Core
- Ross McGraw works for a company in Switzerland from his home in New York City.He travels to Switzerland regularly and loves the active, outdoor culture.He's still working on balancing the goals of the business with taking vacations in the busy summer season.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with 39-year-old Ross McGraw, from New York City. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
I've always worked for US-based companies, but when Hammerhead — the cycling tech company where I was chief marketing and revenue officer — was acquired, I was looking for the next big thing.
I was referred to Core, which makes core temperature monitors for professional athletes. I enjoy scaling businesses based on a strong technical product, so I was intrigued — especially since I used to be a professional triathlete.
Before I took the job as global VP and head of Core in April 2023, I went over to Zurich and met with Wulf Glatz, the CEO and founder.
It's quite an international office, and knowing that English was commonly spoken made me feel comfortable. I really believed in what they were making, so that was super exciting to me. The role I was hired for was new. The Swiss team works hybrid, and we have one other US employee working remotely.
Core
I love the active, outdoor culture in Switzerland
I tend to visit Zurich for about a week every two months. It's not in my contract, but I choose to do it. I align my trips with a board meeting, our quarterly team offsites, and the summer and winter all-day outings.
Even though I work remotely when I am home in the US, I do spend a lot of time with my colleagues. There's one other colleague who happens to live in New York and works remotely. We sometimes hang out and work through a problem or two. That's been really nice, because it can get lonely.
The office outings can be quite adventurous, certainly beyond what most US companies would do. We've climbed mountains, done trail runs, played water polo, and curled. On Mondays, colleagues often talk about the cool hikes, ski trips, or climbs they've done over the weekend.
I start work at 4 a.m.
One of the big challenges has been keeping predominantly Swiss hours.
I usually start work around 4 a.m., as Zurich is six hours ahead of New York. I chose to work these hours so I can overlap with the team. At that time, I'll keep my camera off on calls and walk around the house so I don't wake the family.
In theory, my day should end around 1 p.m., but sometimes, it creeps over, as we are still a startup. I also consult for other businesses in the afternoon. Working the hours I do helps keep it very clear that it's out-of-hours time for Core, and I don't mix the two.
I also get to spend a lot of time with my son. I usually take a break during Switzerland's lunchtime to walk him to school. My wife and I will continue walking through the park, then I will head back home to work.
People at Core often take their lunch breaks and head out, which is a big cultural difference from the US, where people often eat at their desks.
I try to pick my son up from school when I can. He's soccer-obsessed, so I'll sometimes join him in a match. I don't see too many parents who get to do that and work a full day.
Ross McGraw
European summer holiday culture can be challenging
The culture around annual leave has been both beneficial and something to navigate.
When I started, we were rebuilding, and there was a smaller staff, so I didn't take anywhere near the 25 days of annual leave CORE offers, but I'm heading in the right direction. This summer, I'm taking two weeks off — it's not very American, and I have never done it in recent years.
It's normal in Europe to take big chunks of time off in July or August, which has been challenging.
This is our athletes' biggest season. We just had one of our largest months in the business's history, which coincided with when we had the most people out of the office.
I encourage people to take holidays, but sometimes, this conflicts with business, which is difficult to reconcile. We're still struggling to find a good balance. We've tried to find ways to de-risk that period of time by having colleagues in different countries offer more support when others are taking a break, and vice versa.
When the company was smaller, it used to be common that you couldn't really log off, but in this current vacation period, I can recall just one or two people needing to respond to something while they've been off.
I love working for a European business in the US — but you need to be realistic
My wife's a travel writer, and we have continued to travel even since my son was born. He's seven and has already been to 30 countries and seven continents. I enjoy teaching my son that I work with people in other countries.
For the past two summers, we've gone to Zurich for family trips. Our son is about the same age as the Core CEO's son, so they often play together, and we have barbecues and go swimming in the lake. As I'm heading up Core's growth alongside him, I'm a lot closer to him than I have been with previous bosses.
For anyone in the US considering taking a remote role for a European company, there's a lot to consider. I love it, but you need to be realistic with your own schedule. Do you mind getting up early? Can you travel a lot?
For me, those are positives. But for others, they could be deterrents. Make sure you understand what is being expected of you before you take the leap.
