Felix Higgs was a seasoned world traveler before he came to Knak, having spent a decent portion of his professional career in organizations overseas. Knak has long been a remote-friendly bunch of people, so once he joined the team, Felix saw no reason to put his passport away.
He’s been traveling around Europe for the last two months, visiting some amazing places while still killing it as our Customer Success Manager. I caught up with him recently to see how it’s going.
Tell me about your trip! Has this been in the works for a while?
My girlfriend and I have been in Europe for the last two months. She is Czech so we try to come once a year to visit her family. I live in Whistler (BC), which generally means mostly rain right now, so it’s a good time to get out of town!
Where have you been? What’s been your favorite place so far?
So far we’ve been in Italy and on the island of Crete. In Italy, we spent most of our time in the Dolomites. They are such striking mountains and one of my favourite places. We also visited Belluno, Jesolo, and Venice, which are all in northern Italy.
We’ve been on Crete for the last five weeks, and it has been my favourite part of the trip by far. It exceeds all expectations: great food, beautiful beaches & mountains, friendly people and still lots of places that feel wild & mainly free of tourists. In both Crete and Italy, our main activities have been hiking, rock climbing, and via ferratas.
Have you done anything like this at other companies?
Yes, I’ve worked remotely for several companies, so I have some experience doing this kind of thing.
Was it difficult to figure out the logistics of traveling/working for Knak?
Overall I would say no, but the trip involved a bit more planning than a regular holiday. We’ve mainly stayed in Airbnbs, and in each case I made sure to confirm that the place had fast WiFi and a quiet working space before booking. We also made a point of staying in one place for longer periods of time and only traveling on weekends to ensure no disruption to working hours. Knak was really supportive of this as well which was great.
What does a typical day look like for you compared to a typical day “in the office”?
Due to the time difference with North America, I generally spend the morning out and about either at the beach or rock climbing. Then I start work in the afternoon and work into the evening. Apart from that, it’s meetings, calls, and generally work as usual.
How has the overall experience been? Any key learnings you’d share?
Overall it’s been great and something I would recommend to anyone who likes to travel. I think the key is to plan ahead and make sure you always have everything you need to do your job when you need it.
At Knak, just under 50% of our team members work remotely – some of them all of the time. We’re always looking for the next superstar to join us, so take a look at our job openings, and come join the team that’s changing the way email marketing gets done!
