"After graduating from university I joined Deloitte where I worked for 3 years whilst getting my Accounting designation back home in Vancouver. Then, in 2019, I moved to London and have been at Goodlord ever since," says Saralynn Zhou, Finance Manager at Goodlord.
A similar tale for many Goodlordians, the finance team now represents four nationalities with employees who've moved to England from all over the world. Throughout Saralynn's time at Goodlord, she's seen how the company's grown its employee base quickly, in response to growing demand in the industry for its online lettings services.
"I've been here for two years now, when I first joined there were only 70 people. Now, there are around 250, so I have had to get better at learning names!" she says. "We've moved from having a space in WeWork, to having our own office over 3 floors."
All Goodlordians are encouraged to take an active role in their own success, and this can often result in the advancement of the company's trajectory. As Saralynn explains: "I've not only watched the company mature, I've played a role in it." This relates to one of Goodlord's values - to stand up and deliver - encouraging us to always push ourselves and take accountability for our own success. Another of our values is to "bring our whole selves to work" - a value that Saralynn lives on a daily basis.
"This value resonates with me because it shows that Goodlord cares about its employees on a personal level," she says. "It encourages me to be open and honest at work."
When asked about what she enjoys most in her work, her team immediately springs to mind. "My team, how we work and have fun together is what excites me most about work. In so many ways we are different, but it just seems to click. I think that is common at Goodlord as everyone really does live our values."
For anyone interested in joining the Finance team, Saralynn has some tips to share: "If you research our values you'll see that one is "We are an open book". Try to use this in your interview. Everybody makes mistakes, it's how you learn from that that helps you grow."
And Goodlord in one word for Saralynn?
"Energy! We work hard and are constantly moving at pace so you need energy to keep up! But when everyone is in the office - as will hopefully soon be the case again - there is just an energy that puts a smile on your face."
Want to join our Finance team? Check out our current vacancies.