We still have so much to achieve, but what an honor!
It is such a fantastic accolade to have received the #1 Best Place to Work UK in 2016 award by Glassdoor. I’ve worked at Expedia for just nine months, and I can honestly say that this is the best place I’ve ever worked. The fact that this award is voted on by our own employees is a testament that we are doing something right. That being said, we are on a continuous journey and still have so much more to learn and achieve next year and beyond.
Inclusion and diversity
Something that is really important to us at Expedia and that we really stress in our recruitment process is inclusion and cultural diversity. An awful lot of companies are talking about diversity at the moment, but we’ve flipped that focus. Since “diversity” is about differences, we changed the conversation to be about “inclusion”. We are one team, one culture and we mirror this when recruiting. We recently interviewed a hearing-impaired Senior Software Engineer and worked closely with the Royal Society for the Deaf to ensure that the recruitment process was catered to his needs, whilst still providing a thorough assessment.
"Test and learn" culture
Working for a travel company is a really rewarding experience. I think a lot of the fun comes from the fact that we aren’t only under pressure from our competitors but so much more than that; changes in legislation, the economy and even the British weather! But this is what we thrive on. We encourage an innovative “test and learn” culture here, regardless of whether you’re a techie working on a dark release to test a new feature or a Product Manager who is testing a new hypothesis.
Travel perks
We make it no secret that we have a work hard, play hard culture where you’re encouraged to go and try new ideas. If it doesn’t work – no problem. Let’s fail, but fail fast. Working for a travel company, of course, means we get all the perks too; a travel allowance for you to go and see the world, a travel reimbursement program and discounted hotels (sometimes at 50% of the price!). We also offer a global rotation program to gain expertise in various regions and countries.
Social events matter, too!
I’d say that the fun at Expedia very much derives from the people we work with; whether we are having a few beers on our roof terrace or at an offsite with the Hotels.com team in Portugal, we are “one team”. We often find that these social events are great for boosting morale and act as a platform for some of our most innovative ideas.
This award is a fantastic platform for what we have planned for 2016. We recently announced that we are launching a new rail product, which is going to open massive opportunities internally and externally. Lastly, one thing I’ve noticed having recruited over 100 people in the last nine months, is that this isn’t a “yes or no” interview process. We want you to interview us.
I’ve found that the people who ask the most questions in the interview process are typically the best hires and go on to achieve great things. Ask yourself, “Why should I work here? What makes Expedia different to your competitors?”
We think you’ll like the answers.
