2 minute read
The Disruptor
Wayfair is one of the world’s largest online retailers of furniture and homewares.
Raja Puthenchira Raman EU DIRECTOR OF SALES & SERVICE, WAYFAIR
How is Wayfair disrupting the traditional approach to selling homewares?
Wayfair is one of the world’s largest online destinations for the home, with more than 14 million items across home furnishings and decor. Wayfair has a 100 per cent in-house customer service team – including a growing hub in Galway and virtual teams across each province in Ireland – that helps reinvent the way people shop for their homes. Wayfair has completely changed the game in shopping for the home with advances in technology and innovation, making it easier than ever for shoppers to find exactly what they want across a worldclass selection of furniture and decor. From product discovery and selection, to purchase and delivery, all of Wayfair’s success is driven by its people: it’s a dynamic environment where our best-inclass talent moves fast, solves hard problems and consistently innovates to deliver for our customers. One example of this is our in-house developed technology platforms that ensure both a seamless customer experience and empowers employees in handling customer queries.
How is the Irish operation helping you to stay ahead of your competitors?
Galway has been a hub for our exceptional sales and service team in Europe for more than eleven years, and the team here has been a huge driver of Wayfair’s growth across the region. We’ve had tremendous support from the Irish government through IDA Ireland to help expand this Best-In-Class team over the years, and demonstrate that Wayfair is a compelling environment to attract top talent. We foster a collaborative, entrepreneurial approach where we encourage employees to be problem-solvers and handle issues independently. This combined with a wide range of competitive benefits and roles across several functions, from customer service, finance, supplier operations, recruitment, as well as our remote virtual roles, has positioned Wayfair Galway as a strong employer of choice in the region.
What is next for Wayfair in Ireland?
We’re demonstrating our commitment to the region by continuing to expand our team in Ireland as our business grows. We’re looking to hire an additional 225 roles to our virtual team globally before the end of the year. The virtual team has allowed us to tap into all of Ireland and provide new employment opportunities to a wider range of highly qualified candidates. These virtual employees share the same benefits as all Wayfair employees but with additional flexibility to work from home.
What is success to you?
Success means a strong team that feels empowered by the work they do each day. We’re focused on growing and developing our exceptional talent in Europe to deliver consistent, excellent customer service to our growing customer base here. We’re dedicated to giving our employees a strong path for growth, mobility within the company across various teams and levels, and the freedom to offer ideas for improvement to perfect the customer experience. wayfair.co.uk
