Online betting exchange Smarkets, where users can buy and sell bets on sport and politics, employs 110 employees globally, with 81 based in London.
The nature of the business lies in technology, with an ethos to 'put right what is wrong' in the betting industry by employing staff who want their work to make a difference.
Smarkets HR administrator Ellie Perham says the organisation has always believed in giving employees freedom within their work by having flexible start and finish times.
“We are also in the process of adopting a working-from-home hybrid model. This will allow employees to enjoy the benefits of working from home without losing the human interaction an office allows for. We appreciate everyone has their preferred work space and personal commitments to honour, which is why there will be the option to work from the comfort of home or the office space, where our strong social culture can continue to thrive,” she says.
In light of the pandemic, Smarkets has also granted employees an additional five days' holiday to use in 2021 to help ease any stress, to encourage employees to enjoy their time off when there are fewer restrictions, and to fully switch off to avoid burnout.
“The key ideas behind these initiatives is to promote a healthy work-life balance and ensure that our employees are healthy and happy. The flexibility allows for positive and energised employees, who will feed into creating an upbeat and productive work space,” Perham continues.
Smarkets' employees have been receptive to flexible working, stating that it gives them the freedom to deliver productive work at a time that suits them. The organisation has offices in the UK, US and Europe, so this means staff can connect at a time that is suitable for all locations regardless of time-zone differences.
“Future plans will also include a remote-working policy,” says Perham. “We are still working on the details of this, but the idea is that there will be a few days each year where employees can not only work from home, but can work from anywhere in the world.”
