without meetings is rare, but it's always organized to be grouped as much as possible to have time to focus on more significant tasks ( like People and Employee experience projects). At the lunch break, we have time to exchange with our colleagues at the office or go for a walk at home, and the afternoon it's the same, starting with emails and Slack.

But even if the days are different, I have rituals every week that don't change:

  • The company's rituals: our Monday All-hands meetings keep us informed of all the teams' work for the previous week and of Livestorm's evolution; our board games on Wednesday to enjoy a funny moment with other Stormies (it's excellent to discover the drawing skills 😄), and after works when I'm at the office.
  • The team's rituals: our work team meeting every Monday to discuss our missions and projects; and our coffee break on Thursday (for this one, it's forbidden to talk about work 🙊).
  • Mine: coffee breaks with Stormies to take some news, 1:1 with Kevin, our Head of People, and blocked time to improve myself as a manager since it's new for me. And I also enjoy our Focus Friday to work on more significant projects because we ask Stormies to limit their meetings and notifications during this day.

DailyRemote Tip: Follow a laid-out work-from-home schedule to increase productivity and efficiency during remote work.

What's your workspace setup like?

Since I'm living in Paris, I don't have an entirely separate room for my desk 😅, but I have a real dedicated place. It's something that we've learned with the lockdown: a distinct and well-set-up workspace changes everything!

I'm very grateful to Livestorm for allowing me to equip myself. 🙌 My desk is in my living room, near the window to enjoy the natural light, and with some plants to have a "nature corner" in Paris. 🌱😄 I have a great chair (the same kind as at the office), a big screen and support for my computer. Also, I'm a little bit old school; I always have my notebook with me. 😉

The little extra: I always work with my Livestorm's mug and hoodie, especially during winter. 😍

And when I'm working remotely from another place than home, I always bring my portable screen and my computer accessories, and always try to have a dedicated desk and comfortable chair.

What apps, gadgets, or tools can't you live without?

Livestorm, of course! I use it every day for all types of events, and I'm so proud to be involved in such a great product. 🙌 Since we work remotely, having a performing video engagement platform is essential!

If I have to choose three other ones, I would say Slack, Notion, and Zapier. Slack for keeping the link with my teammates and being informed of everything going on within Livestorm; Notion for my to-do list and the whole company's documentation (which is so complete!); and Zapier because it makes it easier everything so easy with automation. 😄

And also, I must admit that I need my music app. 🎶

How do you keep track of what you need to prioritize?

We have OKRs for the quarter at the team level, so we know precisely our quarter goals. We have our weekly meetings to track our evolution on those goals, and there are common to-do lists for the team projects.

At the personal level, we have regular 1:1 with our manager to discuss our evolution (about the missions and our personal well-being inside the company).

Also, I have my to-do list with everything written on it, from the smaller task to the biggest projects. It allows me to be sure that nothing is forgotten. 🙂

How do you recharge or take a break?

Exchanging with people. 😍

Go outside during lunch break is the best way to disconnect. And take a coffee, take care of the plants or lie down for a few minutes are also great breaks during working days.

What do you like to do in your free time?

Like many Stormies, travel and discover new things are my favorite things. 🤗 It was more difficult with the pandemic, but now that it's possible, I'll start again to move a lot.

But most of all, spending time with my friends, family, colleagues, and meeting new people. 🙂

Advice for someone who is looking to switch to a remote job?

Think about it thoroughly, do not focus only on the great benefits that it can bring you, but be aware of the things that will evolve with the remote working: organization, communication, events…

If you're already employed, you may want to discuss this with your company to try for a few weeks to see if that remote work matches your expectations. 😉

What qualities would you recommend are a must-have for a person seeking a remote job?

Be organized and proactive. 😉

You have to create your daily routine and stick to it like you would have done at the office. Having a workspace and daily rituals is the best way to separate your personal and professional life and to be entirely focused during the day. No one will be there to check on you, so you must be ready to be rigorous on that front.

And even if you exchange a lot with your teammates, you sometimes have to find solutions independently. So it's essential to move always forward without waiting to be given something else to do.

Also, I would advise you to pay attention to the company's culture to ensure it's a fit. 🤗

What, according to you, are the pros and cons of remote work?

There are a lot of pros!

  • You have an outstanding work/life balance since you can organize yourself as you want.
  • You can work from anywhere. Traveling is so easy. 🙂
  • You have a lot of different profiles in the company, coming from anywhere. It allows the company to find the best profiles and to develop a really open-minded culture.
  • You can project yourself for years with your company since moving is not a question anymore.

But there are also a few new challenges:

  • The link with your colleagues is different, and the communication too, you cannot ask your "office neighbor" anymore.
  • It requires discipline; the line between work and personal life can sometimes be blurred.

Want to work remotely like Laure? Facing issues searching for a remote job and don't know where to look? DailyRemote is a remote job board and has the latest jobs posted in various categories to help you. Finally, join like-minded people in our LinkedIn and Facebook community.