Working across time zones, languages and global supply chains gives RYAM’s UK Sales Operations Specialists team plenty to coordinate—and plenty to laugh about. Meet Noemi, Emma, Nikos, Rosangela and Alina: five colleagues whose working day involves collaborative problem-solving, an impressive number of browser tabs and very little agreement on the office temperature.
They put their heads together and answered as a team, giving us a lively glimpse of the personalities, shared humour and everyday moments that make their office their own.
- The most rewarding part of the work we do here is…
- Solving problems collaboratively & proactively.
- The feeling of closing 47 open browser tabs at 4:59 p.m. on a Friday. Pure bliss!
- One skill our London team brings to the table is…
- Our ability to multi-task across multiple time zones. We are a multi-national team, working in a multi-lingual office, managing a multi-world supply chain. Basically, if it doesn’t have “multi” in the title, we don’t do it.
- Aggressive spreadsheet management and the ability to look incredibly calm on Microsoft Teams while frantically typing to each other in the background.
- We stay motivated during busy times by…
- Mutually agreeing that “tomorrow’s problem” is a very real and valid strategy, backed up by high-voltage coffee.
- What surprised us most about working at RYAM is…
- How often we find ourselves explaining to our friends what “cellulose specialties” actually are, usually resulting in them looking blankly at us. Trying to explain to them that “cellulose” is not related to “cellulite” and that cellulose comes from trees and goes into paper; cellulite comes from somewhere else and definitely doesn’t go into paper!
- The one word that best describes our team culture is…
- “Synced.” Both our calendars and our collective craving for snacks at exactly 3:00 p.m.
- “Tab-heavy.” Between the five of us, we currently have about 400 internet tabs open, and we are too terrified to close any of them.
- “Teamwork.” Because teamwork makes the dream work, but only after a proper British brew has been made.
- Our team’s go-to Friday lunch or after-work spot is…
- “Napoli on the Road,” now firmly at the pinnacle of global pizzaiolo excellence. One might say we’ve achieved royal status—Buckingham Palace, do take note.
- Between the five of us, our hobbies and interests include…
- Between the five of us, our interests span literature, sports, various creative pursuits, cheese consumption and gallery-hopping. Essentially, a Renaissance collective with a rather impressive range of niche interests. Mark the Cat, our furry coworker, is the undisputed chairman.
- The biggest topic of debate in our office kitchen is usually…
- Office temperature: Our office has its own microclimate. It can go from Arctic tundra to tropical rainforest in the span of a single Microsoft Teams call, meaning half of us are in sweaters while the other half are looking for a fan.
- Our collective fuel of choice to get through the day is…
- Tea, coffee, chocolate, and snacks. If we run out of any of the four, the London office enters a state of national emergency.
- If our team went on a reality TV show together, we would win because…
- “Shark Tank”—the ultimate business problem-solving show!
From global supply chains and spreadsheets to the ongoing debate over the office thermostat, it’s clear that life in the London office is rarely dull. And while the team may not always agree on the temperature, they certainly seem to have mastered the art of working together—and having a laugh along the way.
A big thank you to Noemi, Emma, Nikos, Rosangela and Alina for sharing a little of their world with us. And, of course, to Mark the Cat, whose position as chairman appears to be perfectly secure.
