Pros
I had reservations when I took this role, and so did my partner. Having seen me do a scale-up before, they knew what it could demand — and this time we had an 18-month-old. Two years in, I have been pleasantly surprised. It is the best career decision I have ever made. 1. Culture — high collaboration, health and family first, zero tolerance for mediocrity hx is built around a simple phrase: health and family first, hx third. The CEO says it directly: "I will never ask you to put your health or family before hx — but it is third." He has two young children himself and sees the culture of this company as a direct reflection on him. He talks about culture eating strategy for breakfast, and you feel it in every decision that gets made. This matters to me because I have worked at places where I came close to burnout and could not imagine doing the job as a mother — and I have worked at places where people simply did not care and low performance was quietly accepted. Neither works. I want to be a great mum, a great athlete, be surrounded by exceptional people, and have an exceptional career. Basically, I want it all. At hx, I feel like I have that. It does mean yoga, the gym and the pub come fourth. I have found a way: I squeeze in sessions when I fly to the US with our President, do hyrox with my boss, and go to the pub every Thursday with the team. I put my child to bed every night — except pub Thursdays. When I am off, I am off, and nobody questions it. I have never met so many excellent, kind, intelligent people in one place. I am genuinely honoured to be surrounded by them. People here want to be great, achieve great things, and work together to do it. I have made friends for life. That is not something you can put in a job spec, but it is real. 2. Career-defining — development, network and transformation The exposure here is unlike anywhere I have worked before. I have weekly coaching sessions and own my own development plan — it is not something done to you, it is something you drive. I meet our investors monthly, and so does my team. We sell to C-suite only, which means every conversation is at the level that actually matters. That kind of access shapes you fast. The expectations are high. If you do not want to be great, this is not the right place. If you do, you will grow faster than you thought possible. Career-transforming. Company-transforming. Industry-transforming. All three, every day.
Cons
When I am on, I am on. Fifteen-minute meetings, Teams pinging all day, full intensity — no time to message friends about the latest TV series. My partner has learned not to expect a response between 9 and 5 unless it is urgent. To get the benefit of health, family and hx in that order, you have to advocate for your own boundaries. The company supports it, but you have to own it — put it in your calendar and everyone will respect it.
