Gumtree appealed to me as a small, rapidly growing organisation where your ideas and initiatives can make a visible difference. As my first graduate job, I relished the chance to quickly take on real responsibility and Gumtree offered that.
You are always in touch with the whole team and can easily communicate with different areas of the business, from strategy to product to design and so on. There isn’t the same sense of departmental segregation as previous places I’ve worked. This integration also means a plentiful supply of opponents for the table football matches that are such a good way of spending a 10-minute break.
One of my favorite projects I’ve worked on so far has to be the research into our UK expansion plans. It was amazing looking into and quantifying the prospective gains that we could make across the country. Getting a feel of Gumtree’s potential and where it could go made me really positive about being a part of it.
My main goal at Gumtree is to learn new skills and techniques in data gathering and analysis, to help me better understand how business metrics reflect real world success.
The fantastic facilities here are a great benefit to have. From the food in the kitchens and beers on a Friday to game consoles and Sky TV; you really couldn’t hope for more. Number one favourite has to be the table football though. A lot of fun!
The most amazing time I’ve had with Gumtree so far has been getting to attend an awards ceremony that we were part sponsoring. It was a massive black tie event with bountiful champagne, posh nosh and glamour. That and Dara O’Briain was the host. Very funny man.
The biggest surprise about working at Gumtree is the speed at which decisions can be made and implemented. Whenever you go away on holiday for a week, you come back and there’s a list of things that have changed and the site looks better or runs smoother.
The common trait has to be the traditional Gumtree quirkiness. You won’t find one person working here who doesn’t have a certain "something" that sets them apart from everybody else. Definitely not an office full of bland suits!
Magdalena
Community & Business Development Lead, Poland
A famous brand and original work. Four years ago when I started, it was very unusual to work in the Internet industry and I liked that.
Great, young, open-minded, clever and inspiring people! An opportunity to learn new things every day and lovely food in the kitchen ;-)
Gumtree venues (I was a Ministry of Fun for almost two years).
Here are a few goals: make users happy, develop my skills and creativity and have fun fun fun.
I have met great friends and interesting people and I have learnt a lot from them. With this experience I think, I could go in many directions in life.
I have the chance to work with people from different countries and cultures. That is for me a very amazing experience. I think I would not have this opportunity in Poland or even in many other companies.
It surprised me, that with such a small group of people we can do a lot and achieve so much! And, although we deal with very stressful situations every day, we still laugh and have a lot of fun! Yes, it is amazing - work can be fun!
We are very passionate about our job and love playing foosball!
Radek
Visual Designer
It was a challenging environment to work in. With so many energetic, vibrant people, full of great ideas, the website epitomized what London is for me. I felt it would be great to work for Gumtree as I would be able to change/influence people’s life for the better.
Great people to work with, people love Gumtree and there is nothing more satisfying than being able to help users to find jobs, flats, friends, etc.
I have worked on many cool projects, from some of the CS tools such as the autoscreen system to listings page redesign and home page redesign.
To use my knowledge and ideas and pick up some of that from others – to get Gumtree to the top.
Richmond is a great place to work and also free biscuits are nice.
I have had many nice memories – though I will never forget the Christmas party in Amsterdam.
How fast it has become so popular.
Passion to do better and achieve more in whatever we do.
Zsuzsa
Trust and Safety Representative
After I had my son, I was looking for a part-time position. That’s when I found Gumtree in 2007.
Gumtree is a fun place to be. My colleagues are great and the atmosphere is extraordinary as well. It doesn’t feel like a normal 9-6 job as every day brings a new challenge or an exciting new task.
To make the work environment more sociable, we introduced a Gumtree game. Colleagues had to use the site for different reason. One of the most popular games was, when we split the team into five groups and each group had to buy something from the site to surprise the other group. My group ended up getting an old hi-fi system but among the presents was a very scary painting as well. I also helped out organizing the Q1-2-3-4 parties as a Ministry of Fun fun-maker.
I would like Gumtree to be the safest online classifieds website, and I would like to gain as much knowledge as I can about the online classifieds business.
I love the Tuesday military boot camps. I also like playing table football and running along the Thames.
The Christmas party in Amsterdam in 2007. It was the best Christmas party ever.
