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Maintainers -ImageQuintin Coetzee, MBSc (UCT)

Welcome to OET!

Hi there! Welcome to Team OET! We're very happy to have you join us and be part of our mission. This Handbook page is dedicated to your getting started with OET (onboarding information). There's some really important information for you here, so please read through this page fully. If you have any onboarding or other People-related questions, feel free to contact our Head of People, Quintin Coetzee.

1. Signing your contract​

Please review and sign your contract as the first step. Ensure all details are correct, and feel free to ask our Head of People, Quintin or our Head of Operations and Strategy, Victor if you have any questions. The People Team will securely file your contract, but you should always keep a copy at hand in your own device(s) or storage.

Laptop and delivery information​

If you need a laptop for your role, please provide your delivery address so we can arrange for it to be shipped to you. Please let us know if there is any required access control information that we should give to the courier, as well as if there are any unsuitable days or times for delivery.

OET purchases linux laptops by default, and currently this is recommended for modelers and software developer roles. If your role requires a Windows or Mac device, or if linux laptops are not available in your region, let us know and we will arrange one for you.

2. Productivity tools: your Google Workspace account​

You have access to Google Workspace through your OET account. This includes all main Google Applications: Gmail, Calendar, Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, etc.. Use Google Meet for external calls (please try and ensure that you have a neat, peaceful place that is conducive to constructive external communication to host your calls). After signing your contract, you will need to sign in to your Google account. You will receive a link to create the account along with a temporary password in the email.

Important: Enter the temporary password included in the email you received and make sure to change it right away for security purposes.

Make sure to set up a profile picture, a password (use a teammate’s signature as an example). It is also recommended to open a Cal.com and integrate it with your organizational Google Calendar, and include this link in your signature, so people can book meetings without the usual availability ping-pong needed to agree on dates and times!

Please also attend to this within 24 hours of receiving the email, to avoid it timing out. If it does time out, please let us know, and we’ll resend it.

Google Drive​

Project folder access is granted as needed. To request access, contact the relevant project lead / manager. You will, however, have unrestricted access to the following folders from the start:

  • OET Templates: has useful formatted OET-branded templates and files that could serve as a starting point for projects and tasks. If you develop a file that can be of general use, please upload it there!
  • Weekly all-company meetings: has minutes and presentations of internal meetings, such as the weekly Tuesday meeting and knowledge-sharing sessions

3. Everyday communications: Discord​

Discord is important for more than just meetings — it’s a central hub for our internal communication. Please take a look at the Discord section of our Remote Working page to see how we use Discord to communicate, and stay updated on team discussions, project statuses, and any announcements.

Using Discord instead of Teams can be quite a change for many! If you’re new to the platform, it would be a great idea to watch a tutorial video. You should have received an invitation to join the OET Discord channel in your welcome email. If you did not, please reach out to whoever you have been liaising with to request that they share the link. We use the OET Discord channel for most internal communications. It’s a versatile platform with spaces for text and voice communication, and it’s where we encourage you to:

  • Hold internal meetings
  • Collaborate in co-working sessions
  • Engage in topic- and project-specific discussions

You will receive a "Welcome to OET" email with detailed instructions on how to join our Discord channel, along with the Laptop and delivery and First Day Information

Welcome message​

On your first day, please make sure you go to the #welcome channel and say hi to your new teammates. Feel free to personalize your message, and say a bit about yourself, your background, and what you will be working on. You can use previous messages as templates or for ideas. This will allow your new teammates to say hi to you, and get to know you a bit better.

We will also welcome you during the first weekly all-hands meeting you attend (wherein we'll ask you to introduce yourself, and share any fun info about yourself that you'd like to). If you don't already have an invitation for that meeting (which takes place on Tuesdays), please request one from Quintin.

Prio talk thread​

Everyone has a "prio talk" thread in the Discussion channel that must please be updated every Monday with:

  • A list of upcoming tasks in priority order.
  • Ongoing updates (by moving tasks from "Doing" to "Done)."
  • A "Backlog" or "Ideas" section (ideally separated and pinned to the thread) if you have things that may be done in future. Not only does this thread help with broad organizational oversight and planning, but with everyone working remotely, this practice helps the team stay connected with regards to what people are up to each week and encourages helpful exchange on topics.

Use markdown format for titles and bullets (follow examples from Max or Victor's thread). Markdown enhances readability and consistency; ChatGPT or other LLMs can help you convert files to markdown, or structure them using this format from the get-go. For guides to Discord-specific markdown, you can go here and here. If you’re new at OET and are unsure of what to add to this section, please ask your manager or whomever assigns you tasks. It’s totally fine if they’re just ideas or suggestions.

