Life at SADA – A Sneak Peek

SADA Says | Cloud Computing Blog

By SADA Says | Cloud Computing Blog

You have just come back from a much deserved vacation and notice a lot of new changes. You go to the kitchen to grab some water and see a shiny new drink machine instead of the old water dispenser that was there. You’re surprised, but you like it! At lunch time, you go to stand in line for the delicious family style catering you’re used to, but now see people walking past with their own equally delicious personalized, pre-packaged meals. You even heard that people brought in their dogs and a chinchilla to the office. Did we finally get a “Bring Your Pet to Work Day”? Things sure seem to have changed around here! It is still the SADA you know and love, except for this year, we took things up a notch.

Themed Happy Hours are a big hit!

Life at SADA - GoT Cosplay

First, we started with a slight change to our annual well-known and beloved May the 4th Be With You party. We decided to dive headfirst into the coveted Game of Thrones land, where we gathered the Seven Kingdoms of SADA together to drink some “dragon blood” and feast on some “direwolf bread” in celebration of our Best Place to Work campaign. Our very own White Walker kicked off our festivities with a personal greeting to SADA! The People Ops team dressed up in full Westeros attire, complete with a dragon perched on our shoulders. Fans and non-fans alike got to participate in a raffle for a fun treat and take photos with Jon Snow himself, sitting on the Iron Throne. We even sent Game of Thrones themed care packages to our SADAians far and wide to spread the cheer. While Star Wars will always have a place in our hearts, we were glad to join in and end the Game of Thrones saga with a bang.

Health & Wellness is at our core

Life at SADA - Collage of Events

One of our major initiatives we launched this year was our Health and Wellness Initiative. We challenged SADAians to live happier and healthier lives. SADA has always been a proponent of health and wellness—just look at our kitchen stocked full of healthy snack options. Our long-standing unlimited PTO policy also allows employees the flexibility to take the time they need when life calls for it. We have even gone as far as inviting massage therapists for our SADAians on Employee Appreciation Day. As part of our health and wellness initiative, we introduced a few exciting changes. First, we revealed our newest health perk: ClassPass! SADAians can now tailor their workout routine, regardless of where they live. Whether it is a boxing or meditation class, the fitness and wellness possibilities are endless! Can this get any better?! Second, for the first time ever, we invited a health-conscious chef, Nina Zippay, to give everyone a more hands-on wellness experience. Nina  stopped by our headquarters (remote employees logged in) for a cooking demo, where we learned how to make healthy, budget-friendly meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! Third, we had a yoga instructor stop by and go through some office friendly yoga stretches. Fourth, we partnered with Charity Miles so that SADAians were able to #dotherightthing with every mile they walked, ran, or biked. We finished with a whopping 2,016 miles at the end of our 21-Day Fitness Challenge, equivalent to $2,016 donated! While we have always participated in charity walks, this year, we stepped up our game (literally and figuratively)! We combined our usual Children’s Hospital of LA Walk with a new charity, the AIDS/Lifecycle event, where we volunteered and helped in IT support and registration. How fitting!  

Amenities and beyond…

Life at SADA - Team with Puppies

This summer, we decided to ditch our traditional, family style catering for a tech-driven alternative: EAT Club! SADAians can now enjoy a convenient and healthy lunch solution without the long lines! Meals are not only high quality, they also cover a diverse range of food options suitable for all of our dietary needs. In addition, while we have always provided SADAians with a variety of thirst-quenching beverages, we decided to introduce the Bevi machine, an eco-friendly smart water cooler that dispenses sparkling or still flavored water. Now, SADAians can enjoy delicious high quality beverages and minimize SADA’s carbon footprint. 

Among the many perks we have here at SADA, we decided to give SADAians a furry surprise this year by participating in National Bring Your Pet to Work Day! Our four-legged family members got to join us both here at HQ and online. It was quite a day! Life at SADA can’t get any better than this…but knowing us, we’ll keep trying!

Shoutouts for Cash!

Our final initiative transformed how SADAians express appreciation and acknowledge a job well done on our employee recognition program, Reflektive. While many SADAians were already proactively giving shoutouts to their colleagues, SADAians can now send points along with their feedback. These points will accumulate into real cash that they can use to redeem gift cards or donate to a charity of their choice! Now, we can formally recognize colleagues for their work anniversaries, life events, birthdays, or even just the everyday greatness that everyone here exhibits!

Life at SADA is always evolving with our growing team’s feedback and preferences. Whether it’s the weekly tea carts, a fully stocked kitchen, happy hours, out-of-this-world holiday parties, or charity campaigns, there is never a dull day at SADA. This year has been a whirlwind of change and improvements that I never could have foreseen! Just when I thought the SADA experience couldn’t be any better, the team managed to knock it out of the ballpark and then some. I’m excited to see SADA continue to change, evolve, and establish bigger and better people initiatives. What else do we have in the works? Join the team to learn more and be part of the evolution.

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