Bridgehouse, Barbados and building new work places
28th October 2021

With so much discussion about flexible working, we thought we would put our money where our mouth is at Bridgehouse when company secretarial assistant Daniella Soosay asked if she could work remotely
…From Barbados.
Yes, not to do things by halves, Daniella recently spoke to Bridgehouse director Ibi Eso about the possibility of joining her mother, who has lived in Barbados for some years, for a couple of months and working remotely from the Caribbean.
But Ibi’s reply really surprised her.
“I went to Ibi to ask whether it was something we could explore. I wasn’t able to see my mum for a long time during the lockdowns and because of all the travel bans and I had noticed that Barbados had been advertising a visa to work there remotely for up to a year,” says Daniella. “I asked Ibi about going for two months and she said ‘why only two months, why not go for longer?’ So that’s exactly what I have done.”
Daniella has been based in Barbados since the end of September, just a few weeks after she first floated the idea, and expects to relocate back to the UK around the end of February. The upshot is that she starts her day early to fit with UK time zones but gets to finish her work day early too, with the beach on her doorstep to relax.
“With technology there really haven’t been any major challenges, other than adjusting to the early starts,” says Daniella. “Our clients have continued to hold virtual board meetings rather than having them in-person, so I have been joining those online as usual. Similarly, the board packs have been produced in electronic form, so my location has been irrelevant in terms of getting the job done. To be honest, I have been surprised at how seamless and straightforward it’s been.”
Since temporarily relocating to Barbados, Daniella has also noticed just how many people have taken up the special visa offer – in her case she didn’t actually need to apply for one to be eligible to work – and feels that this is a strong and tangible sign of the changing perspectives and priorities that are reshaping the workplace.
She reflects: “There are a lot of people here from the US and Canada especially, plus the UK, who have made use of the visa and are here for a year, working for their companies. Connecting via social networks is really easy here and in fact you just bump into people who have come to work remotely all the time. I would definitely recommend it.”
Director Ibi Eso adds: “We have long been advocates of flexible working and finding ways for our team to balance their life needs with their workloads. We’ve also been helping our clients to understand how best to discharge their responsibilities, hold board meetings and be a great employer, as they adjust to the changing work patterns initiated by the pandemic. Many of our team work flexibly and partially or completely remotely and this seemed like too good an opportunity for Daniella to miss. The best thing about the whole arrangement is that she’s happy and still able to support all our clients just as well as if she was still in London.”
You might also like…

Recent Entries
-
Governance Strategy and Sustainability Are the Hidden Value of Charity Overheads
February 1, 2025
-
Get ready for the Audit Reform and Corporate Governance Bill
August 2, 2024
-
Property industry looks to governance for affordable housing development
July 10, 2024
-
Navigating the Future: Essential Skills for aspiring and recently qualified Cosecs
July 3, 2024
-
What’s In a Name: Why Company Secretaries Still Need Their Profile Raised…
July 3, 2024
-
How the wheels came off Boeing’s reputation
April 30, 2024