Gumtree grew so massively in the last couple of years. I remember when I started to work here not that many people were familiar with the site and nowadays almost everyone whom I meet knows Gumtree. It surprised me a lot that in a couple of years a site could be this successful.
Gumtree people are passionate about the site. Everybody is enthusiastic about their job, about Gumtree and that’s why we can work together.
Alix
Senior Commercial Manager
Great community, a great userbase and great growth potential relying on a simple, easy-to-use product
Autonomy and the ability to change the site locally, yet impact the experience of millions of users
Launching new features like premium ads, setting-up and growing the display advertising business, and launching a subscription model for estate agents
To make Gumtree the number one website to exchange goods and services, to find a job or a place to live
The free cereal for breakfast!
Writing a concept on a piece of paper and then seeing it live, a month later, in front of millions of users
A pretty international team for a local business
Passionate
Mark
Head of Sales
It’s appetite for growth makes for both unknown potential as well as a truly exciting place to come to work
I get to keep great company with a bunch of passionate and smart people
Every project we set out is to improve the user experience – so that’s a pretty cool direction!
The environment – it promotes hard work yet in a strangely relaxed manner
Domination of the UK Classifieds and Community markets
To call it amazing is probably a stretch of the imagination but I am constantly impressed by the information and experience sharing throughout the eBay Classifieds Group - There always seems such a wealth of real ‘tried it’ experience to call upon
How truly successful the group is; yet how much opportunity still exists
Passion!
Simon
Finance and Strategy Manager
To help turn a small business into a big one
We’re growing into a big business
Building our position across regions outside our stronghold of London
Provide analysis and insight to help grow the business whether it be taking share or expanding the market
Turning around and looking at the view down the river!
Watching the office grow from 30 people to 60 people in 6 months
How different the dynamic is between being a group of 30 people and 60
Ambition
Suchi
General Manager
The amazing potential to become the go-to-place for people to trade with each other
Our underlying business is rapidly changing every day, with key categories growing at 100%. Experiencing this kind of growth is a rare treat. More so, being able to rapidly deploy product and other initiatives and watch the curve bend even further is super satisfying
In the last 6 months, we implemented the UK’s easiest “post an ad” experience, launched two new features that our community found valuable and swapped our own old search engine with a best of breed engine, paving the way for fundamental changes in search experience over the next months
To make Gumtree the go-to place for people to trade with each other
Small effective self contained team – very empowering
To be able to walk to the river and have a meeting in the sunshine
Everyone around me outside work seems to have heard about Gumtree
First, we play hard to win, and have fun. Also, we are open and honest, yet respectful. I love both those immensely!
Katie
Head of CS, Local Classifieds
The exciting business potential and the opprotunity to take on a customer-facing function
No two days are the same and the possibilities are endless. Plus, of course, the fruit smoothies in the fridge!
Recent cool projects for Gumtree UK have included long-term product visioning, devising a cross-functional Trust strategy and determining the fraud technology roadmap
For Gumtree UK – transform the trust and safety of the site and truly deliver delightful and surprising customer service. And hopefully for the rest of the Local Classified businesses, helping them do the same
The chance to make a difference; and the sheer variety of opportunities/things to try
One outstanding experience was the Gumtree Sports Day a few years ago. Seeing so many users show up to play kids games in the park!
How well the business is continuing to grow after nearly 10 years while still being a “rough diamond”
Enthusiasm – everyone in the classifieds business, not just Gumtree, seems to have caught the bug.
Sanjay
Head of Marketing
To be a part of (and hopefully a cause for) a great growth story
The no frills, what you see is what you get personality of the website that informs the way we work
Redefining the Gumtree.com brand
Tripling the activity on the website by 2011
The lovely view of the river next to us
The warm and reassuring feedback from the customers I meet in person
Realizing how much Gumtree has grown in spite of how little has been put into it
Strong desire to see this site within the top 10 UK website
Phil
Head of Technology
*Lots* of interesting problems to solve.
Lots of interesting problems to solve!
New geographical model
Building a productive, happy, innovative product team
Smart colleagues
The 2007 Christmas party in Amsterdam. ‘Nuff said!
