This coming Saturday, March 13, 2021, it will be exactly one year since the Karlsruhe-based game publisher, Gameforge — when faced with the uncertainty and dangerous implications of the impending global pandemic — put the safety of their employees first and implemented a work-from-home structure for its entire workforce.
At the time, Gameforge was one of the first in Germany to consistently focus on protecting its workforce — and in retrospect, “Project Homeforge” has been a complete success. Since the start of the project, there have been no cases of COVID-19 among Gameforge employees. In light of this achievement and in an effort to follow through with measured pandemic safety protocols, the company management refrained from reintroducing compulsory attendance even when the numbers had dropped again in the summer of 2020 and other businesses were beginning to return to the office.
Through constructive cooperation, everyone has learned that it is possible to work remotely in many areas without any problems. Many employees even find this type of work significantly more productive. Gameforge has supported this shift to remote working wherever possible: delivering equipment to employee’s homes, introducing new collaboration tools, and with new training courses for managers to support leadership endeavors remotely.
The general increase in satisfaction has led Gameforge to adopt new standard employment contracts that explicitly allow employees to choose where they work from, on a mutually voluntary basis. Gameforge thus enshrines the right to work from their own home office for anyone who wants it, but still offers the complete comfort of Gameforge headquarters, and all the benefits, including free meals, to anyone who prefers to come into the office.
Tom Burck, Chief Officer Customers & HR, says: “We have learned more this year than in five years before — Gameforge is, as of today, a better company than before the pandemic started. This is primarily due to the willingness and enthusiasm with which everyone, employees and managers alike, worked to make the best of the crisis.”
Founded in 2002, Gameforge is a leading publisher and operator of highly acclaimed Massively
Multiplayer Online (MMO) and browser-based game titles. Gameforge builds active, enduring global communities while supporting players through the highest quality LiveOps, localized community management, and impactful delivery of fresh content.
Gameforge’s diverse portfolio of highly successful gaming brands provides engaging experiences for players from all walks of life: core MMORPG titles AION, TERA, Kingdom Under Fire 2, and Metin2, beloved anime MMOs Elsword, NosTale, and SoulWorker, along with strategy-focused browser games like OGame and Ultimate Pirates.
More information is available on gameforge.com.
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