Working at Automattic

Hey there! đź‘‹

If you found your way to this page from the maze of internet tubes, you’re probably interested in what it’s like working at a remote company like Automattic and what I did to apply. I’ve been working at Automattic since 2015. The past 5 years have been nothing short of amazing, I love the work that I do, the company I work for, and my amazing colleagues. My one regret? It’s that I wish I had applied sooner.

I wrote this page to provide quick links to everything Automattic related that I’ve written about, while also sharing my favorite resources.

Blog Posts:

The Story of how I became a Happiness Engineer at Automattic:

Part 1: The Application Process. I wrote about what I did before applying to Automattic, and why I held back so long before applying. Also if you’re a woman who is struggling w/ whether to apply to a dream job, you may specifically like that post since I go into detail with what I struggled with and what I did to overcome it.

Part 2: Interview Process. Automattic’s Interview process is unlike anything else! I go into detail about exactly what my experience was like.  If you’ve applied and have no idea what to expect, this is a great post to read.

Part 3: Paid Trial at Automattic. After I passed the Interview process I was invited to a Paid Trial. Where I got to do the work of a Happiness Engineer (and get paid for it), so both Automattic and I could decide if I was a great fit for the position. It’s an interesting read for anyone aspiring to make it to the Trial at Automattic.

Day in the Life of a Happiness Engineer:

I’ve written a post every year with an inside look into what a Happiness Engineer actually does. If you’re interested in what working for Automattic is like, I highly recommend checking them out.

2017: In this post I write about several days worth of work. I talk about the kind of issues I troubleshoot and is a great look into remote work.

2016: This post is perfect for those with questions about the scheduling flexibility that Automatticians have. I even share what my actual schedule looks like (Spoiler alert: I choose not to work Monday – Friday from 9am – 5pm)

2015: An older post that I wrote when traveling to NYC and working.

The Grand Meet Up:

As a remote company, Automattic flies all of it’s employees out for a few meet ups a year. The Grand Meet Up is the one time a year all Automattic employees get to see each other in person

2015: My first Grand Meet Up in Park City, Utah

Pictures from 2015: Company Photo and The Women of Automattic photo.

2016: Our first Meet Up in Whistler, Canada. Some pictures I took, and of course you can’t miss the bear-y special guest at the Closing Party.

2017: Our second (and final) Meet Up in Whistler. I go a bit more into detail about what happens at a Grand Meet Up (our schedule, what we work on, etc.).

Team Meetup:

Once a year all teams are flown to one location where we get to work together in person for a week.

2017 Sparta Meet Up in Nashville, TN. We. Are. Sparta! My team is amazing ❤️. In this post I talk about what it’s like to work in person for a week, what exactly our team did and some of my favorite moments from the week.

Remote Work:
Making Video Calls More Effective.

Resources:

You’ve probably found these links through the maze of internet tubes already, but just in case you haven’t… here are a few of my favorite reads about working/applying to Automattic:

Want to hear what Automatticians think of Automattic in their own words? Then you’ll love the YouTube series we have on Meet Our Colleagues (aka Automatticians)!

The a8cday tag on WordPress.com has different perspectives on what it’s like in the day of an Automattician: https://wordpress.com/tag/a8cday

OfficeToday is pretty cool, showing where some Automatticians are working from all over the world: https://officetoday.wordpress.com/

I’m a big fan of hearing other people’s stories- these were some of my personal favorites and helped me find the courage to apply:

I love how Sarah Blackstock describes’s her Happiness Engineer trial in gifs. (and so related to every single GIF).

Zandy talked about her story as a woman of Automattic, and what it was like to apply.

Jeremey wrote how he came to be at Automattic