DavidData AnalystGumtree appealed to me as a small, rapidly growing organisation where your ideas and initiatives can make a visible difference. As my first graduate job, I relished the chance to quickly take on real responsibility and Gumtree offered that.You are always in touch with the whole team and can easily communicate with different areas of the business, from strategy to product to design and so on. There isn’t the same sense of departmental segregation as previous places I’ve worked. This integration also means a plentiful supply of opponents for the table football matches that are such a good way of spending a 10-minute break.One of my favorite projects I’ve worked on so far has to be the research into our UK expansion plans. It was amazing looking into and quantifying the prospective gains that we could make across the country. Getting a feel of Gumtree’s potential and where it could go made me really positive about being a part of it.My main goal at Gumtree is to learn new skills and techniques in data gathering and analysis, to help me better understand how business metrics reflect real world success.The fantastic facilities here are a great benefit to have. From the food in the kitchens and beers on a Friday to game consoles and Sky TV; you really couldn’t hope for more. Number one favourite has to be the table football though. A lot of fun!The most amazing time I’ve had with Gumtree so far has been getting to attend an awards ceremony that we were part sponsoring. It was a massive black tie event with bountiful champagne, posh nosh and glamour. That and Dara O’Briain was the host. Very funny man.The biggest surprise about working at Gumtree is the speed at which decisions can be made and implemented. Whenever you go away on holiday for a week, you come back and there’s a list of things that have changed and the site looks better or runs smoother.The common trait has to be the traditional Gumtree quirkiness. You won’t find one person working here who doesn’t have a certain "something" that sets them apart from everybody else. Definitely not an office full of bland suits!
MagdalenaCommunity & Business Development Lead, PolandA famous brand and original work. Four years ago when I started, it was very unusual to work in the Internet industry and I liked that.Great, young, open-minded, clever and inspiring people! An opportunity to learn new things every day and lovely food in the kitchen ;-)Gumtree venues (I was a Ministry of Fun for almost two years).Here are a few goals: make users happy, develop my skills and creativity and have fun fun fun.I have met great friends and interesting people and I have learnt a lot from them. With this experience I think, I could go in many directions in life.I have the chance to work with people from different countries and cultures. That is for me a very amazing experience. I think I would not have this opportunity in Poland or even in many other companies.It surprised me, that with such a small group of people we can do a lot and achieve so much! And, although we deal with very stressful situations every day, we still laugh and have a lot of fun! Yes, it is amazing - work can be fun!We are very passionate about our job and love playing foosball!
RadekVisual DesignerIt was a challenging environment to work in. With so many energetic, vibrant people, full of great ideas, the website epitomized what London is for me. I felt it would be great to work for Gumtree as I would be able to change/influence people’s life for the better.Great people to work with, people love Gumtree and there is nothing more satisfying than being able to help users to find jobs, flats, friends, etc.I have worked on many cool projects, from some of the CS tools such as the autoscreen system to listings page redesign and home page redesign.To use my knowledge and ideas and pick up some of that from others – to get Gumtree to the top.Richmond is a great place to work and also free biscuits are nice.I have had many nice memories – though I will never forget the Christmas party in Amsterdam.How fast it has become so popular.Passion to do better and achieve more in whatever we do.
ZsuzsaTrust and Safety RepresentativeAfter I had my son, I was looking for a part-time position. That’s when I found Gumtree in 2007.Gumtree is a fun place to be. My colleagues are great and the atmosphere is extraordinary as well. It doesn’t feel like a normal 9-6 job as every day brings a new challenge or an exciting new task.To make the work environment more sociable, we introduced a Gumtree game. Colleagues had to use the site for different reason. One of the most popular games was, when we split the team into five groups and each group had to buy something from the site to surprise the other group. My group ended up getting an old hi-fi system but among the presents was a very scary painting as well. I also helped out organizing the Q1-2-3-4 parties as a Ministry of Fun fun-maker.I would like Gumtree to be the safest online classifieds website, and I would like to gain as much knowledge as I can about the online classifieds business.I love the Tuesday military boot camps. I also like playing table football and running along the Thames.The Christmas party in Amsterdam in 2007. It was the best Christmas party ever.Gumtree grew so massively in the last couple of years. I remember when I started to work here not that many people were familiar with the site and nowadays almost everyone whom I meet knows Gumtree. It surprised me a lot that in a couple of years a site could be this successful.Gumtree people are passionate about the site. Everybody is enthusiastic about their job, about Gumtree and that’s why we can work together.