4. First day information​

On (or possibly before) your first day, you will receive additional information on what to expect, including details for any introductory calls. One of these will be with our Head of People, Quintin Coetzee. He will schedule this at a time that is convenient for both of you, generally within your first 2 weeks with OET. You may need to book meetings in Google Calendar if they are not scheduled by us.

When doing so for external meetings, please ensure that a link to Google Meet is included (it should be by default). For internal meetings, whenever possible, please remove this link, and add the Discord channel you intend to use in the “place” field of the meeting, as we prefer to hold internal meetings over Discord whenever possible. You can choose any empty Discord channel for your chats. Please feel free to reach out to Quintin with any onboarding questions. He’ll be happy to answer them.

5. Code development​

GitHub​

GitHub is our primary tool for code development and collaboration. Please:

  • Share the email associated with your GitHub account so we can add you to the OET Organization. Feel free to alert Sid or someone else from the software development team so they can enable this for you. If you don’t already have a (free) account, please create one .
  • Use it to coordinate with peers, co-develop code, and contribute to our open-source libraries.

ZIB​

OET has access to Zuse Institute Berlin's (ZIB) high performance computing service, and use it to run all our modeling workloads that are too big for a laptop. If you are a Modeler/Developer whose project requires access, and don't yet have access, please reach out to Quintin. After he actions your request, you will get an email from Zuse Institute Berlin, asking you to activate your account. Once you have access, please go to our internal ZIB handbook for instructions on getting started.

6. Internal knowledge management​

OET Handbook​

The OET Handbook is our centralized online resource for policies, procedures, and guidelines. It is accessible to all OET members and can be modified collaboratively. Please familiarize yourself with it, its style guide, and its contribution guide (all within the Handbook). Things to Do and Remember:

  • Add yourself to our Team Data Bank: In your first week, please add yourself to the awesome Team Data Bank that Fabrizio created. This will put your info in our website's Team section, and into the globe in our Handbook. If you have questions about this process, please speak with Fabrizio.
  • It's a work in progress: Our Handbook is always evolving, and many pages within are still placeholders. If you are looking for specific information and cannot find it, please reach out to one of the following Operations Team members; (Victor, or Cristina).
  • Feel free to be proactive: The Handbook is not only a place for you to get information, but also for you to contribute information, if you so wish. Check out the project board and see if you find a section you would like to add or develop. We follow an Handbook-first approach. Please follow the instructions provided under Handbook.

7. Other administrative tools​

Remote.com​

Remote.com, our partner Employer of Record, is used for employment-related processes, such as contract management, payroll, and absence requests. Please continually ensure that your profile is up-to-date, and reach out to Quintin if you have any questions. You can also contact Remote directly, via their general email, and they will direct your query to the relevant department. If you want, you can CC Quintin into the initial email so he is kept in comms. Link to Remote.com

Navan is used for travel and, soon, also for expense management. Once you’ve received your invitation to join the platform, please create an account, and then use this platform to book travel and submit expense reports as needed. Link to Navan

Greenhouse​

Only team members involved with hiring will interact with Greenhouse. This platform is used to:

  • Create or modify job openings.
  • Manage recruitment workflows.
  • Interview and correspond with candidates. If you are asked to support recruitment activities, you will receive specific guidance, likely from Quintin. If you have any questions about the platform, please reach out to him. Link to Greenhouse

8. Time tracking​

We track team member hours, definitely not to micromanage, but rather to importantly plan our overarching work pipeline, make key business development and hiring decisions, and manage project contributions effectively. Please:

  • Open, bookmark and look for your name in the OET Staff Time Tracking file
  • Fill out the time tracking boxes next to your name in the “Time tracking” sheet with the respective hours for each task and month.
  • Liaise with your project leads to estimate the time commitment for each task.
  • If a task code is missing, reach out to Victor or Cristina to request one (do NOT create one yourself). Please fill this out as far forwards as possible. You can always go back in and edit your estimates or assumptions later. They may very well change over time. Go to the "Time Tracking" sheet, find your name, select the tasks and projects you'll be spending time on (including bank holidays and other overheads), and fill the corresponding boxes. Full-time commitments (i.e., 160 hours per month) at any given time should be tracked in advance for at least the following two months. If you are unsure regarding your assignments, please reach out. Link to time tracking sheet

9. Key contacts​

  • For any questions about starting with OET (the hiring and onboarding process), understanding policies and People processes, your comfort in working with OET, our values and culture, interpersonal relations matters, updating your personal information, or any other People-related matters, please reach out (ideally via Discord) to Quintin.
  • For questions about tools, interpreting internal policies or procedures, or any other Operations and Business Strategy-related matter, please feel free to reach out (ideally via Discord) to Victor Martinez, our Head of Operations & Strategy.
  • For questions about payroll, tax, and benefits administration, please reach out to our Employer of Record and Contracting platform, Remote.com, at help@remote.com.
  • For all other questions, please ask your Team Lead.