At STRV, we work hard, long hours, but we also know a thing or two about having a good time – inside and outside the office.
We aren't just co-workers; we're friends.
We recently headed over to Max Lasergame Arena in Smíchov-Prague 5 to unwind with catered cheeseburgers, an open bar and numerous rounds of sweaty laser tag games that, for better or for worse, pitted iOS against Android in a fight to the finish. Never mind our supporting cast of stellar designers, spitfire recruiters, free-spirited account managers and perky sales reps, when it comes to developers, the (friendly) competition can be fierce – good-natured – but fierce.
“It was Android versus iOS,” says Martin “Juice” Stava, STRV's Chief Technology Officer. “And I would just like to say that we degraded their honor.”
Adds long-time iOS developer Kuba Vodak: “Did you see? It was our biggest win ever! Put that down in your notes: the iOS team beat the Android team.”
Hmmm. Cut across the room to the pack of STRV Android developers, laughing and toasting on the lobby couches. They don't see that concerned. “We'll get them in the next round,” one shouts, raising his beer glass.
Meanwhile, at the bar, designer Juan Herrera, who's just come out of the laser tag arena, is asked how his night is going: “Well,” he smiles, “there is food and drinks. That's all that matters. … Plus, I think I killed Lubo [Smid, STRV's COO] – twice.”
And Geda Juskaite, who's in charge of our Key Partner Development, sums up the night with these three words: “sweaty, dirty and thirsty.”
But for David Semerad, our fearless CEO, who just flew in from STRV's headquarters in LA, it's business as usual: “I'm working,” he says, dressed in orange spandex and black biker shorts. “I am 100 percent focused,” he adds before taking a call on his cell phone and wandering into the room with the foosball tables. (yes, foosball tables!)
The grand dame of the evening – the player with the most skill and “kills” – was of course someone no one could have predicted: the stealth “Hobbit Queen”, the company’s unofficial mascot, who had this to say about STRV's 2015 Laser Tag evening: “My objective is to hunt and kill. I don't care if you are iOS, Android, backend or frontend – or even Martin Stava.”
Needless to say, fun was had by all. Don't believe us? Just check out the pictures.
