I meet Alexandra and Eddi in the administration office. Eddi is lying in “his” corner against the wall next to Alexandra’s seat. When he sees me, it’s clear that we need to cuddle and stroke each other before we can start the interview.

Hello Alexandra, hello Eddi, how are you?

We’re doing great. We got back from our daily dog walk a few minutes ago, today with Joleen and her dog Timmy from Project Development. Eddi usually lies down and processes what he has experienced.

Before we talk more about Eddi: How long have you been here at TRICERA and what are your administrative tasks, Alexandra?

I’ve been with TRICERA for over two years now. At the beginning, I was involved in general administration and personnel support. As the workforce grew, I got more involved in administrative issues. Today, I primarily take care of preparatory bookkeeping, travel bookings and provide support for the vehicle fleet.

Is TRICERA your first employer or have you already worked in other places?

I grew up in a village 30 km from Dresden and moved here after graduating from high school to train as a paralegal. I then practiced this profession for 4.5 years.

Over time, I missed the interpersonal interaction in the law firm, which is why I decided to complete a distance learning course to become a personnel officer for a year in October 2021. My goal was to focus more directly on what I had learned and that’s how I ended up at TRICERA.

What type of office worker are you, how do you organize your everyday office life?

I’m the type of person who likes to know what’s on the agenda for the day. I like structure, I make a plan in my head in the morning of what needs to be done, which emails are due today.

As we have established, we differ in the way we work through tasks. I like to focus on one task until it’s done and don’t like to be disturbed by parallel tasks. The tasks can come on the table at the same time, but I then prioritize and follow through stringently.

This also includes having as few open tabs and emails as possible. I don’t feel good when I leave the office with 10 unread emails. You showed me your open emails and the open tabs in your browser. That wouldn’t be for me at all.

What do you like about TRICERA and your day-to-day work here?

The number one personal benefit is clearly that I can take the dog to work with me and integrate it into my everyday life. That was never a big issue and was approved straight away. I also appreciate the helpfulness and team spirit. If I have a problem and need support, I don’t have to ask for long. It’s give and take in the most positive sense.

What a perfect transition to Eddi. How long have you had the dog, how long has he been part of the team, please tell us a bit more.

We got Eddi from the breeder in May 2024 as a cute little Golden Retriever puppy at eight weeks old. He has been coming to the office since week 10 to get used to it and has been here 2-3 days a week ever since. He is now big and cute.
Since then he has also been a cuddle partner for all employees, an active listener and a fur good manager. Just like a real feel-good manager, only with fur. He also knows very well how to draw attention to himself and get as many cuddles as possible.

How do you reconcile a dog with everyday office life?

Eddi has his fixed place, his safe space, which nobody else should enter. He definitely needs a calm type of dog and kind colleagues who will spend time with him. Once a day there is a walk, as mentioned today with Timmy (long-haired collie), alternatively with other colleagues.

There are also fixed rules: Among other things, there is no begging. So he doesn’t get the idea of being pushy. The start from week 10 has made a very good contribution here.

Is the dog also your main activity after work or how do you balance out your working day?

The dog is also a hobby, I have to go to the dog trainer once a week, for example. My partner and I also have a house that needs looking after and there are always chores to be done.

So you’re a garden person?

Yes, but I like it to be low-maintenance. I don’t want to weed every two weeks, we keep it practical in our garden. Gardening is nice, but it’s also work. We grow our own produce (tomatoes, zucchinis, cucumbers, lettuce), we keep a tally of what we’ve harvested and Eddi can also eat a lot of the processed produce.

Finally: Who would you nominate for the next interview and why?

How about you, Philipp? You seem to be making a difference here too. It might be interesting for readers to find out who conducts the interviews here and what’s behind the person, what topics in marketing & PR are on your mind.