AlixSenior Commercial ManagerGreat community, a great userbase and great growth potential relying on a simple, easy-to-use productAutonomy and the ability to change the site locally, yet impact the experience of millions of usersLaunching new features like premium ads, setting-up and growing the display advertising business, and launching a subscription model for estate agentsTo make Gumtree the number one website to exchange goods and services, to find a job or a place to liveThe free cereal for breakfast!Writing a concept on a piece of paper and then seeing it live, a month later, in front of millions of usersA pretty international team for a local businessPassionate
MarkHead of SalesIt’s appetite for growth makes for both unknown potential as well as a truly exciting place to come to workI get to keep great company with a bunch of passionate and smart peopleEvery project we set out is to improve the user experience – so that’s a pretty cool direction!The environment – it promotes hard work yet in a strangely relaxed mannerDomination of the UK Classifieds and Community marketsTo call it amazing is probably a stretch of the imagination but I am constantly impressed by the information and experience sharing throughout the eBay Classifieds Group - There always seems such a wealth of real ‘tried it’ experience to call uponHow truly successful the group is; yet how much opportunity still existsPassion!
SimonFinance and Strategy ManagerTo help turn a small business into a big oneWe’re growing into a big businessBuilding our position across regions outside our stronghold of LondonProvide analysis and insight to help grow the business whether it be taking share or expanding the marketTurning around and looking at the view down the river!Watching the office grow from 30 people to 60 people in 6 monthsHow different the dynamic is between being a group of 30 people and 60Ambition
SuchiGeneral ManagerThe amazing potential to become the go-to-place for people to trade with each otherOur underlying business is rapidly changing every day, with key categories growing at 100%. Experiencing this kind of growth is a rare treat. More so, being able to rapidly deploy product and other initiatives and watch the curve bend even further is super satisfyingIn the last 6 months, we implemented the UK’s easiest “post an ad” experience, launched two new features that our community found valuable and swapped our own old search engine with a best of breed engine, paving the way for fundamental changes in search experience over the next monthsTo make Gumtree the go-to place for people to trade with each otherSmall effective self contained team – very empoweringTo be able to walk to the river and have a meeting in the sunshineEveryone around me outside work seems to have heard about GumtreeFirst, we play hard to win, and have fun. Also, we are open and honest, yet respectful. I love both those immensely!
KatieHead of CS, Local ClassifiedsThe exciting business potential and the opprotunity to take on a customer-facing functionNo two days are the same and the possibilities are endless. Plus, of course, the fruit smoothies in the fridge!Recent cool projects for Gumtree UK have included long-term product visioning, devising a cross-functional Trust strategy and determining the fraud technology roadmapFor Gumtree UK – transform the trust and safety of the site and truly deliver delightful and surprising customer service. And hopefully for the rest of the Local Classified businesses, helping them do the sameThe chance to make a difference; and the sheer variety of opportunities/things to tryOne outstanding experience was the Gumtree Sports Day a few years ago. Seeing so many users show up to play kids games in the park!How well the business is continuing to grow after nearly 10 years while still being a “rough diamond”Enthusiasm – everyone in the classifieds business, not just Gumtree, seems to have caught the bug.
SanjayHead of MarketingTo be a part of (and hopefully a cause for) a great growth storyThe no frills, what you see is what you get personality of the website that informs the way we workRedefining the Gumtree.com brandTripling the activity on the website by 2011The lovely view of the river next to usThe warm and reassuring feedback from the customers I meet in personRealizing how much Gumtree has grown in spite of how little has been put into itStrong desire to see this site within the top 10 UK website
PhilHead of Technology*Lots* of interesting problems to solve.Lots of interesting problems to solve!New geographical modelBuilding a productive, happy, innovative product teamSmart colleaguesThe 2007 Christmas party in Amsterdam. ‘Nuff said!The passion of our core usersHeterogeneity!
