Early adopters of remote working will prevail, says Founder of creative hub Von Peach

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the value of remote working has taken on a completely new meaning. Previously only seen as a work benefit or secondary option to working from the office, today, it has become a crucial link for business continuity while maintaining safe work practices.

But for some, remote working has long been a way of life. Emma Maria Calleja, Founder of creative hub Von Peach, says she hasn’t had a 9-to-5 job in almost a decade and has been working from anywhere she pleases for the same amount of time.

“A lot of my short-sighted employers criticised me for it – back in 2016, a former manager at a consulting company went as far as saying that working remotely posed a risk to my well-being. He was promoted weeks after and I knew then this was not a company I could continue working for,” she wrote in a post on social media.

Based in Switzerland, Ms Calleja explains that, along with her business partner, she built a concept and a creative hub around freedom.

“Today, as Von Peach, we hire the talent we want from anywhere in the world and the expectation we have as a company is that the competences of our people exceed ours. This is our culture – Value before Venue.”

She added that traditional companies are only just starting to buy into the basics of remote working, “which oftentimes dwells on the borders of a mentality that is built on maximum control” but believes that the early adopters of remote working “will prevail with the perks of such digitalisation. One of them being the instant access to untapped talent, globally.”