HR during the war: How FAVBET manages to unite and support the team

The full-scale invasion was the biggest challenge for Ukrainian business in 30 years of independence. Director of HR Department FAVBET told how one of the largest iGaming companies in Ukraine managed to overcome the crisis and return to full-time work, not only preserving the majority of jobs, but also ensuring the growth of the team.

First of all, the safety of employees and support of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

Due to the Russian invasion, a significant portion of our employees left the country or moved to other regions. During the Covid quarantines, the company managed to establish systems and procedures for remote work, so they adapted to remote work quite quickly. Even now, when many workers have returned to Kyiv, we maintain a hybrid format, because the war in Ukraine continues and we need to respond to all enemy attacks.

At the beginning of the war, we acted on the principle of “safety first, work second.” This way, employees would not have to worry about losing their jobs due to being unable to work due to relocation, needing to care for loved ones, or volunteering.

In FAVBET there are also those who defend the country in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. We are proud of their choice, so we save jobs and wages. Together with the Favbet Foundation, we support the Ukrainian army with vehicles, drones and high-tech equipment. During the war, with the assistance of the company and the fund, the Ukrainian military has already received 235 vehicles, 53 of them are new Peugeout Landtrek SUVs, which FAVBET acquired to staff the attack companies of the “Drone Army”.

Communication as the basis of corporate culture

When the geography of a company’s employees covers not only several Ukrainian regions, but a dozen countries around the world, it is important for the HR department to create conditions in which everyone feels like a team. You can use various workframes and methodologies to synchronize, but our niche is incredibly volatile, so unplanned situations arise regularly.

To cope with this, we significantly strengthened internal communications in the company: we began to “communicate” more with employees through new mailings, involve them in surveys, and also conduct online events so that as many people as possible could get together. We have also restructured the format of team building: now employees can gather in local teams and, within the allocated budget, conduct activities in any format, because we do not hold mass events during war.

Benefits for employees

The war brought us even closer together as a team. Almost each of us faced problems with our own safety, worried about our family and friends, helped the army and volunteers, and volunteered ourselves. Of course, this has brought us closer; we try to help each other and support each other in any situation.

This approach is also reflected in the company’s attitude towards employees. Today, our employees are provided with insurance, receive tuition reimbursement, and can attend leading educational events and conferences in their specialty. HR department specialists, whom we call “people partners,” help employees resolve any administrative and organizational issues. Their task is to provide the most comfortable working conditions.

This approach produces results. Recently FAVBET received an award as a company with the best corporate culture during the HR Wisdom Summit – an annual conference of leaders of the HR community in Ukraine.

Despite the crisis, the dedication of employees and correctly set priorities allowed FAVBET not only work at the same level, but also grow. Today, the company’s doors are always open to people who share our values ​​and are ready to work for the benefit of Ukraine both in the workplace and beyond.