Working at Rebilly

Work is a huge part of our lives. On average, based on a 40-hour week, we spend 2,080 hours working each year. Work impacts our lives, our sense of self, and even our health.

As a company, Rebilly understands the importance of work-life balance, and also the importance of the wholeness of our colleagues. That's why we employ the following principles and ways of working:

• Teal organization: We value self-management, self-organization, and the wholeness of the individuals that make up our team. Being one's whole-self at work, and doing what inspires is important. We are also a remote company, you choose where you want to work, or live.

• Holacracy: We use a fluid organizational hierarchy, without managers, where employees have the ability to make key decisions within their own area of expertise.

• Shape Up development methodology: We use Shape Up to manage our product development process.

• Request For Comments (RFC) process: To facilitate transparent and open feature ideation, we use a docs-first approach. This means that the feature, business case, and implementation is described in one document. The review and contribution process is managed using a git workflow, where the document is open for all colleagues to comment on. If three or more colleagues think it's a good idea, it's a contender for the next development cycle.

• Docs-like-code: Transparency is a big part of everything in Rebilly. All internal and external Rebilly documentation is created using a git workflow. This means that all changes are open for all colleagues to see and comment on.

• Unlimited vacation: We want our team to be whole and happy — rest is a necessary part of life.

• Yearly company meetups: Our last one was in Portugal.

A day in the life

In this section, three Rebilly colleagues describe what a typical day looks like for them.

I usually wake up very early. This is not by choice, but by the sounds and songs of my son, who is in fact an early riser. I eat breakfast with my wife and kid and by 8:30 I drive my son to school. I usually decide the day prior if I'm going to work from home or not, either way I usually start working at 9:00.

I check my emails, followed by all the Slack messages, and usually end up checking/reviewing the pending PRs. Then, I go to my trusty list which I update every morning. There is nothing better than crossing an item out of that list (and yes is on a notebook). This process usually takes me around 30 minutes give or take, after that, I get ready to do some work.

At 13:00, I'm ready to take my lunch. If I'm working from home I will have a very nice meal with my wife, sometimes at the table, and other times watching our favorite shows on TV. This is usually followed by a nice cup of coffee, then back to work at 14:00.

Throughout my day I listen to some math rock, which usually helps me to get "in the zone". I usually allocate 30 minutes to work on my skillset by reading blogs, doing some code problems, or just experimenting with small ideas.

I finish my day at 17:00. I then go home to my family and we get ready for the next day. Once the house is calmer, I take some time for my interests, gaming, playing drums, modeling, etc. After that, I spend the rest of the evening with my wife.

Working in Rebilly has been a tremendous influence on me. I've grown in many ways, both personally and professionally. There are no walls in Rebilly, I started as a web designer with little knowledge (my main area of expertise at the time was on print) and I've filled many roles throughout my years here. I'm really happy with the work I'm doing, and I know that if I want to try something new, I'll have all the support to do so.

I've recently moved to a new country and city. The move has made me change my routine a bit. I used to get up at about 10AM each day, worked from a remote work space, employed a babysitter to look after my son during work hours, and maintained a strict keto-diet.

I now wake up muuuch earlier — at 6AM. I've found this amazing coffee house near my new home, and their croissants are absolutely incredible. So much so that my keto-diet will need to wait for a while. My son will go to big school soon, so I don't need a babysitter. I'm already imagining seeing him off on the school bus and then running for coffee!

I'm working from home again, and I'm really enjoying it. I usually work from 8AM till 5PM, but I can always change the plan a bit to handle some red tape, or visit an interesting place near my new home.

To help me stay focused, I use a special playlist that contains only 3 tracks. Of course, my usual playlists are much more varied, but these 3 tracks help me to solve difficult tasks.

After work, my family and I usually go for a walk, explore and investigate new places, or just chill on the beach.

I really enjoy working at Rebilly for the knowledge, experience, and for the team. But, at this hard time of moving home, I cannot not express how much I appreciate the freedom and support of Rebilly, it's priceless.

I start my day by making the breakfast and a coffee, fresh ground Arabica latte macchiato with extra espresso shot. That gets me ready for my work day.

I start work by catching up with Slack messages and reviewing pull requests. I check my calendar and kanban board for tasks that I planned for the day, or that have not been finished. Then I chat with my teammates. We do a quick standup on Slack and decide what tasks we are going to work on next. I also check if anybody needs help with their assignments, and try to help as needed. After that I work on getting my tasks done.

Around 14:00, I pick up my daughter from school and we usually do grocery shopping on the way back. When we come back I make lunch, it's usually something quick. I prefer Italian cuisine as it's healthy, easy, and fast to make. I appreciate being able to eat food that is freshly prepared at home.

Sometimes, when I am stuck or overwhelmed, I'll go for a short motorcycle ride or take my dog for a walk. I find that fresh air helps me to structure my thoughts on a problem that I am solving, and often — this is when a lot of great ideas are born.

I often read technical articles and discuss ideas with my colleagues. People at Rebilly are helpful, knowledgable and creative, and I find our discussions inspirational. I take English lessons twice a month to improve my communication skills. I also try to attend local meetups and conferences to learn new things, and to exchange ideas with fellow developers.

I usually finish my working day around 17:00. If I take a break during the day to take care of something urgent, I'll stay longer to make sure I complete all the tasks that I planned for the day. There is a lot of freedom at Rebilly, but the job has to be done in the first place.

Since I joined Rebilly, I feel like I have spread my wings. I've learned so many new things, both technically and personally, that help me to constantly grow to be a better programmer and person. I never get bored. I always find something interesting and get support from colleagues. All this from my own home office, equipped and organized in the way that makes me feel comfortable and productive.

We are hiring!

If you'd like to join us, see the Careers page.