A company’s culture is not just a set of values, but the backbone that drives every touchpoint of your business.
Your ways of working can make or break innovation, hamper or nurture employee growth, and have a direct effect on overall customer satisfaction.
At Teraflow, we pay huge amounts of attention on developing and optimising our culture and ways of working. We’ve found it to be the best way to create a thriving environment that prioritises a dynamic and growth, collaboration, and innovation.
Here are three key pillars that set us apart and make Teraflow a truly unique place to work.
1. Doubling Your Value: Our Commitment to Employee Growth
At Teraflow, we have an unwavering commitment to our employees: to double their value within two years. It’s a promise that isn’t just another slice of textbook rhetoric – it’s a concrete part of our company’s ethos.
“Our internal promise to our staff is that we will double their value in two years,” says our CEO, Michael Cowen. “The only way we can achieve this is by prioritising our staff. Many claim to do this, but how do we make it a reality?”
The answer lies in the way that we approach people:
- Recruiting A-Players: We actively seek out individuals who are not just with the skills, but also the drive to solve complex challenges and push themselves to grow. By surrounding A-Players with one another, we’re able to foster a healthy dynamic of development between our teams.
- SuperSquads Structure: We have moved away from traditional team setups to form ‘SuperSquads,’ where each squad tackles complex problems. This structure pushes individuals beyond their comfort zones, fostering a growth mindset that reveals their true potential.
- Mentorship over Management: Instead of conventional management, we embrace mentorship. Michael emphasises, “To grow, one must experience failure and learn from it.” This culture of mutual learning allows employees to develop their unique strengths.
This promise of doubling value isn’t just a benefit for employees – it also translates into ongoing value for our customers, where our teams are better equipped to deliver.
2. Strategic Recruitment of A-Players
Recruitment at Teraflow isn’t just about filling roles; it’s a strategic process that we use to build and sustain our company culture. We have a laser-focus on hiring A-Players: those who excel both technically and culturally.
“Every company’s culture is different. We must know what environment we thrive in. This is why recruitment is a strategic process for us,” Michael explains.
Our recruitment process is centred around the Teragrader framework, a unique approach that emphasises:
- Technical Skills: We work with individuals who can tackle the complex technical problems we solve for our clients. This is the baseline for every candidate.
- Cultural Alignment: Equally important is ensuring that new hires align with our culture and contribute positively to it. Our process is deliberate and transparent, ensuring that every new team member will thrive and help us maintain a healthy, innovative culture.
A distinctive feature of our recruitment process is the way we conduct reference checks.
As Michael puts it, “We ask you to set up your reference checks for us.” This not only validates technical prowess but also ensures cultural fit, making sure that the A-Players we hire are aligned with our vision and mission.
3. Super Squads: The Heartbeat of Teraflow
The concept of ‘SuperSquads’ is at the core of how we operate at Teraflow.
These are not just teams but high-performing units that deliver on complex, challenging projects with precision and innovation.
“At Teraflow, we build SuperSquads that are made up of A players,” says Michael. You can define each SuperSquad by four critical components:
- Singular Problem Focus: Each squad is tasked with solving a clearly defined problem, ensuring that all members are aligned and laser-focused on the outcome.
- Individual Responsibility: Our ‘Teracap’ approach ensures that every squad member knows their specific responsibilities, fostering accountability and clarity.
- Trust and Mentorship: We build trust within squads by emphasising humility, grit, and inspirational leadership over traditional management. “These values allow us to replace management with mentorship,” Michael notes.
- Innovation from the Bottom: Innovation is driven by the squads themselves, with leadership setting the direction but innovation flowing from the ground up.
This approach not only drives project success but also creates a dynamic, agile business model where teams can pivot and innovate rapidly.
Join Us at Teraflow
Teraflow is more than just a place to work – it’s where you come to grow, innovate, and contribute to something bigger.
If you are a Data, ML, or Software Engineer who thrives on complex challenges, values mentorship over management, and wants to double your value in two years, Teraflow is the place for you.
Join us and be part of a culture that’s designed to see you succeed.
