We’ve all heard about how awesome the Google office is. Spending your mornings in the ball pit brainstorming app ideas, followed by a free plate of organic salad at the cafeteria (and a post-lunch stint in the nap pod). While the Googleplex is out of reach for most of us – never fear. Because here at KJR, we’ve got office cool down. Recently named one of Anthill Magazine’ top 100 coolest companies in Australia, follow our simple steps to making your business the kind of place people genuinely want to be a part of (no ball pit required).

Think young (even if you’re not)

Frank Sinatra practically invented cool, so we should listen when he urges us to stay young at heart. KJR’s Head of Talent and Culture Rebekah Di Blasi agrees, ‘We’re a twenty year-old company, but we really try to have more of a start-up culture.’ Part of this comes down to rewarding the team for their hard work and dedication. Whether that means staging a cross-regional Star Wars fitness challenge, company Olympics or hosting regular out-of-office digital culture workshops – it’s essential to break up the working week with something different. While no office culture is the same, it pays to keep things collaborative, flexible and, whenever possible, a little bit ridiculous.

Stay accountable and autonomous

No one likes getting told what to do all the time. As Rebekah explains, start-up culture is just as much about having an agile management strategy as it is about rewards and incentives: ‘Agile means having a clear focus and strategy so that everyone is working towards the same goal. But outside of that there’s a lot of autonomy ­– particularly among the leadership group ­– about how you might want to get there.’ When leaders allow for autonomous control, it means the team can take ownership over what’s happening. And that’s when the rewards really start to be felt. Because there’s often nothing cooler than feeling genuinely satisfied with the work you’ve done.

Stay #batshitcrazy

Sometimes, being a verified oddball comes with the territory when you’re really good at what you do. But being part of a team should never mean having to sacrifice who you are (even if who you are is a little bit batshit crazy). ‘It’s really important for us that everyone knows they can absolutely come to work and be themselves,’ says Rebekah. If your team respect each other and are truly at ease, then they’re going to put themselves into their work each and every day. At KJR, we’ve even created a hashtag about it (#batshitcrazy). Because, in the end, the craziest thing of all is to stifle your individuality.

Connect with Rebekah Di Blasi Head of Talent & Culture at KJR.