Max on five years at Oliver: From remote beginnings to global impact

This summer marks Max’s five-year anniversary at Oliver. He joined during the height of the COVID pandemic, onboarded completely remotely and only saw the inside of the office nine months later. Max is a regional manager Germany, Austria, Switzerland at Oliver Healthcare Packaging.

In these five questions, Max looks back on how it all started, shares what keeps him going and tells us what makes him proud when he reflects on the past years.

1. Do you remember your first day?

I do. I didn’t meet anyone. I joined right in the middle of COVID, so everything was remote. It actually took me nine months before I visited the site for the first time.

Still, it felt like the right place from the start. The job was similar to what I had done before, but the culture was more close-knit. Oliver is the company I’ve worked at the longest, and I haven’t regretted that decision for a second. 

2. Is there something your colleagues might not know about you?

Probably a few things. I’m heavily tattooed, though only in places I can easily cover. Most people in the office know, but others don’t.

What most people definitely don’t know is that I paint miniatures for tabletop wargaming. My last piece took 30 hours and was commended in a competition. It’s a detailed hobby that really helps me focus. I also recently started long-distance cycling. I like staying active, but I have more hobbies than I have time.

3. What’s something that’s typically ‘you’ at the office?

When I walk in, I always say “Goeiedag,” even though I’m not Dutch. I try to greet people in Dutch. That probably stands out.

Most of the time, I work remotely and travel a lot, so I mostly stay in touch through Teams. 

4. What’s a moment from the past five years you’d like to relive?

Definitely the negotiation workshop I co-hosted in Singapore. It was a full-day training with about twenty participants. Very intense, very rewarding.

I’m part of a team of six internal trainers and I really enjoy that role. I’m looking forward to running more workshops like that around the world. 

5. What are you most proud of?

Definitely the way the sales team has evolved. Despite all the changes, we’ve grown together and developed a more professional and strategic way of working and I’m very proud of that.

If I had to pick one Oliver value that fits me best, it would be Win as a team. I can’t sell if operations doesn’t produce, and they can’t produce if I don’t sell. We depend on each other, and that’s what makes it work.