Tatari (again) Named One of Inc. Magazine’s Best Workplaces for 2021

Tatari has been named one of Inc. Magazine’s Best Workplaces for 2021 out of 3,000+ submissions. We are honored to be recognized for our familial culture, employee engagement, and benefits offerings. In order to be considered for this award, Tatari employees took part in a survey conducted by Quantum Workplace that focused on a variety of topics, some of which were: trust, management effectiveness, perks, and confidence in the future.

How many times have you said, or thought to yourself, “How long has it been since we started working from home (“WFH”)?!” The answer is...fourteen months. And just like last time, it’s surreal to be notified of this tremendous award and having to celebrate virtually, just as we have with so many things. But unlike last time when no one was quite sure how everything will evolve, we now have something to look forward to. 

Last year was a whirlwind at Tatari. We ended 2020 with 119 Tatarians—unintentionally doubling YoY—and with the intent to do it again in 2021. Needless to say, that’s a lot of Tatarians to get to know and we’ve completely outgrown all of our existing offices! A special mention to Matt Patch, Tatari’s 100th employee; if you don’t know the how-he-ended-up-at-Tatari story, you should ask him. Let’s just say he did quite a few interview assignments, and we can’t be happier that he’s finally part of the Tatari family.

I truly believe that Tatarians create and maintain our culture, and this award belongs to all of us. We invest in our employees, celebrate each other’s individuality, and find common ground to be a great team. And this award reflects all the work we have put in to keep the Tatari culture alive and well despite half the company having never met in-person. Aside from the active slack channels varying in interests and hobbies, encouraging the usage of Donut, establishing a DE&I committee, and adjusting the onboarding process to ensure that new Tatarians are integrated into the company, we’ve also revamped team building schedules so we can all plan around them, limit video burnout, and add new events and activities.

One of my favorite events is “Golden Hour” proposed by Bryce (Director, PM). Every Thursday, we set aside 15 minutes for Tatarians to discuss any topic, and the only rule is that it can’t be work-related. So many new Tatarians have embraced and volunteered for Golden Hour, giving us the opportunity to learn about each other in ways that we used to while grabbing coffee/lunch, or having small talks in the hallway. Some highlights:

• Sean, (Sr. Backend Engineer) and a jazz bassist, gave us a talk on different jazz rhythms including a small concert;

• Elizabeth (PM) gave us a lesson on fancy napkin folding for your future dinner parties;

• Sara (CSM) talked about Women’s History Month;

• Sean (Sr Media Buyer) and Josh (CS Analyst) provided a history of hot sauces, and a demonstration of them tasting some killer ones (FYI, dairy sort of helps to “fight the pain”);

• Meghan (CS Associate) gave us the inside tips on how to be a Hollywood extra, including some of her cameos;

• Tariq (Media Ops), led a session on stretching at your desk; and

• Our interns did an amazing episode of “Tatari Cribs” led by Cindy (intern turned full-time Data Analyst). 

We’ve also started T-Pods this year (proposed by Scott, VPE). There are 29 T-Pods mixing “old” and “new” Tatarians with weekly challenges to fill their Bingo cards. So far, we’ve learned:

• Who has travelled to the most countries = 45 by Philip (CEO);

• New-to-Tatari pro tips, a few good ones worth mentioning are: (1) definitely say yes to the monitor we offer to buy our employees; (2) don’t be afraid to ask stupid questions; (3) watch all Tatari Talks!; (4) talk to people outside of your team; and (5) take good notes!

• Debatable topics, including: (1) ideal texture of chocolate chip cookies; (2) which actor played the best Joker; (3) do pineapple slices belong on a pizza; (4) Hulu vs Netflix; (5) which house pest scares you more, spiders or centipede; and (6) cereal or milk first. Random, I know, but sometimes random conversations are the best.

• No learnings here, but one of the challenges was just to get everyone away from the desk and take a walk outside. 

And of course, we can’t celebrate this award without acknowledging the perseverance and resilience that all Tatarians have shown throughout these challenging times. I know it hasn’t been easy, but I’m hopeful for what lies ahead so let’s keep our spirits up. I can’t wait for all of us to gather safely in-person, embrace each other with hugs instead of elbow-bumps, and the simple pleasure of having a meal together. So thank you Tatarians, here’s to us!