1. Hey, can you please introduce yourself?
Hi, this is Lola Yang and Channing Zhang from GeeTest International Marketing Department. GeeTest is a bot management and CAPTCHA service vendor based in Wuhan, Hubei, China.
Lola Yang:
Hey, I’m Lola Yang and currently working for GeeTest international marketing developing and maintaining. I joined GeeTest around one and a half years ago. I really like the life in GeeTest. Each team member has unique skills and endless passions that enable them to keep everything on track when brought together towards a common goal. I am proud of the harmonious working relationship here.
Channing Zhang:
Hey, this is Channing Zhang, currently holding the International Director of Business Developer position in GeeTest. I joined GeeTest in 2017. At that time, GeeTest’s China domestic market share of CAPTCHA solutions exceeded 60%. Immediately after that, in 2018, for better development, executives began to set their eyes on the overseas market with more business opportunities, striving to be recognized worldwide. I am very fortunate to be a member of the international department, accompanying the company to achieve strategic and product breakthroughs and grow together continuously.
2. What motivated you to choose remote working?
COVID-19 forced us to work remotely at the beginning of 2020. As we mentioned before, GeeTest is a technology-based company from Wuhan, China. At that time, we were in the center of the pandemic, Wuhan. We didn’t realize how severe and terrible the outbreak would be in the next several months until China’s Spring Festival ended. Consequently, the government informed us that we were not allowed to go back to the office.
The good thing is that since we are a technology company, most of our data is stored in the cloud. So as long as computers and internet access are available, our basic work can still go on as usual. Although some of us didn’t take office devices home in advance, our company sent some office supplies, laptops, as well as some epidemic prevention materials to us when logistics returned to normal.
3. What were your initial months like? Did it live up to your expectations?
Lola Yang:
During the lockdown, I remember that we had to work at home and manage all office work from a distance. Since I work for an international market, most of our work is with clients from other countries/regions and can be processed online. Internally, thanks to the instant messaging office system we have been using for a long time, I didn’t feel uncomfortable at all. As long as I could access the system, I was still available, and all my teammates could reach out to any colleague in real-time without any problem.
The only disadvantage is that it’s kind of distracting working at home, unlike working in the office. The way I overcame this challenge is to have an independent working space, it made me more focused.
Channing Zhang:
If you ask me, this exceeds all our expectations. My current job is perfect for WFH, so I wasn’t initially resistant to this way of working but was somewhat concerned about the efficiency of communication in the workplace. The truth is, I worry too much. Following GeeTest’s spirit of “innovate and embrace change,” our dynamic team, with an average age of 27, seems to have quickly adapted to the new remote work style and achieved more efficient collaboration through a quality business management system and intelligent remote work software.
4. How do you make remote hires?
Channing Zhang:
Since we are a CAPTCHA and bot management company based in China but try to expand our influence internationally, we require local employees in different places. Some of our colleagues come from other countries like the US, Turkey, and Russia. They’re working remotely, and the group is expanding as the business increases. Currently, we’re looking for more marketing talents to join us.
We’re good at recruiting remote workers thanks to the wonderful management system. Typically, we schedule a meeting online after the resume satisfies our recruiting requirement. The whole process proceeds online with different collaborative tools.
5. What have been the best, good and worst aspects of remote working for you?
Lola Yang:
I think the advantages are that I can no longer spend too much time commuting and feel more comfortable in terms of personal living needs. The disadvantage is illustrated above;)
Channing Zhang:
I would say there are many benefits to working remotely. Besides what Lola Yang said, the most significant benefit is spending more time with my kid. Accompanying and love are the key ingredients in raising kids, and watching my son grow up day by day is the most beautiful and unforgettable experience for me. Whenever I feel depressed, his smile makes my heart melt, and my sun rises again.
6. What tools do you swear by while working remotely?
Lola Yang:
I will recommend Feishu and Teamviewer. Both of them are superb remote assistance software. Feisu is a collaborative software that combines communication and collaboration, developed by ByteDance, and it is used for internal communication. Teamviewer is remote desk software and is helpful to search for files in my office computers when working remotely.
Besides, Zoom and GoogleMeet help us a lot when it comes to internal daily standup meetings and business meetings.
7. Your most exciting/ hilarious experience since you started working remotely.
Channing Zhang:
To my mind, the most excitement is about achieving excellent cooperation with clients, helping them deal with bot problems, and saving their business against online fraud activities. I would say it gives me a sense of accomplishment.
We provided a stable advanced CAPTCHA solution during the remote working period when Imperva, a well-known local company in the U.S., held a marketing campaign with high concurrent traffic online. I still have a vivid recollection of that day. It was an afternoon in the U.S. while it was a silent midnight in China. We kept in touch through Slack and GoogleMeet in real-time to ensure everything went well from beginning to end. Finally, we made it with the capacity expanded and malicious traffic defended during this event.
8. What is your golden advice to a new remote worker?
Lola Yang:
If it is inevitable to work remotely, I guess we will have no choice but to make efforts to love it. As long as we can fulfil the working purposes through the proper office software, working remotely is definitely acceptable and can even be fantastic!
Channing Zhang:
Regular group meetings: Daily standup meetings are required to help keep everyone on track.
Down your goals into actionable tasks: To avoid losing the goal when working remotely, it’s great to break goals into multiple tasks and break large tasks down into smaller, more manageable pieces. Then make a to-do list of these pieces and rank them in order of importance.
Work with efficient collaboration tools: Communication and collaborative tools such as GoogleMeet, Whatsapp, Skype, Wechat, and Feishu come in handy when working remotely.
9. How do you see your career shaping up and your goals?
Lola Yang:
My career has been growing steadily. My working performance has been growing at a healthier pace. I enjoy my current position and working content. I have reached most of my sales goals and goals for my own working capability. There are aspects to be improved. But I will make effort.
10. How do you expect remote working to evolve in the future?
Channing Zhang:
It’s undeniable that remote work has become a new normal these days. The number of remote employees has skyrocketed during the pandemic. In the post-COVID world, I firmly believe the number would increase steadily. Working in the future will no longer be limited by geography and time zones, with more and more talent active in the international markets.
Also, companies will invest more in remote tools, systems, and training courses to make every employee adapt to this new normal.
11. Where can we follow you on?
Lola Yang’s Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lola-yang-01664a90/
Channing Zhang’s Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/channing-zhang-572226154/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/geetestofficial
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/geetest1024/
Website: https://www.geetest.com/en/